In Momentum’s internal war, Jon Lansman has won. The group’s founder and owner has drawn up a hastily-approved constitution, which will force members to join Labour by 1 July 2017 or face expulsion. Lansman’s move is designed to neutralise Momentum’s Trotskyist wing, which has long resisted his reforms. Senior members such as Jill Mountford of the Alliance for Workers’ Liberty and former Militant member Nick Wrack, who are barred from Labour, will be forced out.
Mountford said : «This is a coup. We are not splitting and we are not going to be provoked by this. We are going to call a conference for grassroots activists and we will to seek to reverse these changes. The constitution has been imposed, we are going to continue to fight for a democratic organisation. »
Lansman’s ruthlessness has prompted the rare sight of Blairites praising the veteran Bennite (who I interviewed last year). It was, they wryly noted , the 88th anniversary of Stalin exiling Trotsky to Siberia. «Lansman is behaving like an absolute monarch,» said Richard Angell, the director of Progress.
But despite the coming purge, Labour MPs still baulk at the thought of the pro-Corbyn group affiliating to the party. «I will be opposing this with every fibre of my body,» vowed Tom Blenkinsop. But what are the chances of Momentum being permitted to affiliate? Under the current rules, the answer is non-existent — unless the group changes beyond recognition. Labour’s constitution states that groups which have «their own programme, principles and policy, or distinctive and separate propaganda» or which promote parliamentary or local government candidates (as Momentum does) shall be «ineligible for affiliation to the party. »
It is for this reason that other factions, such as Progress, the old right Labour First and the Bennite Campaign for Labour Party Democracy, are not officially affiliated. It is theoretically possible that the party could change its rules to accept applications from such groups. But in practice it is unlikely that either the NEC or the Labour conference would approve this hazard-strewn move. Even some of Corbyn’s NEC supporters are opposed to Momentum’s affiliation bid.
Were Labour’s rules to remain unchanged, Momentum itself would have to change. It would have to cease to be a pro-Corbyn faction and become a blander socialist society (no disrespect to the Fabians). Rather than a genuine affiliation bid, then, Lansman’s announcement looks more like a symbolic declaration. By stating that he wishes to affiliate, he has made it clear that those who don’t are not welcome.
Today, Open Britain and the Fabian Society have come together to try and answer some of the hard questions Brexit poses for the Left, and to outline the principles that should inform our approach to Brexit, in a new pamphlet. As an MP who campaigned for Remain representing an area that voted Leave I know how important it is for Labour to engage with the outcome of Brexit negotiations to ensure working people’s interests are protected.
It is fantastic that progressive groups are thinking about Brexit and going beyond the platitudes of “red, white and blue Brexit.” That’s why today[s document has been welcomed by Keir Starmer and the Shadow Brexit team and supported by Labour MPs.
Open Britain and the Fabian Society suggest six principles that should government Labour’s approach to Brexit, covering the economy, our foreign and security policies, immigration, the laws that protect our environment and rights at work, domestic economic reform, and the political way forward. This approach is aimed at preserving the best aspects of our EU membership, while respecting the result and tacking the underlying frustrations and pressures that led so many of Labour’s natural supporters to vote to leave the EU.
The greatest threat to working people is the spectre of a destructive hard Brexit, which would impose onerous and damaging tariffs, customs duties and red tape on our exports to, and imports from, the EU. This would mean fewer jobs, lower growth, and higher prices. A full 44 per cent of Britain’s exports go to the EU, making it comfortably our largest trading partner. A progressive Brexit approach to trade should prioritise three strands – continued participation in the single market and customs union, unless it can be proven empirically that doing so will not damage our economy; a rejection of the WTO model, which would dramatically increase barriers to trade; and a transitional arrangement, should one be necessary, to bridge the likely gap between Britain leaving the EU and a new, permanent trading arrangement being agreed.
