Alan Travis writing in the Guardian:-
Harry Fletcher obituary
For almost three decades he was the assistant general secretary of a small union, the National Association of Probation Officers (Napo), but from that obscure office he became a familiar figure on British news bulletins and around Westminster.
For generations of politicians and journalists Harry was a fount of knowledge about what was going on behind the scenes in the criminal justice system. He was also the source of a sustained series of leaks and disclosures that caused serious trouble for both Labour and Conservative ministers, and was often used as an unofficial back door to the Home Office and Ministry of Justice (MoJ).
As the Guardian’s home affairs editor from 1992 to 2018, I ran news stories based on some of Harry’s leaks, most notably in 2013 about the MoJ’s internal “risk register” for the part-privatisation of the probation service, which the then justice secretary, Chris Grayling, had refused to publish. It warned that there was a “more than 80% risk” that privatisation would lead to “an unacceptable drop in operational performance” and would probably trigger “delivery failures and reputational damage” – a warning that has unfortunately been more than vindicated.
As a qualified social worker, Harry’s focus on domestic violence followed years of hearing probation officers voice concern that it was being under-reported, and that victims were being intimidated into silence by their partners. The key to the success of many of his campaigns was his use of the personal experiences of such victims, often compiled in anonymised dossiers.
It was a similar log of personal experiences that helped to secure official recognition in 2009 of the problem of army veterans ending up in prison after leaving the forces. Harry organised an unofficial count, through Napo branches, of the number of ex-army personnel in jail, and the figures obliged the Ministry of Defence and the MoJ not only to recognise the problem but to provide greater support for those leaving the forces. It is now standard practice to keep an official count along the lines he established.
Harry was born in Burnage, Manchester, the son of Jeffrey Fletcher, a departmental manager at Dunlop, and his wife, Jemima (nee Campbell), a personnel officer at Littlewoods. He went to Layburn secondary modern school and then Manchester grammar school before taking a degree at the University of East Anglia and qualifying as a social worker at Bristol University in 1974.
After a period as a social worker in Waltham Forest, east London, he joined the National Council for One Parent Families in 1977, learning his campaigning skills there before joining Napo in 1984. He served the union for 29 years until 2013, when he left to work as a political consultant on stalking, domestic abuse and digital abuse, becoming an adviser to Plaid Cymru on such matters in 2016.
Over the years, Harry built up a wide network of contacts in parliament and the media, feeding them detailed research that documented the impact of criminal justice policy on individuals. His sustained supply of leaks was fuelled by a nose for a story that was as strong as any journalist’s, and he had a fierce commitment to protecting his sources.
He was also exceptionally good in the public arena. In many high profile and notorious criminal cases, including those highlighting failings by the police, courts and prison and probation services, he was able to explain to the public in straightforward language exactly what had gone wrong and why, long before any bland official inquiry report had been produced.
His expertise was much in demand, including, in recent years, by the scriptwriters of the Public Enemies television series about probation officers. On one occasion he took the scriptwriting team to visit a hostel and a probation office after they had been refused access by the MoJ. As recently as December 2019 he was interviewed by major broadcasters and newspapers to provide background on the London Bridge terrorist attack.
He is survived by his partner, Kate Gilbert, his sons, George and William, and a grandson, Orly.
Harry Jeffrey Fletcher, criminal justice campaigner, born 27 January 1947; died 8 January 2020
The Directors of the Probation Institute are greatly saddened to learn of the death of Harry Fletcher on 8th January. Harry had been in regular contact with us about TR and Probation Reforms – most recently just before Christmas.
Many of us have worked with Harry over many years and would like to pay tribute to his immense energy and commitment to a fairer justice system, working at several different levels. For us above all Harry was Assistant General Secretary of Napo from 1984 to 2013. This long period of work for Napo saw massive changes in Probation, advances in practice and values, support for victims, increasing workloads and pressures, restructuring, all of which Harry promoted and defended. Organising large rallies at Westminster Hall, Parliamentary Questions and lobbying, particularly in the successful campaign to influence the incoming Labour Government in 1997. Harry was strongly opposed to Transforming Rehabilitation. He was pleased to see the integration plans in 2019 but understood the real reservations and in an advisory role was seeking to influence the Secretary of State over continuing issues with the new model.
