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EU referendum: Jeremy Corbyn aides deny leader to resign EU referendum: Jeremy Corbyn aides deny leader to resign
(about 3 hours later)
Aides to Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn have denied he is on the verge of resigning, following the UK's decision to leave the EU.Aides to Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn have denied he is on the verge of resigning, following the UK's decision to leave the EU.
Mr Corbyn is due to give a speech in London later to set out how the party should move forward. Mr Corbyn is due to give a speech in London to set out how the party should move forward.
Two Labour MPs have submitted a motion of no confidence in the leader, saying he did not convey a clear EU message. The Labour leader is being blamed by some of his own MPs for not campaigning hard enough to keep Britain in the EU.
The motion has no formal constitutional force but calls for a discussion at the party's next PLP meeting on Monday. Two Labour MPs have submitted a motion of no confidence in him - but Mr Corbyn has insisted he is "carrying on".
The chairman will decide whether it is debated. If accepted, a secret ballot of Labour MPs could be held on Tuesday. One of the MPs backing the no confidence motion, Ann Coffey, told BBC News: "The result of the referendum was a disastrous result for us and the leadership must bear a share of the responsibility for that.
Secret ballot 'Half-hearted'
"It was a lacklustre campaign, it didn't contain a strong enough message and the leader himself appeared half-hearted about it.
"If you have got a leader who appears half-hearted, you can hardly be surprised if the public feels the same way."
The motion has no formal constitutional force but calls for a discussion at the next meeting of the Parliamentary Labour Party (PLP) on Monday.
The PLP chairman, Labour MP John Cryer, will decide whether it is debated. If accepted, a secret ballot of Labour MPs could be held on Tuesday.
The motions backers Mrs Coffey and Dame Margaret Hodge hope it will help build a sense that confidence in Mr Corbyn is draining away, forcing him to quit.
Dame Margaret said: "I hope, in the context of a secret ballot, that there will be overwhelming support for this motion I am putting and Jeremy will do the decent thing and resign."
A spokesman for Mr Corbyn labelled Dame Margaret's move as "a bit of a self-indulgent act"
'Case for unity'
It would take 50 MPs uniting around an alternative candidate to trigger a new leadership contest but none have so far come forward.
Speculation that Mr Corbyn could step down and recommend shadow chancellor John McDonnell as his replacement has been dismissed as "nonsense" by Mr McDonnell's aides.
Mr McDonnell said Mr Corbyn had a mandate to lead the party and predicted that even if Labour MPs forced a fresh leadership election, party members and supporters would back Mr Corbyn again.
Mr McDonnell also denied that Mr Corbyn was responsible for the vote to leave the EU, and added that a general election looked likely before the end of the year, because a new Conservative leader would want to seek a mandate.
Speaking on Channel 4 News on Friday, Mr Corbyn said: I'm carrying on.
"I'm making the case for unity, I'm making the case of what Labour can offer to Britain, of decent housing for people, of good secure jobs for people, of trade with Europe and of course with other parts of the world. Because if we don't get the trade issue right we've got a real problem in this country."
'Globalisation'
BBC political correspondent Iain Watson said the Labour leader had faced frank criticism on Friday, first at a meeting of his shadow cabinet, and then in some tense one-to-one encounters with senior colleagues.BBC political correspondent Iain Watson said the Labour leader had faced frank criticism on Friday, first at a meeting of his shadow cabinet, and then in some tense one-to-one encounters with senior colleagues.
Labour MPs Dame Margaret Hodge and Ann Coffey submitted the motion of no confidence against Mr Corbyn to the Parliamentary Labour Party chairman, John Cryer.
Mr Cryer will decide whether it is debated. If accepted, a secret ballot of Labour MPs could be held on Tuesday.
By Friday evening, seven other Labour MPs were on record as backing the motion.By Friday evening, seven other Labour MPs were on record as backing the motion.
It would take 50 MPs uniting around an alternative candidate to trigger a new leadership contest.
Labour MP Frank Field - who supported the Leave campaign - said Mr Corbyn "clearly isn't the right person to lead Labour into an election, because nobody thinks he will win".Labour MP Frank Field - who supported the Leave campaign - said Mr Corbyn "clearly isn't the right person to lead Labour into an election, because nobody thinks he will win".
"We clearly need somebody who the public think of as an alternative prime minister," he told BBC Radio 4's Today programme."We clearly need somebody who the public think of as an alternative prime minister," he told BBC Radio 4's Today programme.
