Diane Abbott confirms she will stand for Labour

Oh dear. It seems that Diane Abbott has outmanoeuvred Keir Starmer once again. Week one of Labour’s much-vaunted election campaign has been overshadowed by the row over the status of the Hackney North MP. Having lost the Labour whip in April 2023 for her ill-judged Observer letter, Abbott’s status was still unresolved when the campaign began ten days ago.

Following the BBC’s revelation on Tuesday that the investigation into Abbott had actually concluded back in December, Keir Starmer was forced to endure three days of questions about appropriate action before declaring on Friday that she was ‘free to go forward as a Labour candidate’.  The hope among some Starmer allies was that Abbott would then announce she was retiring at some point before the party’s deadline of Tuesday, allowing a fresh Labour candidate to stand in her safe seat.

Abbott, though, is having none of it. After the Guardian reported claims on Sunday afternoon that she that could stand down to accept a seat in the Upper House, Abbott responded with a howitzer.