A total of 121 members backed Mr Corbyn against 54 who supported challenger Owen Smith, Labour’s former shadow work and pensions secretary.
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The two leadership contenders clashed last night in their first head-to-head debate, with Mr Smith saying that Labour was failing to provide a “powerful, credible opposition” to the Conservative government under Jeremy Corbyn.
The Pontypridd MP, who was booed and heckled in his own backyard as he was accused of being part of a coup against Mr Corbyn, said the Labour leader had a “historic duty” to hold the party together. Cheers from supporters watching the speech drowned out the rest of the answer.
He then called radio station LBC and said the pair were prepared to stay on the roof until they achieved a breakthrough or the Labour leader came to speak to them.
Further concerns over the leadership voting process will also be aired on Thursday with a group of Labour members launching an urgent legal challenge.
The National Investment Bank (NIB) with £500 billion available for infrastructure projects is not a new idea it was mooted before in July 2016 and the phrasing around the broadband element is a bit worrying. Corbyn said this would be financed by a resultant stronger economy and by cracking down on tax evasion.
Mr Corbyn kicked off the tete-a-tete by taking a pop at the mass Shadow Cabinet resignation which culminated in a bid to topple him as leader and rounded on Mr Smith for being one of the Labour rebels. Get more Spectator for less – just £12 for 12 issues.
“Yes, in order to take part in this election, yes, in order to strengthen out party, but also to reach out to those who have become disillusioned with politics because they don’t see a political solution to their problems”. We’re doing a lot of campaigning all over the UK.
“Yes, we are having a leadership campaign that has probably damaged temporarily Labour support”, he said.
Labour has been plunged into disarray since the Brexit vote on 23 June, when lawmakers dissatisfied at Corbyn’s leadership seized upon the turmoil that followed to demand that he step down.
“This is a preparation for a general election when we can win that general election and produce decency and real opportunity for everybody in our society”, he said. “When you reach some limits of monetary policy you reach for fiscal stimulus”. He is one of the most ambitious career politicians I’ve met. I don’t think we can win Jeremy at the moment.
Turning to Corbyn he added: “I know you’re radical, I’m radical, but I want us to be radical in government”.
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A survey showed on Friday (5 August) that Britain’s labour market entered “freefall” after the vote to leave the European Union, with the number of permanent jobs placed by recruitment firms last month falling at the fastest pace since May 2009.
