However, he remains popular with Labour members who will be able to vote in the contest, making him favourite to win for the second time.
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“All this hate and vile behaviour that’s within the party that’s aimed at Angela for challenging the leadership is a minority”.
Responding to jibes from the Prime Minister as to the turmoil in Labour, Mr Corbyn said: “Democracy is an exciting and splendid thing and I’m enjoying every moment of it”.
“The NEC has agreed that, as the incumbent leader, Jeremy Corbyn will go forward onto the ballot without requiring nominations from the Parliamentary Labour Party and the European Parliamentary Labour Party”, a party spokesman was quoted as saying by Reuters.
Pledging to campaign “on all the things that matter”, he said anyone who had any disagreements should “come and talk about it”.
“They feel it has betrayed the members who elected Jeremy Corbyn”.
On Tuesday, after a six-hour meeting during which the NEC heard three contradictory pieces of legal advice over Corbyn’s inclusion on the ballot, Labour’s governing body ruled in Corbyn’s favor. The party has previously called on her to back the leader and she could now face moves to de-select her, preventing her from standing for the party at the next general election.
The vote by the party’s ruling National Executive Committee sets the scene for a divisive and acrimonious contest between Mr Corbyn and Angela Eagle.
The ballot is scheduled to close on Wednesday September 21 and the new leader will be announced on Saturday September 24. I welcome the contest ahead.
Late last month, he lost the vote of no confidence among Labour MPs by 172 to 40.
McCluskey said it would be undemocratic to force Corbyn to secure the backing of Labour MPs before he could be allowed to stand, and accused the parliamentary party of launching a “squalid coup”.
“This is the end of the Labour Party, nothing more or less than that … the unions have destroyed the Labour Party”, he said.
He said it would be a “sordid little fix” if Mr Corbyn was excluded from the ballot paper.
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“I refused to have any part in discussions, which have been destructive, from a small group of people on the right who, just like those on the left, it seems to me, are now prepared to let Labour split”.
