Trade union firebrand Sharon Graham has told Sky News Sir Keir Starmer only has a year to recover from Labour’s disastrous slump and said her union, Unite, may stop bankrolling the party if it doesn’t start backing workers.
Speaking to Sky News as the TUC conference began in Brighton, the Unite leader said parts of the government’s workers’ rights legislation were now a “burnt-out shell” and her members would feel duped unless Labour stuck to its manifesto promises.
In recent years, Unite has been one of Labour ‘s biggest backers, handing its previous leader, Jeremy Corbyn around £3m to fight the 2019 general election under Ms Graham’s left-wing predecessor, “Red Len” McCluskey.
Sir Keir Starmer and Angela Rayner, who resigned on Friday. Pic: PA
Since succeeding Mr McCluskey in 2021, Ms Graham has said there will be no “blank cheque” for the party, yet the union’s affiliation fees to Labour are currently £1.4 million a year.
In a thinly-veiled threat to stop bankrolling Labour, she told Sky News: “What they need to do is to be Labour. People were crying for them to get in, wanting them to get in. I wanted them to get in, but they’re not doing the things we thought they would do.
“Winter fuel [payments], how did that happen? They’re not backing workers. Grangemouth and Lindsey [oil] refineries look like they’re going to close. Not backing council workers, cost of living crisis, a 38% increase in food since 2021. People need Labour to be Labour so they can relieve the pressure that’s on them.
“We are affiliated to Labour, but it’s harder and harder to justify that if they’re not backing workers. We’re a trade union. I am general secretary of a trade union that backs workers. I expect Labour to back workers.
“If…
