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| Virgin challenges Jeremy Corbyn train footage | Virgin challenges Jeremy Corbyn train footage |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| Virgin Trains has questioned footage showing Jeremy Corbyn sitting on the floor of a "ram-packed" service. | Virgin Trains has questioned footage showing Jeremy Corbyn sitting on the floor of a "ram-packed" service. |
| In a film shown on The Guardian, the Labour leader said he was experiencing a problem "many passengers face every day" on the London to Newcastle train. | In a film shown on The Guardian, the Labour leader said he was experiencing a problem "many passengers face every day" on the London to Newcastle train. |
| But Virgin said CCTV showed Mr Corbyn and his team walking past available seating before starting filming. | But Virgin said CCTV showed Mr Corbyn and his team walking past available seating before starting filming. |
| It says the crew helped him to a carriage where seats were available and he sat for the rest of his journey. | |
| Mr Corbyn's team has been contacted for comment. | |
| According to The Guardian's report last week, the footage of the Labour leader was taken by Yannis Mendez, a freelance filmmaker who volunteers for his campaign. | |
| The Labour leader chose the spot on the floor instead of upgrading to first class, it said. | |
| In the footage, he said: "This is a problem that many passengers face every day, commuters and long-distance travellers. Today this train is completely ram-packed. | |
| "The staff are absolutely brilliant, working really hard to help everybody. | |
| "The reality is there are not enough trains, we need more of them - and they're also incredibly expensive." | |
| Mr Corbyn said the episode made the case for the railways to be renationalised, one of his key policy pledges. | |
| 'Have to take issue' | |
| He had been travelling to Newcastle to take part in a hustings against Owen Smith, who is challenging him for the leadership of the Labour Party. | |
| Virgin founder Sir Richard Branson tweeted a link to the CCTV images, saying Mr Corbyn had "walked past empty unreserved seats then filmed claim train was 'ram-packed'". | |
| The company said that after Mr Corbyn's team had finished filming: "The same footage then shows Mr Corbyn returning to coach H and taking a seat there, with the help of the onboard crew, around 45 minutes into the journey and over two hours before the train reached Newcastle. | |
| "Mr Corbyn's team carried out their filming around 30 minutes into the journey." | |
| The company, which runs the service as part of its East Coast franchise, thanked Mr Corbyn for his praise for its staff and said more capacity was being introduced at peak times. | |
| It added: "But we have to take issue with the idea that Mr Corbyn wasn't able to be seated on the service, as this clearly wasn't the case. | |
| "We'd encourage Jeremy to book ahead next time he travels with us, both to reserve a seat and to ensure he gets our lowest fares, and we look forward to welcoming him onboard again." |