On reflection, Nigel, I believe your question was indeed rhetorical. According to the several resources I checked (my quote is from Wikipedia, but they are all in agreement), a rhetorical question is one which is asked to make a point or provoke discussion, rather than to receive an answer. So yes, unless you actually expected anyone here to have ‘inside information’ about decisions made in the highest echelons of the Labour Party your question is, AFAIC, rhetorical. And if that was your expectation, I’d have to say it was entirely unrealistic.

From Wikipedia…

”A rhetorical question is a question asked for a purpose other than to obtain information.[1] In many cases it may be intended to start a discourse, as a means of displaying or emphasizing the speaker's or author's opinion on a topic. A simple example is the question "Can't you do anything right?" This question is not intended to request a response about the listener's competence but rather to insinuate their lack of it. In many instances, rhetorical questions serve as a literary device with the purpose of persuading an audience or making them reflect on a topic.”