Harry was always available and interested in what you had to say – he was diligent in turning over stones, finding out the detail, and in speaking out openly and clearly about his findings. You could always spot when Harry was behind an investigation. It’s hard to think of anyone who can quickly replicate his knowledge of justice combined with investigation and reporting skills – but it’s very important that principled journalists try hard to follow in his footsteps.
We would like to pass our deepest sympathies to Kate, William and George in your loss and extend our very warm appreciation of a colleague and friend.
Helen Schofield
Probation Institute January 2020.
--oo00oo--
Friend and colleague Mike Guifoyle shares some memories:-
My first real professional contact with Harry was at the York AGM 1998 when I made my maiden speech moving the National Campaigning Committee (NNC) motion on renationalising private prisons. Although Harry drafted the text with his usual rhetorical flair, I tweaked it and after the motion was unanimously carried, he winked suggesting that the additions seemed to work. It later merited a headline on the BBC ceefax page! Indeed Judy McNight (GS) cornered me at the evening social to congratulate both of us for making the headlines!
For generations of politicians and journalists Harry was a fount of knowledge about what was going on behind the scenes in the criminal justice system. He was also the source of a sustained series of leaks and disclosures that caused serious trouble for both Labour and Conservative ministers, and was often used as an unofficial back door to the Home Office and Ministry of Justice (MoJ).
As the Guardian’s home affairs editor from 1992 to 2018, I ran news stories based on some of Harry’s leaks, most notably in 2013 about the MoJ’s internal “risk register” for the part-privatisation of the probation service, which the then justice secretary, Chris Grayling, had refused to publish. It warned that there was a “more than 80% risk” that privatisation would lead to “an unacceptable drop in operational performance” and would probably trigger “delivery failures and reputational damage” – a warning that has unfortunately been more than vindicated.
As a qualified social worker, Harry’s focus on domestic violence followed years of hearing probation officers voice concern that it was being under-reported, and that victims were being intimidated into silence by their partners. The key to the success of many of his campaigns was his use of the personal experiences of such victims, often compiled in anonymised dossiers.
It was a similar log of personal experiences that helped to secure official recognition in 2009 of the problem of army veterans ending up in prison after leaving the forces. Harry organised an unofficial count, through Napo branches, of the number of ex-army personnel in jail, and the figures obliged the Ministry of Defence and the MoJ not only to recognise the problem but to provide greater support for those leaving the forces. It is now standard practice to keep an official count along the lines he established.
Harry was born in Burnage, Manchester, the son of Jeffrey Fletcher, a departmental manager at Dunlop, and his wife, Jemima (nee Campbell), a personnel officer at Littlewoods. He went to Layburn secondary modern school and then Manchester grammar school before taking a degree at the University of East Anglia and qualifying as a social worker at Bristol University in 1974.
After a period as a social worker in Waltham Forest, east London, he joined the National Council for One Parent Families in 1977, learning his campaigning skills there before joining Napo in 1984. He served the union for 29 years until 2013, when he left to work as a political consultant on stalking, domestic abuse and digital abuse, becoming an adviser to Plaid Cymru on such matters in 2016.
Over the years, Harry built up a wide network of contacts in parliament and the media, feeding them detailed research that documented the impact of criminal justice policy on individuals. His sustained supply of leaks was fuelled by a nose for a story that was as strong as any journalist’s, and he had a fierce commitment to protecting his sources.
He was also exceptionally good in the public arena. In many high profile and notorious criminal cases, including those highlighting failings by the police, courts and prison and probation services, he was able to explain to the public in straightforward language exactly what had gone wrong and why, long before any bland official inquiry report had been produced.
