LABOUR abandoned its lengthy and vastly expensive legal pursuit of five former employees today, amid recriminations over its cost and the architect of its legal strategy standing in the general election.
Labour director for legal affairs Alex Barros-Curtis has been imposed as the party’s election candidate in the Cardiff West constituency despite being described as “unknown in Wales.”
He faces demands to explain why the party had pursued the five Corbyn-era staff members over the leaking of a report exposing malfeasance and racist attitudes in the Labour apparatus, given the massive legal bill incurred.
It is estimated that the case could have left the labour movement around £5 million worse off, adding in Labour’s costs, undisclosed settlements with some of those named in the report and the costs of Unite, which represented the employees.
The five — Mr Corbyn’s communications chief Seumas Milne, chief of staff Karie Murphy and staff members Harry Hayball, Laura Murray and Georgie Robertson — were accused of having leaked the report to damage Sir Keir Starmer, which they all strenuously denied.
Three separate investigations, by an expert hired by the party, by top lawyer Martin Forde and by the Information Commissioners Office, all failed to identify a leaker.
Lawyers for the five issued a short statement today, saying: “The party is discontinuing its legal claims against Karie Murphy, Seumas Milne, Georgie Robertson, Harry Hayball and Laura Murray on a ‘no order as to costs’ basis. The five welcome the resolution of the claims.”
Labour had been sued by individuals named in the report, which primarily addressed Labour’s handling of anti-semitism complaints but also exposed the factional malice of anti-Corbyn officials.
The conduct revealed included horrific racist abuse directed at left MP Diane Abbott and the secret diversion of funds to bolster right-wing candidates in the 2017 election.
Those taking action against Labour included senior officials whose deplorable conduct was exposed and campaigners from the hard-right Labour Against Antisemitism group. The party had previously settled with these claimants.
A senior Labour MP said: “The parachuting of Alex Barros-Curtis into a safe Labour seat is a disgrace now we know what he is responsible for.
“This Starmer-appointed official has spent millions of pounds of the Labour Party’s money dragging former party employees through the courts for four years, pursuing a pointless and failed political vendetta.
“[Barros-Curtis] has wasted eye-watering sums which could have made the difference in key seats in this election.
“But the Labour leadership has now rewarded him with a safe seat with which he has no connection.
“This is yet another case of faction first, before the interests of either the party or the country.”
Labour national executive member Mish Rahman said: “We’ve just had two weeks of campaigning dominated by Starmer’s attacks on the candidacies of Diane Abbott and Faiza Shaheen, driving more minority ethnic voters away from the party.
“And now we learn that millions of pounds in members’ money has instead been wasted in pursuit of former staff who documented prejudice and abuse by the leadership’s supporters.”
A Momentum spokesman said: “Millions of pounds that could have been spent on campaigning in key seats have instead been poured down the drain, all driven by factional obsession.
“Worse still, the man responsible for this failure has been rewarded with a parachute into a seat as a Labour MP, against the wishes of local members.”
Mr Forde, whose inquiry looked into the revelations of the original report, as well as its leaking, and who has since been cold-shouldered by the Starmer leadership, said: “It is a great shame that money has been spent on legal fees that could have been spent on the general election.”
