What’s the point of a Labour Party indistinguishable from the Tories?

Defector Christian Wakeford’s voting record is very much at odds with Labour’s core values, writes Harriet Williamson

Accepting the enemy? Many members view the MP’s arrival as a betrayal (Getty)

Defecting MP Christian Wakeford was welcomed into the Labour Party with open arms by Sir Keir Starmer at last week’s PMQs. The current leader of the opposition treated the crossing of the chamber by Bury South MP Wakeford like a spectacular victory for his party. But was it really?

As many have already pointed out, Wakeford’s voting record is very much at odds with what are broadly considered Labour values. He has consistently voted against measures to combat tax avoidance and climate change. He voted for the controversial Nationality and Borders Bill, which Amnesty International says will undermine international obligations under the Refugee Convention and under international law, including duties to protect life at sea and to provide stateless children with citizenship.

He voted for allowing water companies to dump raw sewage into Britain’s rivers. He also voted to cut the universal credit uplift of £20-per-week, and for the welfare cap which will limit the amount the government can spend on certain social security benefits and tax credits, at a time when the UK is facing a soaring cost-of-living crisis, set to devastate the most vulnerable people in Britain.