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Tom Watson tells Corbyn he has lost his authority among Labour MPs Jeremy Corbyn preparing for leadership contest
(about 1 hour later)
Tom Watson has told the Labour leader, Jeremy Corbyn, that he has lost his authority within the parliamentary party and that if there was a leadership election then members would be voting with that knowledge. Jeremy Corbyn is preparing himself for a leadership contest following a fresh wave of resignations, with 15 members of the shadow cabinet walking out and calling for him to step down from the helm of the party.
In critical talks at 9am on Monday morning, the deputy leader set out how destabilising a wave of shadow cabinet and ministerial resignations had been for the party but fell short of calling on Corbyn to resign. The Labour leader remained defiant, even in the face of resignations from previously loyal members of his team on the left of the party, including the shadow business secretary, Angela Eagle, the shadow work and pensions secretary, Owen Smith, and the shadow energy secretary, Lisa Nandy.
Labour sources, including those close to the leader, admitted that a leadership election was looking increasingly likely, with Watson telling Corbyn he would do his best to hold the party together. A source close to Corbyn said the number of resignations was destabilising but ultimately irrelevant unless someone triggered a leadership election. “In many ways, the shadow cabinet is now stronger. There is no shortage of good people who want to do these jobs. The only way to try to replace Jeremy is to stand against him in a democratic contest,” he said, adding that was now “likely to happen”.
Corbyn remained defiant, with his team reiterating his words on Sunday night: “Those who want to change Labour’s leadership will have to stand in a democratic election, in which I will be a candidate.” Eagle had requested a meeting with Corbyn but had not heard back, so offered her resignation over the phone on Monday morning. Her sister, Maria Eagle, the shadow culture secretary, also went.
Corbyn said he would not “betray the trust” of the Labour members who voted for him. Nandy and Smith joined John Healey, Nia Griffith and Kate Green in a crunch meeting with Corbyn.
Monday’s meeting came after the leader announced a raft of shadow cabinet appointments amid further frontbench resignations and calls that Corbyn stand down. But sources said they were left furious when the shadow chancellor, John McDonnell, “barged in”. They said he answered questions meant for the leader and called on them to take on the rebels, against their hope to encourage Corbyn to build a shadow cabinet from all parts of the party. Another adviser said Corbyn and McDonnell “were simply not in the mood for compromise and did not see it as their responsibility to try to unite the party”.
Two more full shadow cabinet ministers, energy secretary Lisa Nandy and pensions secretary Owen Smith, resigned just before midday and backed Watson to take over as a caretaker leader. In a joint statement issued after the meeting, Nandy and Smith said: “The lack of confidence in the leadership goes beyond the small group of MPs who have consistently opposed Jeremy since his election. It has become clear that he is unable to form a broad, inclusive shadow cabinet that draws on the best of our movement’s left and right traditions.”
The pair issued a joint statement, together with colleagues John Healey and Nia Griffith, describing themselves as the “centre left” of Labour, and saying they had met Corbyn and told him they believed he should step aside for the good of the party. Healey also resigned, although that had not been his original intention. He wrote in his letter that Corbyn had failed to recognise the “turmoil after the referendum vote”. Griffith also resigned from her role as shadow secretary of state for Wales.
It said: “The lack of confidence in the leadership goes beyond the small group of MPs who have consistently opposed Jeremy since his election. It has become clear that he is unable to form a broad, inclusive shadow cabinet that draws on the best of our movement’s left and right traditions. “These resignations underline that Corbyn has lost the support of the loyal Labour left. These MPs wanted to make it work, and are by no means Blairites,” said a source.
“For that reason we have told Jeremy that whilst the party holds a leadership contest – which is now inevitable – we believe Tom Watson ought to take over as a caretaker leader to stabilise the party and to enable us to play a full part as the official opposition in one of the most difficult periods this country has ever faced.” The dramatic resignations, over two days, were a mixture of staged interventions and “organic” action, according to Labour sources.
Sources said the group went into their meeting with Corbyn with an open mind but were furious when shadow chancellor John McDonnell “barged in”. They said he answered questions meant for the leader and called on them to take on the rebels, against their hope to encourage them to build a shadow cabinet from all parts of the party. Chris Leslie MP said: “There is a growing sense of unity now across the PLP [parliamentary Labour party] that we have a duty to our country to bring Labour back into contention, with good colleagues suppressing their own personal ambitions now in pursuit of this common goal.”
