Starmer’s allies say he will decide when he returns from holiday on August 15 whether to take disciplinary action against Lisa Nandy, the shadow secretary, who was pictured talking to striking CWU workers in her Wigan constituency on Monday. Three members of the shadow cabinet told the Guardian Starmer should let the matter drop. “She’s talking to her constituents, who are on a picket line, to find out how they feel,” said one. “There’s a big difference between that and standing in a queue with a placard.” Another said that by issuing a memo urging front workers not to picket during the recent RMT strike, Starmer’s office had resorted to “the worst of all worlds, judging each strike on its merits and deciding which one they like ». A third shadow cabinet member said Starmer’s memo, sent ahead of last month’s RMT strike, was a specific response to Boris Johnson’s government seeking to blame Labor for the rail disruption. “At that point in time, helping Johnson in that effort would be a little foolish.” Several weeks later, they suggested the ongoing row risked undermining Labour’s policies to tackle the cost of living. Nandy’s team insists she gave Starmer’s office advance notice of her intention to attend the CWU picket in her constituency. But a senior Labor source insisted she was made clear Starmer was not expecting to see pictures of shadow cabinet members on a picket line. The account of the meeting remains disputed between the two sides. An outraged party councilor described Starmer’s office’s handling of the matter as “a car crash”, adding that it was “predictable and foreseeable” that with a series of strikes expected over the summer, the picketing ban would lead to continued backlash. . Two other front MPs also attended CWU talks: shadow employment minister Imran Hussain in Bradford and Labor whip Navendu Mishra in Stockport. They are expected to talk to both but not fire them. Deputy Labor leader Angela Rayner is understood to be one of those shadow cabinet members skeptical of the picketing ban and has raised her concerns with Starmer – but stuck to the agreed position, tweeting support of the striking workers without appearing publicly next to them. Rayner and shadow culture secretary Lucy Powell held an online meeting with senior CWU officials, including its general secretary Dave Ward, on Monday. They sent a joint letter to BT chief executive Philip Jansen on Tuesday, calling on him to meet directly with employee representatives to try to reach a settlement. Officials called his decision not to do so “highly unusual and deeply damaging, not only to the company but, given your role in critical national infrastructure, to the interests of the country as a whole.” As the standoff with Nandy continued, left-wing campaign group The World Transformed said it would hold a “festival of resistance” alongside the Labor conference in Liverpool, with left-wing Labor MPs speaking alongside striking workers. Liverpool West Derby MP Ian Byrne said: “Unions are leading the charge for fairness and dignity for workers and it is important that we support them.” Subscribe to First Edition, our free daily newsletter – every morning at 7am. BST Momentum, the Labor group developed by Jeremy Corbyn’s leadership campaign, also plans to spend the summer putting pressure on the party to do more to show solidarity with struggling workers. “As the Tories deliver cuts to the wages of key workers and energy bills soar, Labor has a huge opportunity to show it is on the workers’ side. But right now Keir Starmer is wasting this opportunity with his farcical ban on picket lines,” said co-chair Hilary Schan. “Momentum will not let workers and unions down. In the coming weeks, we will be campaigning across the country for Labor MPs to stand with workers on the picket line alongside ordinary members and support an inflation-free pay rise.” Starmer sacked shadow transport secretary Sam Tarry last week after he appeared in a chat. Starmer’s office insisted this was because he had conducted a series of unauthorized interviews and created a policy on the hoof, including a proposal not to give workers pay rises that did not keep pace with inflation.
