Labour MEP upsets 'party thugs' by standing for key post as independent

A Labour MEP accused his party of being run by thugs and control freaks last night as he prepared to contest a key post in the European Parliament as an independent.

Richard Balfe, a London MEP, has already left the socialist bloc in the Strasbourg parliament to which all 29 Labour MEPs are allied and is now on the verge of suspension from the Labour group.

His dispute with the party comes soon after the defection of the backbench MP for Shrewsbury, Paul Marsden, who recently joined the Liberal Democrats after complaining of being bullied by the whips at Westminster because of his opposition to military action in Afghanistan.

Last night, Mr Balfe said his argument with the party was similar because it was "about control freakery", and added: "I have sympathy for Paul Marsden. We [MPs and MEPs] are just regarded as so much of a waste of space. You just feel you are a nuisance."

Mr Balfe said he detected "a tendency" towards control freakery in the way that the debate on the euro was "being supressed.

"You are not allowed to speak out and say what is the truth," he said. He said that in his specific dispute, the party leadership had "made no attempt to negotiate – it's just thug, thug, thug all the way – and they have picked the wrong person."

The row revolves less around sharp policy differences and more over Mr Balfe's position as one of five Quaestors who are responsible for internal administration in the parliament.

Normally such positions are divided up by the political groups in proportion to the number of MEPs they hold, but in 1999 Mr Balfe, 57, stood as an independent Quaestor and became the first Euro MP to be elected outside the party list system.

With elections looming in January Mr Balfe has been told by the group leader, Simon Murphy, not to stand because other Labour MEPs would lose their positions. If he contests the election on January 15, Mr Balfe will be suspended from the Labour group.

Mr Balfe has responded to the threat with defiance, arguing: "Fancy disciplining someone for standing for an election. What sort of Labour Party are we in?"

Mr Murphy said last night: "Richard Balfe has chosen to stand as a Quaestor and is perfectly entitled to do so. But he knew when he chose to do so that he would have to stand as an independent candidate. Within the priorities chosen this was not seen as a strong position for the European Parliamentary Labour Party."

Mr Balfe has been a member of the European Parliament since he was elected in 1979 and a Quaestor since 1994. If he goes through with his threat to stand again he is unlikely to be returned to the Parliament as a Labour MEP.