His expertise was much in demand, including, in recent years, by the scriptwriters of the Public Enemies television series about probation officers. On one occasion he took the scriptwriting team to visit a hostel and a probation office after they had been refused access by the MoJ. As recently as December 2019 he was interviewed by major broadcasters and newspapers to provide background on the London Bridge terrorist attack.
He is survived by his partner, Kate Gilbert, his sons, George and William, and a grandson, Orly.
Harry Jeffrey Fletcher, criminal justice campaigner, born 27 January 1947; died 8 January 2020
--oo00oo--
The Directors of the Probation Institute are greatly saddened to learn of the death of Harry Fletcher on 8th January. Harry had been in regular contact with us about TR and Probation Reforms – most recently just before Christmas.
Many of us have worked with Harry over many years and would like to pay tribute to his immense energy and commitment to a fairer justice system, working at several different levels. For us above all Harry was Assistant General Secretary of Napo from 1984 to 2013. This long period of work for Napo saw massive changes in Probation, advances in practice and values, support for victims, increasing workloads and pressures, restructuring, all of which Harry promoted and defended. Organising large rallies at Westminster Hall, Parliamentary Questions and lobbying, particularly in the successful campaign to influence the incoming Labour Government in 1997. Harry was strongly opposed to Transforming Rehabilitation. He was pleased to see the integration plans in 2019 but understood the real reservations and in an advisory role was seeking to influence the Secretary of State over continuing issues with the new model.
Harry was always available and interested in what you had to say – he was diligent in turning over stones, finding out the detail, and in speaking out openly and clearly about his findings. You could always spot when Harry was behind an investigation. It’s hard to think of anyone who can quickly replicate his knowledge of justice combined with investigation and reporting skills – but it’s very important that principled journalists try hard to follow in his footsteps.
We would like to pass our deepest sympathies to Kate, William and George in your loss and extend our very warm appreciation of a colleague and friend.
Helen Schofield
Probation Institute January 2020.
--oo00oo--
Friend and colleague Mike Guifoyle shares some memories:-
My first real professional contact with Harry was at the York AGM 1998 when I made my maiden speech moving the National Campaigning Committee (NNC) motion on renationalising private prisons. Although Harry drafted the text with his usual rhetorical flair, I tweaked it and after the motion was unanimously carried, he winked suggesting that the additions seemed to work. It later merited a headline on the BBC ceefax page! Indeed Judy McNight (GS) cornered me at the evening social to congratulate both of us for making the headlines!
Thereafter with subsequent AGM's and NCC meetings Harry would be the indomitable presence and guiding influence in shaping Napo's approach to campaigning and with his hard won and ever present media savvy public profile was the go-to official fronting for the union. His able tenacity in doing so merited a commendable tag line in certain Napo circles as 'Harry the Dog' (no relation to a certain Cold Blow Lane terrace legend!) given Harry's fond attachment to Arsenal FC.
I did however succeed (he was perhaps at times a touch too possessive of sharing his much cherished parliamentary and media sources!) in making it onto a Channel 4 news item with Harry on the perennial topic of resources, public safety and front line morale. To his lasting credit he did arrange for NCC members to attend a media training day and I was often a call away from some of the bigger media stories to beset the probation service over this period.
In particular I recall the frantic behind the scenes information gathering that was needed to respond to harshly critical governmental and media pressures in light of the tragic Hanson and White SFO furore in London that resulted in the eventual resignation of the CPO David Scott. From memory Harry offered DS some fraternal advice on getting through this embroglio in the men's urinal!
He had a fund of well garnered anecdotes on the foibles and failings of political and departmental officials, amusingly batting off on one occasion Jack Straw's off-handed and trademark ill-tempered media observations on 'Napo's dinosaur union officials' with a knowing smile.