This must be combined with action on immigration, which was such a powerful driver of the vote to leave the European Union. What the British people want is greater control over immigration without paying an economic cost. This must be our approach too, as we look for a new deal on immigration from the EU that includes, for example, tying free movement to those who have a job offer and arguing for sector-specific emergency brakes that could be applied in cases of identifiable economic stress. It is important to note that The Dutch Deputy PM is calling for reform and David Cameron’s «special status» renegotiation conceded the principle that rules could be altered in response to exceptional inflow of workers causing serious problems. At the same time, however, Labour must not abandon our internationalist, progressive principles. We should continue to welcome the immigrants our economy needs, and stand up for the European Union citizens who are already resident in this country, and now find their rights under threat.
Another priority must be an approach to security and foreign policy that keeps our streets safe and prevents strategic shrinkage. We should seek to maintain our current level of co-operation with Europe on security, including British participation in the European Arrest Warrant, Europol, and databases such as the Schengen Information System. At the same time, we must seek to prove to allies in Europe and the United States that we remain a serious partner on the world stage. That means maintaining the 0.7 per cent target for international aid spending, leading action against climate change, and continuing to play a full role in Nato, including maintaining the 2 per cent of GDP funding target.
One of the great achievements of the single market, one that has not been fully appreciated by some, is the swathe of common rules that protect workers, consumers, and our environment. Labour must stand for the maintenance and advance of these standards, and fight ceaselessly against the Tory instinct to seek a competitive advantage in making Britain the Sports Direct economy of Europe. While this future might appeal to some business tycoons, it would be a grim future for working people.
Tackling the root causes of frustration and alienation, especially in Labour communities, must be spearheaded by changes to our domestic economy. Action to rebalance our economy in favour of working people – through more training and skills funding, greater investment in regional economies, worker participation and a focus on exports – is long overdue. This will, however, be undermined without urgent action to replace the EU funding streams that currently benefit deprived areas of our country.
And ultimately, this whole approach must be undertaken in a spirit of consultation and consent that has been lacking from the Government. Parliament must be involved not grudgingly but willingly, by putting down a detailed plan before the House of Commons and accepting that MPs must vote on the triggering of Article 50. The devolved administrations, as well as local government leaders in the English regions, should be given a seat at the top table, rather than the occasional unenlightening meeting with David Davis.
Others will have their own valuable ideas about Labour’s response to Brexit. What is needed now is policy detail within the context of the enduring Labour values of equality and social justice, coupled with a commitment to human rights and internationalism. When the Prime Minister presents her «plan» there must be a credible Labour alternative – today marks the start of putting one together.
Phil Wilson MP is a leading supporter of Open Britain

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© Source: http://www.newstatesman.com/politics/uk/2017/01/will-momentum-be-able-affiliate-labour
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Prince Charles has co-authored a Ladybird book on a hurdles and probable solutions to meridian change.
It is partial of a array for adults combined in a character of a obvious children’s books that aims to clearly explain difficult subjects.
The 52-page beam has been co-authored by former Friends of a Earth executive Tony Juniper and meridian scientist Emily Shuckburgh.
Mr Juniper pronounced he hoped a book would “stand a exam of time”.
Ladybird constructed a array of books for children in a 1960s and 1970s and has recently found renewed success with a operation of humorous books for adults.
Titles embody a Ladybird Book of a Mid-Life Crisis and a Ladybird Book of a Hangover.
The latest array involves experts explaining formidable subjects in elementary form.
Mr Juniper told a Mail on Sunday : “His stately highness, Emily and we had to work really tough to make certain that any word did a job, while during a same time operative with a cinema to broach a points we indispensable to make.
“I wish we’ve managed to paint a clear picture, and, like those iconic titles from a 60s and 70s, combined a pretension that will mount a exam of time.”
A edition executive for Penguin, that produces Ladybird books, suggested Clarence House had put a latest thought to a publisher.
Rowland White told a Sunday Times : “It was a fluke where we were meditative about a new array for adults after a outrageous success of a travesty books, though this time wanted some significant books by experts on science, story and humanities subjects.”
Penguin Books pronounced a title, that will be expelled on 26 January, had been review and reviewed by total within a environmental community.
The other books in a array are Quantum Mechanics by Jim Al-Khalili, and Evolution by Steve Jones.
In 2015 Ladybird Books distinguished a 100th anniversary.