More than dozen junior shadow ministers and frontbenchers resigned on Monday – following in the footsteps of 12 members of Corbyn’s shadow cabinet on Sunday. Party figures were due to meet on Monday afternoon to discuss a motion of no confidence in Corbyn, which is expected to be debated in the evening. Meanwhile, there will be a protest outside parliament during the meeting, while trade union leaders have warned Labour rebels to back off. The resignations forced Tom Watson, Labour’s deputy leader, to return from a weekend at the Glastonbury festival for a meeting with Corbyn, in which he told the leader that he had lost his authority within the parliamentary party.
Labour will now have to replace a series of additional resignations, including frontbencher Stephen Kinnock, who resigned on Monday as parliamentary private secretary to Angela Eagle, the shadow first secretary of state and shadow secretary of state for business, innovation and skills. Watson warned that if there was a leadership election and Corbyn stood again then members would be voting with that knowledge, but he fell short of demanding his resignation.
Also quitting on Monday ahead of the crunch meeting of the PLP was Diana Johnson, who resigned as a shadow foreign minister. Anna Turley stepped down as shadow minister for civil society and Toby Perkins quit as shadow armed forces minister. Labour figures are meeting to discuss if Corbyn will face a vote of no confidence at the PLP meeting on Monday evening, after a motion backing it was submitted by Margaret Hodge MP.
Showing no sign of capitulating to the demands of the former shadow cabinet members, Corbyn announced a list of appointments with immediate effect. They included: Corbyn’s supporters were also mobilising, with Momentum preparing phone banks to contact up to 100,000 supporters and planning a protest outside parliament during Monday night’s vote. Len McCluskey, the leader of the Unite union, has issued a threat to rebel MPs that they could face mandatory deselection.
Perkins’s absence will be notable on Monday afternoon in parliament during defence questions, underlining the fact that the Labour leader will find it difficult to operate without a team around him. Sources said that while some of the coup had been organised, many of the resignations were taking place organically. Corbyn’s team reiterated a statement on Sunday night: “Those who want to change Labour’s leadership will have to stand in a democratic election, in which I will be a candidate.”
Chris Leslie MP said: “There is a growing sense of unity now across the PLP that we have a duty to our country to bring Labour back into contention, with good colleagues suppressing their own personal ambitions now in pursuit of this common goal.” The leader said he would not “betray the trust” of the Labour members who voted for him. He announced the following new members of his shadow cabinet team:
Former shadow education secretary Lucy Powell, who resigned on Sunday, insisted the mass exodus was not a planned coup against Corbyn but instead a reaction to the “seismic” events that have shaken Westminster in recent days – the EU referendum result and David Cameron’s resignation. But the leader will face difficult meeting on Monday evening, with rebels also pointing out that the normal activity of parliament had become impossible for Labour. “They can replace the shadow cabinet but can they field a frontbench?” said one organiser.
Powell told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme she hoped Corbyn would “not drag this out any longer than necessary” and step down. Among those who resigned was Toby Perkins, the shadow armed forces minister, whose absence will be notable during defence questions on Monday – underlining the fact that the Labour leader will find it difficult to operate without a team around him.
In his resignation letter, Kinnock, the high-profile MP for Aberavon, told Corbyn he had “the deepest respect for your long service to our party and for the consistency with which you have served as an MP and as our leader”. Many MPs are furious about accusations of a lacklustre performance from Corbyn during the EU referendum, with Phil Wilson MP, who chaired the remain campaign for the party’s parliamentary group, accusing his leader of “sabotage” in the Guardian.
He added: “However, in light of the deeply disappointing referendum result caused, in part, by the half-hearted and lacklustre role that you played in the campaign, I have come to the conclusion that you are no longer able to lead our party. Chris Bryant, the former shadow leader of the House of Commons, said he was unsure whether Corbyn had even voted to remain in the EU himself. Bryant said he had asked the leader directly if he had voted to leave, but “he didn’t answer”.
“Furthermore, British politics will be completely dominated in the coming years by the Brexit negotiations, and I do not believe that you have the requisite skills or experience to ensure that there is a strong Labour voice at the negotiating table as we undertake this monumentally complex task.”
Chris Bryant, the former shadow leader of the House said he was unsure whether Corbyn had even voted to remain in the EU himself. Bryant said he had asked the leader directly if he had voted to leave, but “he didn’t answer”.
Bryant added: “The truth is Jeremy’s management of the campaign in the referendum left many voters on polling day not even knowing which way he was going to vote himself. I suspect that Jeremy may have voted to leave.”Bryant added: “The truth is Jeremy’s management of the campaign in the referendum left many voters on polling day not even knowing which way he was going to vote himself. I suspect that Jeremy may have voted to leave.”