He had more moles it appeared in the corridors of power than George Smiley! And his fearlessly obdurate manner did send a proverbial shiver down the spine of many a jaded Home Office/Justice Department mandarin (particularly when Private Eye ran the story). I admired his challenging mien, his dogged and prickly commitment, hard work and easy fluency when in front of the camera.
He had more moles it appeared in the corridors of power than George Smiley! And his fearlessly obdurate manner did send a proverbial shiver down the spine of many a jaded Home Office/Justice Department mandarin (particularly when Private Eye ran the story). I admired his challenging mien, his dogged and prickly commitment, hard work and easy fluency when in front of the camera.
I recall Harry deftly coaxing Lord David Ramsbotham at one criminal justice event on his pending HoL speech on the 'future of the Probation Service' and edging into a heated conversation with the former disgraced MP and Penal Reformer Jonathan Aitken at another such event, shortly after his release from open prison, who Harry was effortlessly enlisting for Napo's campaign on resisting the incipient privatisation of the probation service.
His parliamentary briefings and well rehearsed PQ's were unfailingly comprehensive and direct to the point at issue. Oftentimes he would break off during committee meetings chirping with hand on phone, 'I need to speak to Neil (Gerrard) MP and John (McDonnell) MP whose enduring commitment to probation as a public service was instrumental in holding the union's line during the embattled legislative campaign prior to the introduction of Noms in 2004.
On another occasion when sharing a bibulous Balti evening with the formidably combative former POA General Secretary Brian Caton, he averred 'Harry is the lifeblood of probation and one of the best and most trusted trade union defenders of keeping probation a public service I have yet met'.
Harry told a story from the New Labour years that I recall with relish, speaking to a die hard old socialist MP who admired Napo's well briefed arguments at the time of the OMA 2007. It captures well the continuing malign potency of a market driven privatising ideology over the need for an evidence-informed public policy agenda evinced in Harry's well researched briefing papers. The MP gruffly stated 'Harry you have all the arguments, you have all the evidence, you have all the friends you need in the party, but you are ****** because they refuse to listen and that's why you need to continue campaigning!
A doughty campaigner, a relentless newshound, a wry and incisive observer on the shifting dynamics of parliamentary and political shenanigans over many years, an evanescent presence at Napo AGM's (another breaking news story meant he was often called out of the room) and a committed and loyal Napo member and official who courted the media at a time when employers and probation chiefs were being politically eviscerated, in a way that encouraged dialogue and debate to continue, who held himself accountable to the membership and never knowingly baulked at telling those in power that Napo mattered and was still a force to be reckoned with.
A doughty campaigner, a relentless newshound, a wry and incisive observer on the shifting dynamics of parliamentary and political shenanigans over many years, an evanescent presence at Napo AGM's (another breaking news story meant he was often called out of the room) and a committed and loyal Napo member and official who courted the media at a time when employers and probation chiefs were being politically eviscerated, in a way that encouraged dialogue and debate to continue, who held himself accountable to the membership and never knowingly baulked at telling those in power that Napo mattered and was still a force to be reckoned with.
He will be sorely missed and will I believe retain a significant and abiding presence in Napo's collective memory and be fondly remembered as an integral part in what for many who knew him best represented what a determinedly and proud public sector union could achieve against the odds as well as promoting and celebrating a much admired professional association, tattered it maybe from the demands of keeping the probation flame alive, but on whose behalf in his campaigning he gave his best endeavours over many memorable years. RIP Harry.
Where is Napo's tribute please?
ReplyDeleteQuite ! It is perhaps not surprising that Harry was not well regarded by some in Napo and that may well be the continuum. There was a story all that Napo wanted was Harry F blue book of contacts when he left. It was a fabled of this great book of names and that Harry got all his power from the pages. This power jealously sought after by the squabbling mantle gazers and yet somehow there was a belief that he would pass the book of blue secrets to those who coveted his glory.
