Ken Loach Defends And Praises Jeremy Corbyn

The left-wing filmmaker Ken Loach has defended and praised Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn and placed the blame squarely on the shoulders of disloyal MPs for the turmoil that Labour is in right now. When Ken Loach spoke to James O’Brien on LBC on Tuesday to discuss his film, I, Daniel Blake, he spoke disparagingly about how the Tory government is treating the poor.

James O’Brien then chose to ask Ken Loach indirectly why Jeremy Corbyn and the Labour Party are not able to make the same point in a strong enough manner that Loach makes in his films when he asked, “Why is the Labour Party failing to make the case that you’re making in cinemas, in Parliament?”

Ken Loach’s reply was that the while 60 percent of Labour voters chose Jeremy Corbyn, the vast majority of Labour MPs right now don’t represent the voices of these people, nor Corbyn’s vision. As well as not addressing his policies, most Labour MPs are unable to deliver what the people most need and this is severely affecting Jeremy Corbyn’s leadership.

“The problem lies with the Labour MPs who don’t represent the party membership, that voted 60 percent or more for Jeremy Corbyn. They don’t promote the policies and so the leadership of Jeremy Corbyn and John McDonnell is left stranded, the very policies that people need. If you just want a three word slogan, that’s not his style.”

Ken Loach also denied that Jeremy Corbyn was losing crucial support due to “absence of leadership,” as Huffington Post reported. He said that he felt strongly that Corbyn’s general rhetoric lends “justice to complicated subjects” and suggested that Labour MPs choosing to defy him was what was really behind the awful polling for Labour.

When James O’Brien broached the topic of Owen Jones having distanced himself from Jeremy Corbyn after the Brexit vote, Loach said that the media coverage of Brexit was what he called “an argument over two sections of the Right.”

“The referendum’s a big issue but the European Union’s a club for employers. It promotes privatisation and supports employers against workers’ rights. It’s a difficult subject for the Left and I think Jeremy’s arguments reflected that.”

Tony Blair was backed by people like Rupert Murdoch. Jeremy Corbyn is backed by people like Ken Loach.

Just think about that for a moment. pic.twitter.com/9bYcjkJ29B

— Scott Nelson (@SocialistVoice) February 17, 2017

James O’Brien hinted that individuals like Owen Jones may be deserting Jeremy Corbyn due to what they think is his failure to step up to the plate and really fight, but Ken Loach refused to be drawn into this argument and again asserted that Labour MPs were simply not doing what Labour voters would like them to do, including following Jeremy Corbyn’s policies.

“The overwhelming central point is you’ve got to look at the vast number of MPs who refuse to put out what the members want and what the leadership is asking.

Ken Loach did have kind words for Debbie Abrahams, the Shadow Pensions Secretary, thanks to her work at abolishing assessments at the Department of Work and Pensions. These assessments have been allowing the Department of Work and Pensions to completely overrule doctors who report that benefit claimants they are treating are unable to work.

This is a subject that Loach feels deeply about and one in which I, Daniel Blake delves deeply into, with the story revolving around one 59-year-old man’s terrible treatment by the UK’s benefits system. Ken Loach has previously suggested that his story was lost to many reporters and that the BBC was only interested in discussing benefits cheats and those who refuse to look for work during interviews, as Huffington Post noted. When Ken Loach’s film was released, Jeremy Corbyn suggested that Theresa May should watch it during Prime Minister’s Questions that week.

Do you agree with Ken Loach’s comments defending Jeremy Corbyn and do you think he is right to blame other Labour MPs for failing to deliver on Corbyn’s policies?

[Featured Image by Gareth Cattermole/Getty Images]