Hyndburn’s MP has called for Labour members to bring an end to Jeremy Corbyn’s leadership - but says whatever the outcome he won’t abandon the party.
Graham Jones, who has been a staunch critic of Mr Corbyn’s leadership, says the current state of the Labour party is “shocking”, but insists he would stick with Labour following the leadership election ahead of next month’s party conference.
There have been suggestions that the party could split should Labour members re-elect Mr Corbyn, who is lacking support from colleagues in the parliamentary party.
Mr Jones, who also revealed that his office had received abuse for his stance on Mr Corbyn, has thrown his support behind challenger Owen Smith in the leadership contest.
He said: “Jeremy Corbyn promised a kinder gentler kind of politics and it’s been anything but under his leadership - it’s been a battle, and that’s why I’m backing Owen Smith. The hostility in the Labour party now is unavoidable.
“The youngest member of my office, she just picked up the phone and a man who said he supported Jeremy told her she’s a ‘Blairite bitch’. It’s definitely getting unsafe and unstable, of that there is no doubt.
“The state of the Labour party is shocking.
“I’ve been fighting the privatisation of Channel Four and I’ve not had an ounce of support from our front bench, who have not even offered a single statement about it.
“It’s almost as though they are happy to let privatisation happen.”
However, the Hyndburn MP insisted that despite the differences, his loyalty would remain with Labour in the face of a possible split following the election.
He said: “First and foremost this is a process within the Labour party. From my point of view we have got to fight hard for Labour.
“I have opposed the Government, it’s about time Jeremy Corbyn and the leaders office started to do the same.
“But I’m a Labour man through and through, the same as my family have always been. We can stick it out and make the right choice.”
Pontypridd MP Mr Smith became the sole challenger to Mr Corbyn after initial challenger Angela Eagle chose to pull out of the race after assessing that she was lagging behind her opponent when it came to nominations from MPs and MEPs.