ReplyDeleteHarry had never let anything slip kept his book retained the mantle then continued to illustrate the ocean of gap between how to campaign in parliamentary matters than any pretenders. He was not selected for the top job as the NAPO General Secretary. Perhaps that campaign should have been won given the events that unfolded and the junior contender falling way short in conduct and subsequently the rot took hold and has now set well in. Napos decline can be marked directly from the "old lag style" Harry Fletcher had in spades yet was popular and well liked by most that he engaged. He will be remembered well over time and that is good thing on top of all of his achievements.
Is it too early to suggest the Napo revisionistas are Harry-deniers? They certainly seem to be in denial about most everything else.
ReplyDeleteOh who is the voice of Napo then. No strategy no alternatives to policy no initiatives just the grunting drone of the front man telling the told you sorry trash. Harry could spell it out and direct those to the solution.
DeleteComments from Guardian:-
ReplyDeleteA lovely man and the beating heart of napo. He was almost single-handedly responsible for the reputation of it as a small union renowned for punching well above its weight. Would have made a fine replacement when the General Secretary departed though sadly this was not to be. Will be sadly missed by many inside and outside the Probation Service.
*****
The destruction of the probation service by Mrs Thatcher and her successors stands as one of the most vicious and effective crude ideological assaults on helpful, imaginative public policy that the crude right have so far been able to engineer. What is a wonderful epitaph for Harry Fletcher is the effectiveness of his efforts to challenge this despite the ultimate awful success of the tory social engineers he fought. He was unbelievably successful in highlighting what was going on, fighting probation's cause and inspiring others like people in social work to keep fighting too. Sadly social work looks set to go the same way as probation, but I will always remember Harry for his skill and good sense as an unremitting and effective campaigner for a service that we are all the worse for losing in its original inspiration. Well done Harry, I was so sorry to hear of your death.
*****
Lovely bloke. I knew him at UEA, we were first years together. I can vividly remember having a drink with him and his feigned surprise that I could do a degree in ‘nuts and leaves’. The contrast between the Harry Fletchers of this world and idiots like Grayling who profess to know what is best for services of which they know is profound. Harry was the best kind of expert.
Jim - I have a lovely image in my head of you walking your whippet to the newsagents to collect your Guardian at 6am... :)
DeleteThanks for posting the comments about Harry. He was a grand chap.
And I'm saying nothing to dent that wonderful image!
DeleteHowever it's probably time to recall a hitherto untold Harry story from the feverish period pre-TR and as he was parting company from Napo.
A clandestine meeting was arranged at a newly-created hostelry within Kings Cross Station where yours truly, together with Mike Guilfoyle and Joanna Hughes discussed tactics with the redoubtable and seasoned campaigner Harry Fletcher in order to try and maximise efforts aimed at defeating TR.
It's all history now, but in various ways and mostly behind the scenes, we all tried independently to do something to prevent the TR disaster and it will remain an endeavour I will always be proud of.
Harry was generous in sharing his insights, knowledge and advice, remaining in touch long after the battle and as the inevitable effects of TR began to be felt.
We were up against far more than those who drove TR - the small staters at such as Policy Exchange, fed by the likes of Gove and Priti Patel, who used true believers like Grayling to do their dirty work.
DeleteThey were bolstered by Cameron fearing he could lose his majority and tricksters like Clegg and his hangers on in the Lib Dems who abandoned all principles for the aggrandisement that ministerial office gave them. Sadly Labour whose MOJ spokesperson Sadiq Khan is a Blairite apologist who had no serious response to the CJS disasters,
Tragically it was new Labour, who called Harry a dinosaur who set us up for the whole shambolic dangerous disaster with the 2007 Offender Management Act, coming after they did nothing serious to reverse the privatisations in CJS started by John Major's Conservative Ministers who began the centralisation of probation in England and Wales.
In all those circumstances we were indeed fortunate to have such a champion as Harry Fletcher.
