Trade union keeps Labour Party 'in real world' Ed Miliband has been warned by former minister Kim Howells that he must act to avoid Labour being seen as a party of vested interests. It follows claims that the Unite union sought to unfairly influence the selection of an election candidate in Falkirk. But speaking to Today programme presenter James Naughtie, the former mayor of London, Ken Livingstone, disagreed with Mr Howells' comments: "The trade union is about the one thing that keeps the Labour Party in the real world."