Yanis Varoufakis
Sky News reports:
Former Greek finance minister Yanis Varoufakis has won a new role advising Jeremy Corbyn’s Labour Party.
Mr Varoufakis quit the Greek government in July last year after refusing to accept the terms of a third bailout, which imposed further austerity measures on the debt-stricken country.
Mr Corbyn says Mr Varoufakis has recently met shadow chancellor John McDonnell and will advise Labour in “some capacity”.
“Varoufakis is interesting because he has obviously been through all the negotiations (with the ECB, European Commission and International Monetary Fund),” he told his local newspaper the Islington Tribune.
“I think the way Greece has been treated is terrible and we should reach out to them.”
Ex-Greek Minister Varoufakis To Advise Corbyn (Sky News)
Related: Fintan O’Toole: The winner is social democracy (Irish Times)
*Wipes eyes, sides ache with guffaws* You couldn’t make this stuff up. Corbyn makes Michael Foot look like Tony Blair.
Anti-austerity party leader gets advice from anti-austerity guy. I don’t see what’s funny about it?
The unelectable counselled by a blowhard Finance Minister who, like a Fun Size Duke Of York, marched the Greek people to the top of the hill and pretty much left them there once his party decided more austerity was the only option to be pursued.
Corbyn was elected by the members of his party to be leader. That is what they wanted, not another Tony Blair. That is democracy within Labour.
And that’s not what happened.
Unelectable in the GE sense.
Well, no. He’s definitely electable. Just because he doesn’t wear a suit and fit the definition of politician in your head does not objectively mean he’s unelectable. That’s just you protecting. That’s not a very smart thing to do.
thought this clown had gone back to his island!
Maybe in 2020, three to four years after Jeremy gets the heave-ho.
Corbyn is solidifying the left wing base. And leaving the entire middle ground free for either UKIP or the Conservatives.
He might widen it to the mainstream then.
The seamless political pivot is notoriously difficult. And he does not seem minded to do any pivoting any time soon.
That’s because you analyse things in terms of an early Blairite mindset
Society has moved on
What exactly does that mean? How do you believe he is going to open up his vision to a wider audience?
@OwenC: It’s a vision of talking tough on matters financial and then doing one when the difficult call has to be made. Sit back and wait for the speaking and consultancy gigs to appear. Rinse, lather, repeat as the Yanks say.
Given that Labour’s downfall in the last election was a chunk of their tradtional base voting for further left small parties, that might not be the worst thing.
Corbyn’s safe space just got a little safer
So nobody here thinks that there is at least some valid basis for his arguments? No value in his experience dealing with the unelected and unaccountable heads of european finance?
In terms of “how not to deal with them”, yes, there is a lot of value in hearing from him.
What Owen said.
I think it’s a very good move to bring him in.
Better to have someone who tried and failed than someone who has never tried at all.
That’s very generous. You could also take the view he made a bad situation a whole lot worse. Its quite easy to understand the contempt held for this man his native country.
Really? They backed his referendum to reject a bailout. So how are you gauging the opinion of the Greek public then?
About as easily as you gauged the intentions of those poor, benighted fools that voted for FF on Friday.
Can you think of any other rational explanation for voting for a party that nearly destroyed the country only 5 years ago? The Greeks backed Varoufakis’s referendum. There is evidence there that the Greek people actually support him contrary to the words of right wing slogan chanters. Is there any evidence to the contrary?
Serf, Europe made a bad situation worse aided by our own Bilderberger Noonan.
If the piigs countries showed a bit of solidarity, or we didn’t have such utterly spineless politicians the situation across Europe would be a lot better.
Varoufakis was given a mandate by the Greek people to do what he did, we gave our government the same mandate and they still fupped us over.
Do you remember:
Labour’s way not Frankfurt’s way?
Not a cent more for the banks, vows FG
I’d rather someone with failed experience than none at all.
Anyway, it’s an “advisory” role… as in, “I tried that and this happened” and what not, and understanding some of the individuals, their personalities, who are still there and the like of Corbyn may face later but unaware of what type of individual they are. Small stuff, but important nonetheless.
Varoufakis is an interesting guy & I am sure there is some valid basis for his arguments.
As an example of how to successfully use politics to achieve aims, Varoufakis is not a good one.
As a signalling exercise from Corbyn, it is a poor one. Varoufakis is widely seen as a hard-left, psoturing ideologue.
“Varoufakis is widely seen as a hard-left, posturing ideologue.”
Is this how you see him or do you now speak for Germany?
I am thinking more of how he is seen within the UK – you know the jursidiction in which Corbyn hopes to become prime minister.
I had explained how I saw him in the preceding sentences!
@Moyest, Not really, other than there are a lot more shy centrist voters in Ireland than some thought.
But that doesn’t make any sense to the point I made which is that Fianna Fáil ruined the country and did it only 5 years ago so voting for them again makes no sense assuming you’re not a registered party supporter or you simply have never watched or read the news.
Yeah but what if your father and your fathers father voted FF? what choice tdo you have?
A lot of things about this election make no sense, but the people have spoken so unless we want perpetual elections, we may just have to let the mystery be.
If Fianna Fáil can get us to vote twice on the same referendum, I’m perfectly happy to have another election in 6 months time so this anomaly can be addressed and Fianna Fáil can go back under their bridges.
I wouldn’t be surprised if those people who, in anger with FF, voted FG and Labour in 2011 decided they weren’t voting that way again after the extra taxes and the like and saw FF as the only plausible other option. I’m hoping that was the case and not that people have forgiven them already.
Swoon,,…. and what he said about that economic thing…
yanis ma guilty pleasssssure