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MEDFORD, N. Y. (CBSNewYork) — A suspect is in the hospital after being shot by police following a wild car chase overnight in Suffolk County.
Sources told CBS2 the chase began at around 2:30 a.m. in Patchogue. CBS2’s Ali Bauman reported. Police followed the suspect for five miles to North Ocean Avenue in Medford.
Police say the suspect, identified as a 34-year-old man, was shot one time in the shoulder and was taken to Stony Brook University Hospital for treatment.
Police say the suspect was being pursued for driving while intoxicated and resisted arrest.
Authorities say the suspect is expected to survive.
An investigation is ongoing.

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© Source: http://newyork.cbslocal.com/2017/01/15/police-involved-shooting-suffolk/
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KUWAIT CITY, Jan. 15 (UPI) — The Kuwait Ministry of Interior on Sunday said there was not a bomb aboard a Eurowings plane flying from Oman to Germany that conducted an emergency landing.
The plane carrying 287 passengers and 10 crew was flying from Oman’s southern city of Salalah toward Cologne. The plane made an emergency landing at the Kuwait International Airport following suspicion there was a bomb aboard.
«The flight was diverted to Kuwait as a matter of precaution and in coordination with the relevant authorities and the pilot,» Eurowings, a subsidiary of the Lufthansa Group, said in a statement .
Kuwait’s Interior Ministry said security personnel at the airport thoroughly searched the plane while taking all necessary precautions, state-run news agency KUNA reported.

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Last Updated Jan 14, 2017 9:27 PM EST
A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket lifted 10 next-generation Iridium telephone satellites into orbit Saturday, a successful return to fight that should help restore confidence in the low-cost booster after a devastating launch pad explosion last September.
That dramatic conflagration likely was caused by super-cold oxygen in the booster’s second stage that worked its way beneath the carbon fiber outer skin of a high pressure helium tank, triggering the tank’s rupture and the near-instant destruction of the rocket and its $200 million satellite payload.
SpaceX has successfully launched a Falcon 9 rocket for the first time since its last effort, which resulted in an explosion on the launch pad. CB…
For Saturday’s flight, SpaceX engineers changed a variety of pre-launch procedures, loading RP-1 kerosene fuel and liquid oxygen earlier in the countdown than before to slightly raise temperatures around the helium tanks. The technique was used for an engine test firing earlier this month and went off without a hitch Saturday.
After brief concern about winds and a boat in the offshore danger zone, the slender 229-foot-tall rocket’s nine first stage engines thundered to life at 9:54 a.m. PST (GMT-8), throttled up to full power and majestically pushed the booster away from its seaside launch pad at Vandenberg Air Force Base northwest of Los Angeles.
Trailing a brilliant tongue of fiery exhaust, the Falcon 9 quickly arced away on a southerly trajectory as it climbed out of the dense lower atmosphere, its Merlin 1D engines generating a combined 1.5 million pounds of thrust.
A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket blasts off from Vandenberg Air Force Base, Calif., successfully launching 10 Iridium telephone satellites Jan. 14, 2017. This was SpaceX’s first flight since a catastrophic launch pad explosion Sept. 1, 2016.
The first stage engines shut down about two-and-a-half minutes after launch. The stage then fell away and the single engine powering the Falcon 9’s second stage took over, its nozzle glowing bright red against the limb of the Earth, generating 210,000 pounds of thrust to continue the climb to space.
A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket sits on a California launch pad, set to lift off at 9:54 a.m. Pacific Time Saturday. The company’s return to space comes…
The first stage, meanwhile, flipped around and restarted three of its engines to reduce forward velocity and begin a descent to a SpaceX droneship stationed several hundred miles south of Vandenberg. Recovering stages for eventual refurbishment and reuse is a major element in company founder Elon Musk’s ongoing drive to reduce launch costs.
After a second engine firing to slow the booster still more for atmospheric entry, the stage plummeted tail first toward the Pacific Ocean, restarted a single engine, deployed four landing legs and settled to a picture-perfect touchdown on the droneship Just Read the Instructions.
The first stage of the Falcon 9 completed a successful descent to a SpaceX droneship stationed south of the launch site. It was SpaceX’s seventh successful landing in 12 attempts.