He understood parliament and media relations. Something went seriously wrong at Napo that brought forth Jonathan Ledger as General Secretary, that was when Harry might have been appointed as GS, and I share blame for not then paying close enough attention.
It was only after Harry's death that I read for the first time an article by him surprisingly published in The Times (showing the range of his media influence) about what went wrong with Public Relations and the organisation at the heart of the Corbyn project in which had initially been a part. Harry particularly identified the management of the antisemitism issue & relationships between Corbyn's office and the PLP members long before Boris Johnson became Prime Minister. He also parted from the central Corbyn team.
He still did not give up, finally up to his death he was doing greatly valued work with the Welsh Nationalists - I noticed in their appreciation he was described as actually being on their staff at Westminster at the time of his death.
Harry continued to strive to develop policy that aids the victims of crime, especially stalking and coercive offences and I believe was due to be actively involved in a response to the inquest of Conner Marshall, which revealed many of the shortcomings we predicted for TR back from 2013.
He will long be missed and I suspect his positive influence on criminal justice legislation, will last for many generations, though mostly go unrecognised or acknowledged.
Andrew - can we have the links to the Times article you refer to and the Plaid Cymru appreciation please? Thanks.
DeleteSorry I do not recall their location, I found the Times one when doing a general search the day Harry's death was announced, I saw the PC one via a Twitter link.
DeleteIf not found by others first will investigate again when I am better placed to do it.
Suggest listening to R4 at 6pm, on PM Programme Grayling quoted about NPS SFO horrendous case, all details not known, elderly woman held hostage in her car and raped amidst other crimes, I presume sentence today.
Woman in interview blamed Grayling, he refuted as NPS not privatised. Presume BBC has a written report.
Ot is the Joseph McCann case sentenced at CCC on 9th December
Deletehttps://www.bbc.co.uk/news/av/uk-51225944/elderly-victim-of-serial-rapist-joseph-mccann-tells-of-her-ordeal
Just heard the R4 news segment - the extraordinary woman identifies Grayling as the cause of all things shitty in probation, says that people more senior must carry the can & that frontline staff are always thrown under the train.
DeleteIt seems Grayling's response to the McCann mess - something I'd not heard before - was that NPS were responsible for supervising McCann and the NPS weren't privatised so it was down to operational failings of staff. What a bell-end.
Anyone have a link to the Grayling tantrum/response referred to?
Harry Fletcher in The Times about his time with Corbyn and co on 23rd April 2017 https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/life-inside-the-anti-semitic-and-chaotic-team-jeremy-corbyn-harry-fletcher-theresa-may-jeremy-corbyn-general-election-2017-britain-brexit-vote-7fz8hnqmz
DeleteThanks Andrew - I well remember Harry telling me of his attempts at trying to improve Jeremy's dress sense! A taster from this side of the paywall:-
DeleteLife inside the chaotic and ‘anti‑semitic’ Team Corbyn
At the first event of Labour’s election campaign last week, even Jeremy Corbyn’s enemies said he’d had a pretty good day. He was fluent. He was unscripted. He was saying things that need to be said about politics, and he believed them. He reminded me what it felt like at the start of his incredible rise, the summer before last, when his leadership campaign team consisted of four people — Jeremy, his son Seb, John McDonnell and me.
As one of his advisers, I was with Jeremy from the very start, and I stayed part of his inner team until the middle of last year. I still think that if he fights like he did in 2015, if he can recapture the excitement that brought…
At the first event of Labour’s election campaign last week, even Jeremy Corbyn’s enemies said he’d had a pretty good day. He was fluent. He was unscripted. He was saying things that need to be said about politics, and he believed them. He reminded me what it felt like at the start of his incredible rise, the summer before last, when his leadership campaign team consisted of four people — Jeremy, his son Seb, John McDonnell and me.
DeleteAs one of his advisers, I was with Jeremy from the very start, and I stayed part of his inner team until the middle of last year. I still think that if he fights like he did in 2015, if he can recapture the excitement that brought hundreds of thousands of people into Labour, this election just might not be a foregone conclusion.
