News / Politics

Veteran filmmaker Ken Loach ‘expelled’ from Labor Party for refusing to disown left-wing groups

Saturday, 14 August 2021 4:48 PM [ Last Update: Saturday, 14 August 2021 4:52 PM ]

Ken Loach specializes in producing films which critique social and economic injustice in Britain

In the latest sign of continuing deep purges in the opposition Labor Party, a veteran filmmaker has been expelled from the party for allegedly refusing to distance himself from other people kicked out recently.

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Lifelong socialist Ken Loach has decried a “purge” in the party and claims he is the victim of a “witch-hunt” presided over by Labor leader Keir Starmer.

Loach, 85, is best remembered for producing iconic British films, notably Poor Cow (1967), Kes (1969), The Wind that Shakes the Barley (2006) and I, Daniel Blake (2016).

Taking to the social media platform Twitter, Loach claimed the reason for his expulsion centers on his refusal to “disown” members of four “small left-wing groups” already expelled by Starmer’s Labor Party.

In a series of tweets, Loach condemned Starmer’s leadership style, defiantly proclaiming that “Starmer and his clique will never lead a party of the people”.

'Starmer and his clique will never lead a party of the people. We are many, they are few. Solidarity.' KL
— Ken Loach & Sixteen Films (@KenLoachSixteen) August 14, 2021

The four small left-wing groups to which Loach makes reference were all expelled from Labor last month on the grounds their views and positions were “not compatible” with the party’s “values”.

The groups are comprised of: Resist, Socialist Appeal, Labor in Exile Network and Labor Against the Witchhunt.

The latter two groups in particular have been highly critical of the suspension and expulsion of left-wing Labor Party members since the advent of Starmer’s leadership in April 2020.

All four groups have voiced vociferous opposition to Starmer’s campaign to tackle purported anti-Semitism in the Labor Party, which the groups view as a cynical attempt by Starmer to appease the Zionist lobby both within the party and in the British political establishment as a whole.

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It is worth noting Loach is a close ally of former Labor Party leader, Jeremy Corbyn, who in stark contrast to Starmer was opposed to appeasing the Zionist lobby in the UK.