In response to the hostility faced by MPs, t hey continued: ” Politics must be conducted in a better way – more civil and more respectful.
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She said: “The threats and intimidation that people have received through social media and emails to their offices and letters to their offices has no place in political debates. The party will not accept such behaviour, from whatever quarter it comes”.
Despite more than 60 MPs voting with the Government for airstrikes, Mr McDonnell said the Syria vote was a “real endorsement” of Mr Corbyn’s leadership.
Some MPs have accused Momentum of orchestrating email and social media campaigns to pressure them to vote against air strikes in Syria. Wayne David, the MP for Caerphilly, said Momentum had become a “party within a party” and should be wound up. “I am his deputy leader and I will defend him to the last”. Labour MPs of various views have a right to be outraged when these tactics are used.
Watson also called for a period of silence from Ken Livingstone, who has said he would support the deselection of Labour MPs who voted in favour of airstrikes in Syria to be deselected – although he acknowledged taht this was probably an “impossible dream”.
Caroline Lucas, Green MP for Brighton Pavilion, opposed the airstrikes and said: “I have still to see any evidence to suggest that United Kingdom bombing Isis targets in Syria is likely to increase our security here in Britain or help bring about a lasting peace in the region in question – to the contrary, the evidence appears to suggest it would make matters worse”.
“There have been anonymous phone calls to my office and I’ve been threatened with being deselected as a Labour candidate at the next election”.
“We have had a rush of new membership and Jeremy Corbyn hoped this would ignite the grass roots campaign, but there’s been more campaigning against Labour MPs and that will only serve division and disunity”.
Revealing that he had received a death threat for his anti-war stance, the shadow chancellor said: “All of that intimidation is not acceptable”.
The message was sent after the MP for Rochdale – an outspoken critic of Mr Corbyn – confirmed he was planning to back air strikes in Wednesday’s Commons vote.
Mr Livingstone later defended his comments, telling the BBC: “Nobody should be doing abusive tweets or anything like that, but people voicing their genuine belief that they would rather have an MP who supports the leader rather than undermines him should be free to say that”. “To say they should be subjected to a witch-hunt or a campaign against them is wrong”.
Labour MP Clive Lewis – an ally of Mr Corbyn and shadow energy and climate change minister – acknowledged it was a “really dark” time for the party.
He added: “As Mr Cameron mentioned, we are over 70,000 fighters”.
Labour’s leadership was forced to appeal for calm following a series of abusive messages aimed at MPs who backed military action, while police were investigating threats aimed at politicians who supported the bombing.
He told Sky News: “There is no room for intimidation in politics full-stop”. There’s an important issue here – any country which fails to co-ordinate with the Syrian army and the Syrian government is not fighting Daesh, they are just pretending to do so to look good in front of their parliaments and people.
The message is not thought to be linked to Momentum, but the MP for Southwark and Bermondsey South nevertheless called on Mr Corbyn to distance himself from the group to protect Labour MPs and councillors.
“They also want representatives in Parliament who will see those sort of policies through so there is going to be a debate around issues like who represents Labour in Parliament”.
Spokesperson for the bookmaker, Graham Sharpe, stated: “The intriguing possibility of the two Hil(l)arys leading their countries at the same time has suddenly become more likely as Hilary Benn takes over as favourite to succeed Jeremy Corbyn, while Hillary Clinton is already odds-on favourite to win next year’s US Presidential Election”.
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“I think, due to their behaviour, Labour members who are part of Momentum should resign from Momentum and just stay within the Labour Party”. “I am very, very happy as deputy”.
