“In Labour, the left is taking a battering from a vengeful right. But we have recent evidence that things can be very, very different. Always Red is a salutary reminder of that — a fascinating, funny, moving read, but above all an authoritative argument for the capacity of the labour movement to change the world.”

“Always Red is a good story about the way that trade unionism can drastically change people’s lives. [Len] McCluskey was brought up in the Kirkdale area of Liverpool in a house with an outside toilet, by a mother and father who had lost a child to tuberculosis. He slept in his parents’ bedroom until he was 10, and left education at 18 to work on Liverpool’s docks as a planman, drawing up all-important diagrams of ships and their cargo. The book’s best section evokes the dazzling world in which he found himself, and the constant sense that without the unions’ collective vigilance, many of the pillars of working-class life would come crashing down – something that began in earnest with the arrival in power of Margaret Thatcher.”

“Former Unite leader and fervent critic of Starmer, Len McCluskey, claims that the leader ‘reneged’ on his commitment to restore the whip to his predecessor, Jeremy Corbyn. Furthermore, in a visceral excerpt from his new book Always Red, McCluskey comments on how Starmer could ‘finish Labour’ due to his unrelenting crackdown on the left.”

“Corbynism has ‘changed British politics forever’ and Unite’s role in the movement is one of his proudest achievements, Len McCluskey told a packed launch for his autobiography Always Red on Wednesday night.

The former Unite general secretary’s book traces his life from growing up in Liverpool and becoming a shop steward when workers’ industrial power in this country was at its height in the 1970s to becoming general secretary and helping shift Labour to the left from 2010, culminating in the ‘extraordinary journey’ of the Jeremy Corbyn movement’s challenge to British capitalism.”

“Keir Starmer agreed a backroom deal to lift Jeremy Corbyn’s suspension from Labour but then rowed back on it following a backlash, Len McCluskey has claimed.

The former Unite chief warned the Labour leader ‘risks becoming fixed in the public’s mind as someone who can’t be trusted’ – citing both the episode and Sir Keir’s decision to abandon some leadership election pledges.”

“Jeremy Corbyn ally and former Unite Union leader Len McCluskey has launched a blistering attack on Sir Keir Starmer, revealing details of private conversations that risk splitting Labour down the middle.

In his autobiography, due to be released later this month, the hard-left union baron accuses Sir Keir of being ‘dishonourable’ and ‘wrongheaded’. And in a dire warning to the party, the life-long Labour affiliate warns the party’s leader faces the damning possibility of being seen as deceitful in the eyes of the public.”

“Sir Keir Starmer is ‘bereft of vision’ and needs to let voters know what he stands for, Unite General Secretary Len McCluskey has told the BBC…

[Len McCluskey] was speaking to the BBC at the launch of his autobiography, Always Red. The launch party, in a room above a Westminster pub, was packed with leading figures from the Labour left, including former shadow chancellor John McDonnell and ex-communications chief Seumas Milne.

Mr Corbyn gave a speech praising Mr McCluskey’s leadership of Unite – and for his ‘support and friendship during some very difficult times’, particularly during the failed ‘coup’ against him in 2016.”

“Former union boss Len McCluskey has accused Sir Keir Starmer of going back on a private deal to readmit Jeremy Corbyn to the Labour party.

The former general secretary of the Unite union said Sir Keir was ‘dishonourable’ and would become someone the public would not trust.”

“Former Unite boss Len McCluskey has accused Keir Starmer of breaking his promise to let Jeremy Corbyn back into the Labour party.

Mr McCluskey claimed that Mr Starmer had reneged on a pledge to readmit the former leader back into Labour’s ranks…

The story was redacted from review copies of Mr McCluskey’s new autobiography Always Red due to its sensitive nature.”

“Len McCluskey has revealed for the first time his detailed recollection of negotiations with Keir Starmer to readmit Jeremy Corbyn to the Labour party, accusing the leader of reneging on private promises.

The former Unite general secretary, who stepped down last month, said Starmer ‘risks becoming fixed in the public’s mind as someone who can’t be trusted’. Writing in the Guardian, he gives an account of the private conversations – a section redacted in review copies of his memoir Always Red because of its sensitivity.”

Read the full article here.

“If [Keir Starmer] is not careful, he risks becoming fixed in the public’s mind as someone who can’t be trusted. Sadly, my own experience of dealing with Starmer – as leader of Labour’s largest trade union affiliate until last month – offers nothing to dispel this image…

When Starmer took over, I hoped for good relations between us. To begin with, that’s how they were. Contrary to what might be expected, I spoke to Starmer far more than I ever did Jeremy Corbyn. But that all changed after Starmer’s destructive decision to suspend his predecessor from the party in October last year.

As I explain in greater depth in my book, Always Red, the final breakdown came not over the suspension itself – although I thought that a hot-headed act – but when Starmer chose to break an honest deal agreed between us for Corbyn’s readmission to the party.”

Read the full article here.