The Labour leader is facing a revolt from his own shadow cabinet next week as the Commons votes on whether to take military action against ISIS in Syria, and some Labour MPs called on Corbyn to stand down after his handling of the issue caused a split in the party.
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These were shadow communities secretary Jon Trickett, John Cryer who is the Parliamentary Labour Party chair, shadow chancellor John McDonnell, and shadow global development secretary Diane Abbott.
Mr Cameron has said he will not hold a vote until he is convinced he can win the backing of MPs to carry out air strikes in Syria as well as Iraq. Corbyn will emphasise, however, that it is party policy to oppose air strikes, a stance backed by the membership.
Cameron’s previous government suffered a humiliating defeat in 2013 over military action against the Assad regime and did not push joining air strikes in Syria to a vote a year ago, amid resistance from the main opposition Labour party.
He claimed the RAF’s precision airstrikes had not claimed a single civilian life during action taken against IS in Iraq, and that Britain had “very strict rules of engagement”, and warned that the UK’s reputation would be damaged and the population less safe if action was not taken in Syria.
The immediate point of contention is over “whipping”, the question of whether Corbyn will order the Labour Party’s 231 lawmakers to vote against David Cameron’s plans or whether he will grant his colleagues permission to vote freely. “Any attempt to force Labour’s leader out through a Westminster Palace-coup will be resisted all the way by Unite and, I believe, most party members and affiliated unions”.
He said any motion put to a vote would be based around four key areas: counter-terrorism, the diplomatic and political process, military action against IS and ongoing humanitarian support.
Mr Cameron said in a speech yesterday0: ‘I think there is a compelling case that taking military action alongside our allies can help to address the threat from Isil [Islamic State]’. On Sunday evening the Labour leader also emailed the party’s National Executive Committee (NEC) asking to hear its opinion.
The Labour deal was brokered over the weekend and on Monday morning between the leader’s office and the deputy leader, Tom Watson. But we can not have a free-for-all party.
The Labour leader, who has spent the last couple of days amassing evidence of grass roots support for his position, is expected to deliver a riposte to critics in a high-profile interview.
Kezia Dugdale has sided with Jeremy Corbyn and come out against United Kingdom air strikes in Syria.
Shadow justice secretary Lord Falconer confirmed there were “significant differences” within the shadow cabinet. When asked whether he would resign over the issue, he told Marr that “I’m not going anywhere”.
However, Corbyn asserted his authority by reminding MPs of his large mandate and making clear that he alone would decide whether to whip them to vote against extending airstrikes on IS strongholds in Sryia.
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“However, I think the party and increasingly the public would be disappointed if we didn’t oppose these air strikes to the limits of our ability”.
