Two Oldham Councillors Resign From The Labour Party

Two sitting Oldham councillors have left the Labour party due to the stance of the leadership around the issue of the ongoing Palestine-Israel conflict.

Councillors Nyla Ibrahim and Shoab Akhtar both announced their last minute defection on Fri (April 5) before the deadline for councils to publish their candidate list for the upcoming elections.

Ibrahim will be standing as an Independent in the Werneth ward, but Shoab Akhtar will not be running for office this year.

Cllr Ibrahim said: “I have been a Labour councillor for five years. The reason I left the party is the Palestine issue. The party wouldn’t allow me to print an article about Palestine in my leaflet.

“I wasn’t happy with the leaflet as I didn’t agree with a lot of what was written in it. My constituents would also not be happy with it.

“This issue in Gaza didn’t start on October 7, but it’s been going on for years and years.

“In mid-October I did condemn Keir Starmer regarding his stance on Palestine.

“At the moment the party is dictating what we can and can’t do. I can’t handle that they control what we can say to our potential voters. It is freedom of speech at the end of the day.

“Constituents are raising their concerns about what we are doing about the Palestine cause.”

She said that it isn’t a religious issue, but it is a humanitarian one and that party members need to be able to express their views on this matter without being censored.

She added: “It’s our right to be able to raise our concerns and views. Why is it when it comes to Palestine we can’t raise our voice. We were even told not to go on protests.”

Nyla is the first female councillor in the Werneth ward to be elected in 50 years. She asks constituents to vote wisely for the right person.

With 31 councillors, Labour now holds a majority of one in Oldham council, and for the first time, the Werneth ward doesn’t have a Labour candidate.

“Boycotting Israeli products is the biggest thing people can do as it does make a big difference. The more you raise your voices and speak up the better,” she said.

Dawn Stewart, Werneth ward branch chairperson has also resigned following the defection of the two councillors.

She stated: “It is appalling what is happening in Gaza and the stance of the party leadership. What did it for me was what happened to the SNP motion calling for a ceasefire. What followed was a debacle.

“In our ward meetings there were six members who attended regularly. Four of us have left the party.

“I joined the party because of Jeremy Corbyn. Labour has changed, but not for the better. I stayed in the party due to Cllrs Ibrahim and Akhtar. When they left so did my reason for staying.”

Cllr Akhtar said: “Unfortunately the current leadership nationally is not fit for purpose.

“It has allowed total brutality to be inflicted on the citizens of Gaza by the Israeli regime.”

In a statement, the Oldham Labour party said: “Oldham Labour Group has stood in solidarity with the innocent civilians facing a humanitarian disaster in Gaza as well as those killed and taken hostage on 7th October. It is for this reason we called for a ceasefire last year. These are calls both councillors supported.

“Oldham’s Members of Parliament have repeatedly spoken out in parliament in defence of innocent lives being lost in the conflict and signed a motion explicitly calling for ceasefire, for international law to be upheld, and for the recognition of Palestine.

“Now months on, that two members have decided to leave at this particular moment is a matter for them.

“What isn’t acceptable however is for one person to deny thousands of voters the opportunity to vote for a Labour candidate, which we are certain would have attracted significant support. It is both arrogant and against the democratic values of the party they have left behind.

“Our unwavering support for the violence to stop continues beyond local politics, and whatever else may lay behind this move.”