Amid a steady stream of boos and cheers, one person said both Jeremy Corbyn and Owen Smith were “unelectable” during the hour-long debate.
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Meanwhile outside the chamber, a source close to Corbyn ducked questions on the same issue – sparking dismay among some Labour MPs.
“Let’s learn from the great music that has been made by bands like UB40”, the Labour leader said.
In a sign of the Labour party’s desperate state, Mr Corbyn smirked as the Tory benches – and some moderate Labour MPs – roared with laughter at Mrs May’s mockery of the deeply unpopular leader.
In a joint statement, the band said: ” Jeremy has re-ignited an interest in politics for people who no longer felt included, and engaged and inspired a new generation of young voters who, for the first time, believe that they have an incorruptible politician who truly represents them.
If the goal of the first few Prime Minister’s Questions sessions that a new leader faces is to assert their authority, both over the Opposition and their new party, then Theresa May managed that today.
“We will act to protect the future of our planet, with social justice at the heart of our environment policies” he is expected to say.
“He has called for the reintroduction of deeply damaging open-cast coal mining and only had one meeting with his shadow environment team in nine months as leader”, he added.
“By failing to campaign effectively for Britain to remain in the European Union, and by calling for Article 50 to be invoked immediately, he has put vital environmental protections at further risk”.
And Mr Smith referred to his own internal polling last week, claiming: “The phone banking we’ve been doing shows this is still balanced on a knife-edge”.
A YouGov poll for the Times published last week placed Mr Corbyn 24 points ahead of Mr Smith, with a predicted 62% share of the vote.
Mr Corbyn noted: “Well, that’s extremely interesting because only a year ago you voted against a Labour amendment to the Housing Bill which quite simply said all homes for rent in the private rented sector should be fit for human habitation”.
“We have to be a credible government-in-waiting and win the next election”.
The PM replied: “If you think housing benefit is actually such a bad thing, why was it when we changed the rules on housing benefit the Labour Party opposed those changes that took place?”
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The majority (1,683) were blocked from voting by panels of the party’s national executive committee, which deals with cases referred to it.
