Black Country trade unionist launches second bid for Unite leadership

Gerard Coyne, who was narrowly beaten by current leader Len McCluskey in the 2017 leadership battle – says he aims to become the union's new general secretary when a contest begins later this year.

In the wake of the last election he was sacked after 16 years as Unite's West Midlands secretary following claims he had misused data – a decision he described as "nothing more than a stitch-up".

In a letter to union members, Mr Coyne, from West Bromwich, said Unite "now needs fundamental change to become a much more transparent and accountable organisation".

The ally of Sir Keir Starmer called for an external review into Unite's Birmingham conference centre and hotel project, which has reportedly seen costs more than double to £74 million in five years.

Mr Coyne questioned whether members money had been "spent wisely", and vowed to introduce a "value for money and audit committee" to look into union investments.

He said culture change should "go much further", and pledged to bring in a code of conduct and register of interests.

"In the end, change must come from leadership," he wrote. "That is why I will stand to be general secretary of Unite: to change the union.

"Unite can be a powerful force for good in our economy, in our society and most importantly for its members. Only a union that embraces openness – that is not afraid of scrutiny and challenge – will in the end succeed."

Other candidates are assistant general secretary Steve Turner, Howard Beckett, who is also an assistant general secretary, and Sharon Graham, an executive officer with the union.

The winning candidate will take over in 2022 when Mr McCluskey, a close ally of former Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn, is stepping down.

Under his leadership the union has slashed its support for Labour over Sir Keir's decision to pay damages to former staff members who claimed the party had failed to deal with anti-Semitism complaints.

Meanwhile Unite bosses were due to hold a meeting today over the controversial 170-room hotel and conference centre project in Birmingham, which was budgeted at £35m.

The contract to build it was awarded to the Flanagan Group in 2015, a Liverpool-based firm run by an associate of Mr McCluskey's, while another contract on the project was given to a company owned by the son of Liverpool Mayor Joe Anderson.