But for now, Jeremy’s 2015 win remains the high point of his leadership. And for me, the 10 months that followed that victory, working for John and Jeremy at the heart of the leader’s operation, were months of growing concern. Concern that they can’t cope with the demands of running a top-level office; concern that they don’t learn from their mistakes; and concern, above all, about their relationship with the Jewish community.
The chaos started early on. The day after the leadership election, I got a call from The Sun. It was running a story the next morning that Jeremy wanted to abolish the British Army. It was a stretching of something he’d said in the past. The Sun tried all his staff, and nobody was picking up. It turned out that his press officer had a contract that expired at midnight, nobody had thought to renew it, and she was on a train back to Liverpool. So 3m readers got told that Jeremy wanted to abolish the army because there was no one to answer the phones. And that never really changed. MPs found it impossible to get meetings.
Jeremy and his team wanted to support every good cause going, and not let anybody down, but he ended up with 100 hours a week of commitments, and not enough time to go round. The amount of work coming in totally exceeded the capacity of the staff. They were — they still are — almost terrified of having power. The team just comes across as frightened to make decisions.
The atmosphere was very, very fraught, and tense, and unhappy. People were working ridiculous hours. There was a glaring need for proper line management, and it just wasn’t happening. There was no diary, no schedule, few or no regular team meetings. Nobody knew what their job was. We discovered in passing one day that there were tens of thousands of unopened emails to Jeremy that no one had ever read.
People would suggest campaigning ideas, ideas that could have had traction and repaired some of the damage. I wanted to do something on a lifelong commitment to service veterans. But they just never went anywhere, never saw the light of day. Jeremy would promise people, let’s meet and discuss this, and it never happened. They found it extremely difficult to cope.
What angered me most was their inability to understand why they’re perceived as anti-semitic. Jeremy believes he is completely non-discriminatory. He would never be hostile to someone in the street. But he is, if you like, anti-semitic along the institutionalised lines of the Metropolitan police in the 1990s, when they messed up the Stephen Lawrence investigation.
I identified it as a problem from the very early days. I sat down with Jeremy right at the beginning and I said we needed to go through everything, because if you start to do well, three or four newspapers are going to go for you. And I said the main thing they’ll use is Hamas and Hezbollah, and the things you’ve done with them.
I told him we had to be totally honest on it, that he had to have answers to everything, and he had to say again and again that he supported the Jewish community and would never discriminate in any way. And he just couldn’t see it at all.
DeleteI’d liaise regularly with Jewish Labour groups. They wanted to work with Jeremy. I’d suggest to him about how he might build bridges with the Jewish community, and none of it ever happened. It was very, very frustrating, and it just got worse. Every attempt to improve relationships did well for a day or two, and then something or somebody would sabotage it. Every time, what was required was a swift response, but it just never happened.
The very first thing I tried was to negotiate with The Jewish Chronicle for an interview. Jeremy got very uneasy about it and said he couldn’t do it. So I went back and it was happy to give him an op-ed, which he would have complete control over. It promised not to change a word. There would be a complete partnership. Nothing happened.
What angered me most was their inability to understand why they’re perceived as anti-semitic
Jeremy and the team just didn’t understand the collective impact of incident after incident after incident. He dealt with every episode as if it were isolated. I think he just saw those offended as complainers. But the Jewish community was, quite understandably, seeing it as a theme, seeing Jeremy digging himself deeper all the time.
Some people said the reason he was criticised was for his views on Israel, not towards Jews as a whole. But it wasn’t. It was about discrimination. Jeremy did have an antipathy towards Israel. But the criticism he received was because of a pattern of behaviour that was perceived by the Jewish community as anti-semitic.
