Former
Labour MP and No.10 aide John Woodcock has been appointed as the government’s new envoy on countering far-right and Islamist extremism.
Whitehall sources confirmed the move to HuffPost
UK after Woodcock, who worked for Gordon Brown, announced he would not be standing in the general election.
He is the third ex-Labour backbencher to take a post from the Conservative government, with John Mann its anti-Semitism czar and Ian Austin its trade envoy to Israel.
Woodcock, who has represented Barrow in Furness since 2010, had planned to stand as an independent in the December 12 poll.
But he revealed on
Twitter he and his partner are expecting their first child and he felt that his life “has to change”.
Britain’s top counter-terrorism officer said in September that the rise of the far right is the fastest-growing terrorist threat in the UK.
Met assistant commissioner Neil Basu said
police and MI5, which since 2018 has taken the lead on the most serious extreme rightwing plots, were carrying out 80 investigations to stop violence fuelled by ideologies such as white supremacism and Islamophobia.
In his letter to constituents, Woodcock said it had been the “greatest honour” of his life representing the area for nine-and-a-half years but the “unexpected but wonderful piece of news” meant he couldn’t stay in the seat.Some sad news prompted by wonderful news - I’ve decided not to re-stand in the general
election because @IsabelHardman and I are having a baby! 🤰🏻Letter to my constituents: pic.twitter.com/kLI9zJy0Qz— John Woodcock (@JWoodcockMP) November 4, 2019Woodcock, whose two daughters live with his ex-wife in Edinburgh, wrote: “I cannot in good conscience promise to combine being the dad my girls need in Edinburgh, the committed public servant you deserve in Furness, and also bring up a baby in
London where (Ms Hardman) works as a journalist.
“Something has to give, and I must put my family first.”
He added: “As your MP, I have never shied away from speaking out and going against the grain where necessary, no matter how much hot water that has got me into over the years.”
Woodcock quit Labour with a scathing attack on Jeremy Corbyn’s leadership last year, saying the party leader would pose a “clear risk to UK national security as prime minister”.
He had been sitting as an independent since having the Labour whip withdrawn in April 2018 pending investigation of an allegation of sexual harassment.
He denies allegations over supposedly inappropriate texts and emails to a former female staff member between 2014 and 2016.Related... Exclusive: Labour Urged To Bar Chris Williamson From Election Over Anti-Semitism Allegations
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