Ken chickens out in public – but is Jasper still advising him in private?
Posted on April 4, 2011You read it here first that Ken Livingstone would be sharing a platform with Lee Jasper at the TUC rally next week. Since I broke the story it’s been followed up by Andrew Gilligan, and the Evening Standard – and now Ken has backed out of the event, citing “family commitments” that he apparently didn’t know about last week.
There seems to be more to find out here – this looks very much like an attempt by Ken to rehabilitate Jasper by re-establishing a public relationship with him. The question is, did their relationship ever stop in private?
Jasper has taken up the case of Smiley Culture – the 80s popstar who recently killed himself during a police drugs raid – as his latest publicity vehicle political issue. On 5th April the Standard reported:
Mr Jasper, who quit as one of Mr Livingstone’s closest aides after allegations over his conduct, warned that the black community was at “boiling point” over the incident.
On 26th April The Sun reported on the Smiley Culture case:
Ex London Mayor Ken Livingstone said the black community is at “boiling point” over his death.
Spot any similarities?
Jasper was Ken’s race and policing advisor for 8 years – is he still advising him behind the scenes? I just put in a call to Joe Derrett, Ken’s media guy, who denies outright that Jasper is part of the Ken campaign team. As for whether he’s giving informal advice, it’s the uncertain press officer’s standard answer: “not as far as I know”.
Funny, Ken and Lee must just be so likeminded after their years together that they use the same words when giving comments to the papers…
Tags: Andrew Gilligan, BARAC, Communism, Evening Standard, Ken Livingstone, Labour, Lee Jasper, London Mayor, New Labour, opinion, Politics, Smiley Culture, Socialism, The Sun
Categories: Local Government, Opinion, Politics
Jasper is generally seen as scum in those parts of the black community that didn’t depend on him for ‘grants’ – that is, most of it.
27.04.2011 16:57
By “the Black Community” I’m guessing Ken and Lee are refering to a rather small group of the usual gobby suspects and not London’s non-aryan population as a whole.
28.04.2011 05:54
As a business owner that employs 51 people and who just also happens to be black and non grant funded I can tell you that Lee Jasper is seen as a hero in the black communtiy. It is quite disgraceful that others seem to want to dictate whom we accept as leaders within our own community. In a just society Lee Jasper would not be needed. This is not a just society. Thank you Lee jasper for fighting for the interests of those who are marginalised by society.
28.04.2011 09:18
The term “black” is apparently a ” political construct” to define anyone who has suffered because of the colour of their skin or ethnic origin. As far as I have been able to tell it was coined by Lee Jasper and the various groups around him the only one of which left standing is Operation Black Vote still hustling money from The Joseph Rowntree Charitable Trust.
One of the things that brought Ken down last time was his belief, sold to him by Jasper, that there was a ” black ” political entity in London who voted as a group and that Jasper and the groups around him could deliver it. OBV have claimed that a third of London is black and Livingstone believed that he could ignore the white working class and still get in. He was of course badly mistaken.
In his last year or eighteen months he backed himself into an ethnic corner from which he could not escape and, hopefullly, is still there. Quite why David Lammy is involved with the ridiculously named BARAC is anyones guess.
29.04.2011 07:40
“Mr Jasper…warned that the black community was at “boiling point” over the incident.”
Bovered?
30.04.2011 12:31
[...] “family commitments” – the classic cover for an embarrassing exit. When Mark then speculated that Lee is still advising Ken behind the scenes, Ken’s press guy refused to confirm or [...]
25.07.2011 21:15