Jeremy Corbyn has launched a strong defence of the Stop the War Coalition describing them as “a vital democratic campaign” as he rejected a call by the former shadow education secretary Tristram Hunt to pull out of a Christmas fundraising event.
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He also referred to a Stop the War blog posted shortly after the Paris attacks, which was quickly removed.
The Labour leader joined party colleagues at the shopping centre in a bid to raise cash for Oxfam’s refugee appeal.
Some of the 66 Labour MPs who backed bombing in Syria have complained of being subjected to online abuse since the vote.
The disclosure comes after Bermondsey and Old Southwark MP Neil Coyle revealed he had been given police protection after receiving a death threat on Twitter when he voted for military action.
The Metropolitan Police has launched an investigation.
He told BBC’s Andrew Marr Programme: “They are a really disreputable organisation”.
Mr Corbyn’s decision to grant a free vote to his party’s MPs on bombing Islamic State in Syria was condemned as “deplorable” by the organisation, of which the Labour leader used to be chairman.
Pressed on whether MPs should potentially face de-selection for failing to tow the party line, Mr Wrack, a long-time ally of Mr Corbyn, replied: “It depends upon the circumstances and it depends upon the issue”.
The group has also caused outrage with comments suggesting Paris had “reaped the whirlwind” for Western actions in the Middle East and comparing jihadists to the International Brigade volunteers who fought fascism in the Spanish Civil War.
Stop the War’s convenor Lindsey German defended its actions, saying protests were a “democratic right, not bullying or intimidation”.
JEREMY CORBYN is thought to be planning a “revenge reshuffle” to purge his shadow cabinet of MPs who voted for airstrikes on Syria, senior Labour sources fear. The message is clear: “unite around the principles of the new politics and we can be the most powerful force for progressive political change in generations”. “I can not ignore the advice from security experts that without coalition airstrikes over the next 12 months the threat from Daesh – in the region, but also in Europe and in Britain – will be much greater”. “Trying to influence MPs when they can’t even sign up to vote for an MP is pretty poor”.
He was then further bolstered by a better-than-expected Labour victory in the Oldham West and Royton by-election which saw the party see off the challenge of Ukip with an increased share of the vote. However, Lisa Nandy, the Shadow Environment Secretary and a leading figure on the left of the party said that a reshuffle would do nothing to stabilise the party.
Stop the War has been among the most strident critics, demanding the sacking of shadow foreign secretary Hilary Benn after he rallied support for air strikes in a barnstorming Commons speech.
He told Sky News: “There is no point having policies if the politicians elected to carry out those policies don’t do that … that’s the debate that I think needs to be had”.
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“You want the team of rivals”.