I was one of the people who recommended that Shami Chakrabarti do her report into anti-semitism in the party. I got credit for that from Jewish organisations — and then total dismay when she joined the Labour Party a few weeks later, and utter dismay when she became a peer. It clearly had an impact on the fact that her conclusions were seen by many as a whitewash, but Jeremy and his team just couldn’t see it. He wasn’t prepared for personal attacks, and he got very angry.
Labour is split at the moment between those who want to run a robust campaign and those who want to leave Jeremy to it. I am in the first camp. He is the leader of the Labour Party, and I want Labour to do well. The country needs competitive politics. Both the organisational failings and the exasperation of the Jewish community are resolvable — if the will is there.
For all Jeremy’s failings, I was reminded again last week that he is at his best and his most inspiring in campaign mode — and that Theresa May clearly isn’t comfortable with anything spontaneous, uncontrolled or challenging. If Labour can recapture the spirit of that first leadership bid, and argue for a Brexit that benefits the finances of ordinary working people, this could still be a contest.
Harry Fletcher was a media and strategy adviser to Jeremy Corbyn from 2015-16
I posted more links but they have vanished - I hope they do not appear as duplicates: -
DeleteThread featuring Plaid Cymru on Twitter
https://twitter.com/Plaid_Cymru/status/1215575320440573953?s=20
Jewish Chronicle
https://www.thejc.com/comment/comment/remembering-harry-fletcher-the-socialist-who-tried-to-steer-labour-away-from-hate-1.495750
Prisons is featuring on any Questions with Prisons Minister Lucy Frazer - former Prisons Minister Anne Widdiecombe and Liz Saville-Roberts who is focusing on deaths in Berwyn prison
https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/live:bbc_radio_fourfm
LOVE IT the great Harry in the centre of the political spectrum He was on team probation what a loss to Napo.
DeleteA clandestine meeting was arranged at a newly-created hostelry within Kings Cross Station where yours truly, together with Mike Guilfoyle and Joanna Hughes discussed tactics with the redoubtable and seasoned campaigner Harry Fletcher in order to try and maximise efforts aimed at defeating TR
DeleteAll good people but tactically way too narrow for what was needed. I doubt Harry underestimated what was happening with his insights to those in power but the opposition in the form of the pathetic retaliations and lack of intelligent leaderships of the many in Napo during that time saw Probation fractured. Largely because Napo had no able leader and egos were in while their spines were out.
This dysfunctionality and disagreement regarding policy direction has been present for some time and long before Tom took the extraordinarily unwise decision to apply for an ACO post in the London CRC. This one key mistake sadly sealed his fate in the power game at Chivalry Road and he was unable to prevent the summary dismissal of Harry Fletcher from his temporary employment, contrary to the wishes of the NEC. The loss of Harry meant that his well-thought-out 50 point Action Plan was effectively consigned to the bin.
DeleteFrom JB blog the true record.
I have just received an email with the subject line
ReplyDelete"Katie Lomas blogs recent probation announcements"
it reads: -
"Click here ...
https://www.napomagazine.org.uk/2020/01/24/blog-post-probation-announcements/
... to read the a blog post from Napo Chair, Katie Lomas, on recent probation announcements."
To be effective Napo and Unison need many more members, preferably current practitioners prepared to be active or I fear probation in England and Wales will become little more than a misunderstood memory.
Who is she ?
Deletehttps://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-7926309/Pensioner-71-tells-sexually-assaulted-Joseph-McCann.html
ReplyDelete"She said: 'I think people that make those decisions at high levels should be brought to account.'
Chris Grayling, ex-Justice Secretary has defended himself saying McCann was supervised by staff in the public sector and not by a private company.
The first of his victims to speak publicly told the BBC that she has never received an official apology and she believes senior figures should be held to account for probation failings which led to McCann's mistaken release.
He was found guilty of 37 charges relating to 11 victims, including eight rapes, false imprisonment and kidnap. "
Grayling spin it was not a private company . However he destroyed the public service so it was overstretched and caused the same victimisation it is a monstrous attitude to the public safety he was charged to protect. negligent.
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