He admitted the party lacked an obvious alternative to Mr Corbyn, but said he hoped a potential new leader would emerge in a fresh party leadership contest.He admitted the party lacked an obvious alternative to Mr Corbyn, but said he hoped a potential new leader would emerge in a fresh party leadership contest.
Labour was "not very good a listening to the electorate", Mr Field added, saying the party needed to connect with people who were the "losers of globalisation".Labour was "not very good a listening to the electorate", Mr Field added, saying the party needed to connect with people who were the "losers of globalisation".
"We have got to respond directly to the very large numbers of people in this country who have watched their living standards cut while the upper middle class in this country have actually had the life of riley", he added. Union backing
Asked on Friday if he would resign, Mr Corbyn, who campaigned on the losing Remain side, said: "No, I'm carrying on. Former shadow chancellor Chris Leslie said there were "failures" in Labour's referendum campaign, saying he would need "an awful lot of persuading to have confidence in Jeremy's leadership into a general election".
"I'm making the case for unity, I'm making the case of what Labour can offer to Britain, of decent housing for people, of good secure jobs for people, of trade with Europe and of course with other parts of the world. Labour MP Stephen Kinnock has also come out in support of the motion, accusing Mr Corbyn of a "lacklustre" campaign, along with former former minister, Ben Bradshaw.
"Because if we don't get the trade issue right, we've got a real problem in this country," he told Channel 4 News. An online petition on the website of campaign organisation 38 Degrees calling for "a vote of confidence in Jeremy Corbyn after Brexit" has attracted more than 90,000 signatures from the general public.
Shadow chancellor John McDonnell also dismissed the motion of no confidence, saying Mr Corbyn had a mandate to lead the party and predicted that even if Labour MPs forced a fresh leadership election, party members and supporters would back Mr Corbyn again.
Mr McDonnell also denied that Mr Corbyn was responsible for the vote to leave the EU, and added that a general election looked likely before the end of the year, because a new Conservative leader would want to seek a mandate.
'Clear message'
But Mr Corbyn's critics accused him of being half-hearted in calling for Labour voters to unite behind Remain.
Dame Margaret Hodge said Mr Corbyn should resign because the EU referendum had been a "test of leadership" that he had "failed".
This left Labour voters "not getting a clear message", she added.
Dame Margaret is the MP for Barking and the former chairwoman of the Commons Public Accounts Committee. Ms Coffey is the MP for Stockport.
Former shadow chancellor Chris Leslie said there were "failures" in Labour's campaign, saying he would need "an awful lot of persuading to have confidence in Jeremy's leadership into a general election", while former minister Ben Bradshaw said he would support the no confidence motion.
Labour MP Stephen Kinnock has also come out in support of the motion, accusing Mr Corbyn of a "lacklustre" campaign.
An online petition on the website of campaign organisation 38 Degrees calling for "a vote of confidence in Jeremy Corbyn after Brexit" has attracted more than 90,000 signatures.
'Stability'
However, in a joint statement, union leaders have backed Mr Corbyn to continue as leader, saying the "last thing Labour needs is a manufactured leadership row of its own".However, in a joint statement, union leaders have backed Mr Corbyn to continue as leader, saying the "last thing Labour needs is a manufactured leadership row of its own".
They called for Labour to "unite as a source of national stability" and challenge any attempt to use the referendum result to "introduce a more right-wing Conservative government by the backdoor".They called for Labour to "unite as a source of national stability" and challenge any attempt to use the referendum result to "introduce a more right-wing Conservative government by the backdoor".
In a leaked briefing note, Labour had told its MPs to say the party "best placed" to re-unite the country following the UK's decision to leave the EU.
The briefing note said Mr Corbyn was "uniquely placed" because he understood why many people had voted to leave.
Mr Corbyn won an overwhelming victory in last year's Labour leadership contest, but did not have the backing of most MPs.Mr Corbyn won an overwhelming victory in last year's Labour leadership contest, but did not have the backing of most MPs.
The leader was expected to appear at Glastonbury Festival this weekend, but organisers say he has pulled out in the wake of the EU referendum result. The Labour leader had been expected to speak at the Glastonbury Festival this weekend - in a "Jeremy Corbyn in conversation" event, but its organisers say he has pulled out in the wake of the EU referendum result.