It was the company’s seventh successful landing in 12 attempts, its fifth on a droneship and the first for a Falcon 9 launched from Vandenberg.
But as with all Falcon 9 flights, the landing was a strictly secondary objective. The primary goal was to boost the 10 Iridium NEXT satellite telephone relay stations into orbit and the Falcon 9 did just that.
The second stage completed the first of two burns just over nine minutes after liftoff. A short three-second burn was executed 43 minutes later to complete the climb to an initial 488-mile-high orbit tilted 86.4 degrees to the equator.
Seven minutes after that, the 10 Iridium NEXT satellites were released in sequence from a dispenser mounted atop the second stage, the first batch in a planned 72-satellite network that will replace the company’s current fleet of aging low-Earth-orbit mobile voice and data relay stations.
The complex satellite-by-satellite swap-out will allow Iridium to retire first-generation relay stations that have operated long past their design life, replacing them with upgraded, more powerful spacecraft and expanding the company’s capabilities in an increasingly competitive commercial space operations environment.
“Frankly, it means our future, because we have to replace this network anyway,” Iridium CEO Matthew Desch said in an interview with CBS News last year. “I often think of it as one of the biggest tech refreshes in the world right now, with a new $3 billion constellation.”
Altogether, Iridium is paying SpaceX upwards of $500 million for seven Falcon 9 launches to boost 70 Iridium NEXT satellites into orbit, 10 at a time, over the next year or so. Two more will be launched aboard a different rocket.
“The new satellites are a lot more powerful, a lot more processing power, they’ve got a lot more memory, a lot more capacity, they actually expand our ability to support customers,” Desch said. And, he added, “they’re easier to operate.”
Engineers will spend three months testing each new satellite and carrying out a satellite-by-satellite swap-out, moving a new spacecraft into position near the vehicle it’s replacing and switching service from one to the other.
The Iridium network requires 66 satellites to provide global coverage, but the company plans to launch 15 in-orbit spares to provide immediate backup in case of an in-orbit malfunction and to serve as an insurance policy of sorts in the event of a launch failure.
An Iridium NEXT satellite.
As important as the Falcon 9 launching was to Iridium, it was even more important for SpaceX after an in-flight failure in June 2015 and the dramatic on-pad explosion Sept. 1 at Cape Canaveral.
The Falcon 9’s record of two failures in 29 rockets stands in contrast to the record of its major U. S. competitor, United Launch Alliance, which has launched 102 more expensive Atlas 5s and Delta 4s without a single failure. The European consortium Arianespace has successfully launched more than 75 Ariane 5s in a row.
But SpaceX enjoys widespread support in the satellite industry, in large part because of the Falcon 9’s innovative design and relatively low cost. With a list price of $60 million per booster, a Falcon 9 is roughly half the cost of rockets offered by its major competitors.
But lower costs cannot offset significantly higher risk, and industry analysts say SpaceX needs a string of successful flights to maintain its long-range goal of capturing a major share of the commercial launch market.
With a successful return to flight Saturday, SpaceX will now focus on working off a backlog of delayed payloads, launching a commercial communications satellite from Cape Canaveral later this month and a space station resupply mission in February. The first flight of a “used” Falcon 9 first stage is expected in the next few months.
Gwynne Shotwell, SpaceX president and CEO, said the company currently has about 70 flights on its manifest, a backlog valued at some $10 billion.
The Wall Street Journal reported Friday that SpaceX lost $260 million in the wake of the 2015 in-flight failure, launching just six missions that year instead of 12 that were originally planned.
It’s not known what impact the September failure might have on the company’s bottom line or how delays will ripple through its manifest. SpaceX launched eight flights in 2016 and was forced to delay at least seven more.
But Shotwell is optimistic, saying earlier this week that no customers have abandoned SpaceX. Bret Johnsen, SpaceX chief financial officer, said in a statement the company continues to enjoy “strong customer relationships.”
“Furthermore,” he said, “with over $1 billion in cash reserves and no debt, the company is in a financially strong position and is well positioned for future growth.”

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