Labour MPs, the majority of whom are hoping Mr Corbyn’s leadership is in its final weeks, watched baffled as the leader of the opposition failed to ask a single question about the biggest change facing the United Kingdom in a generation.
Advertisement
Corbyn was forced to fend off a series of attacks from Owen Smith, however, over his competence in the top job and the suggestion that Labour had trailed the Tories in more than 80 opinion polls over the last 12 months.
During the first PMQs session since the summer recess, Mrs May said of modern Labour: “The train has left the station, the seats are all empty, the leader is on the floor – even on rolling stock they’re a laughing stock”.
But Bowden said the union “looks forward to examining” how Corbyn’s plans would meet United Kingdom energy demands.
But a spokesman for the Owen Smith campaign questioned the methodology behind the figures, and said that the Pontypridd MP had lots of support locally, as well as nationally.
At a meeting in Westminster on Monday evening, Clive Betts, who tabled a motion calling for the change, said it was a “pragmatic response to the situation we find ourselves in”.
The audience was made up of Labour voters split between the two contenders and members of other political parties.
The two men clashed over the European Union, with Smith claiming he was the candidate to keep Britain in the bloc.
Mr Corbyn said: “I’m very disappointed Ruth would say that”.
The opponents also disagreed about accusations of antisemitism within Labour.
“And what we know from the Labour party is that far from delivering stronger defence, they would cut defence spending, they would undermine North Atlantic Treaty Organisation and they’d scrap the nuclear deterrent”. “There is absolutely no doubt”. “I have spent my life opposing racism in any form”, he added. “Over the course of the next parliament, we will use public investment and legislation to promote the creation of over 200 local energy companies, giving towns, cities and localities the powers they need to drive a clean, locally accountable energy system with public, not-for-profit companies”. Neither candidate knew the questions in advance.
When are the leadership debates?
The Labour leader has no support from his MPs and his challenger has no support from the party, they were told.
Some of Corbyn’s allies are concerned there is an orchestrated attempt to purge supporters of the leader from the party before the vote, although only a small proportion – less than 0.5% of the total membership – have been barred so far.
Advertisement
Scottish Labour leader Kezia Dugdale wrote to the first minister Nicola Sturgeon to stress that: “Scottish Labour is an autonomous party”.
