Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn has refused to stand down from his position as leader in the event of a new leadership contest, and has vowed to fight for a better deal for workers in the Brexit negotiations with the European Union.
Speaking at meeting of his supporters Mr. Cameron, who has been under pressure from a section of the party to stand down from the leadership position for his “lackluster” performance in the referendum campaign especially for sidestepping the immigration issue, said that he is “not afraid” to talk about an issue as important as immigration. “I believe migration has enriched our country, our culture and communities. However, rapid changes to communities can bring tensions and strains on underfunded public services,” he said.
Attributing tensions and job insecurities in the labour market due to immigration to low wages in de-regulated markets, Mr. Corbyn pointed to the Migrant Impact Fund introduced by the Labour government in 2008 as a way of helping local communities meet the impact of a sudden increase in migrant population.
Analyzing the causes behind the referendum vote he said the biggest support for leave came from those regions which had seen de-industrialisation and no reinvestment, areas where dispossessed communities felt the full force of austerity measures and the government’s economic failure.
“These are communities that had been abandoned from the mining industries collapse onwards, where high-skill unionized jobs were lost in the 1980s and 90s and had not been replaced, or were replaced by insecure low paid employment,” he said.
“If you overlay the map of central government investment in local government over a map of poverty in Britain, they would be exactly the same. Those areas with the deepest poverty, the highest levels of unemployment, and the most insecure levels of employment conditions for those in work have also had the biggest cuts in central government support.”
Mr. Corbyn however, struck a forward looking note by saying that the Labour Party would be part of the EU negotiations to “protect jobs, pensions and wages” in the U.K.
Published - June 25, 2016 11:19 pm IST
