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8 August 2016

Jeremy Corbyn allies sweep to victory on Labour’s NEC

Momentum have taken six out of six of the places up for grabs on the party's ruling NEC. 

By Stephen Bush

Jeremy Corbyn has been given a boost after Momentum, the organisation devoted to supporting his leadership, took all six of the seats elected by party members on the party’s ruling national executive committee, a net gain of two. Ellie Reeves, who had the support of Labour First and Progress, has lost her seat on the NEC, as has Johanna Baxter, an independent.

Separately, Nick Forbes and Alice Perry were re-elected to the councillors’ section of the NEC, which has 33 members in total elected by Labour’s composite elements (trade unions, affiliated societies, MPs, local councillors and the Shadow Cabinet). Forbes is a Corbynsceptic while Perry is seen as a swing voter.  

In practice, the election means little for the balance of power on the ruling executive, where Corbyn already enjoyed a narrow majority in the full NEC. In the NEC’s many sub-committees, which are composed out of the party’s composite elements, it ensures that the members’ representative will be a solid supporter of Corbyn’s, but the balance will still be made out by other representatives. The new representatives will take post after party-conference.

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