For now, at least, Corbyn is the firm favourite to beat Labour rival Owen Smith in the party’s leadership election in September.
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Mr Corbyn said while he had opened his door to colleagues, Labour MPs must recognise the “structure of the party has changed” and the parliamentary Labour party is “not the entirety of it”. Smith said ineffectual leadership by Corbyn and a lack of clarity in Labour’s message is to blame.
Mr Corbyn received loud applause when he told the audience he wanted to “live in a nuclear-free world”.
Mr Corbyn accused some in the party, including Mr Smith, of “silly childish behaviour” but insisted only “a very small number” of MPs were involved.
“I want us to be looked at by the country as a credible, respected Opposition and a Labour government in waiting”, he said.
Mr McDonnell’s comments come as Mr Corbyn is set to go head-to-head with his challenger Mr Smith in a debate in Cardiff on Thursday night in front of party members.
Mr Corbyn’s critics have claimed he would not be able to win enough of the centre ground to seal a General Election victory, with Owen Smith tipped as having broader appeal. “They aren’t “Red Tories”, he said.
But initial polling by the local party of its membership shows that Mr Corbyn’s support has dropped to less than half those polled so far – with a substantial chunk of members undecided as to how they will vote. Those who opposed Corbyn’s leadership should not be labelled “red Tories” but added: “We’re fighting like ferrets in a sack”. Following the announcement of the Labour leadership contest in June 2016, the Labour’s National Executive Committee controversially opted to debar all members from voting who had joined the party since January 2016.
“Owen Smith could kill this off altogether by saying, whatever the result of the election, if Jeremy Corbyn does get re-elected he will serve under Jeremy Corbyn, and saying to his supporters who are talking up this split to stop it immediately, and let’s work together”.
The pollster asked nearly 5,000 Britons which way they would vote in the case of Labour split, with either the party’s right or left wing breaking away.
He also hit out at criticisms of the 172 Labour MPs who voted no confidence in Mr Corbyn’s leadership, saying: ‘They are not red Tories.
In an attempt to calm tensions Mr Smith at one point directly addressed the audience and said: “We are not behaving like comrades to each other”. On top of that, the majority of pre-existing Labour members also support him.
He said: “You can not want that because you want a Labour government, you want to put into practice our principles, you don’t just want to protest about I hope, you want to actually deliver something for this country”.
Under revised rules for the contest between Corbyn and Owen Smith, introduced by Labour’s national executive committee last month, full members can not vote unless they joined in January or before.
Mr Corbyn earlier announced his 10-point programme to rebuild Britain, including a £500bn (€590bn) investment scheme overseen by a national investment bank over the next decade.
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“I want to see Southern back in public ownership”.
