Abbott: Corbyn will lose confidence motion but triumph among membership

Jeremy Corbyn will lose today’s confidence motion among MPs but is likely to go on to win a leadership election among members, Diane Abbott said today.

The shadow Health Secretary, who was promoted yesterday, said she expected the leader to lose today’s poll “because it’s a secret ballot and there’s been no notice”.

As voting gets underway among MPs, Abbott struck a defiant tone, accusing the rebels of staging a “three ring circus”.

“MPs don’t choose the leader of the Labour Party, the party does”, she told the BBC’s Today Programme.

“[MPs are] not certain of winning a leadership election, but that’s what they’re going to have to do and all of these things will be thrashed out in the course of a leadership election.

“Party members are going to look dimly at people who’ve chosen to unleash this type of mayhem.

Abbott, a longtime ally of Corbyn, also said there is a “very good chance” he would win a leadership election.

Her view was supported by a poll, published this morning, which gave Corbyn majority support among Labour supporters.

Labour voters want Corbyn to stay by 54 points to 35, according to the Times/YouGov survey.

Hilary Benn is backed by 10 per cent of Labour voters, followed by Chuka Umunna on 9 per cent and Yvette Cooper on 6 per cent.

Nearly half (49 per cent) of the public want Corbyn to resign and 30 per cent said he should stay,

Abbott was speaking just moments after Margaret Hodge told the programme she had received “hundreds of emails” supporting her attempt to remove Corbyn.

Hodge was one of two MPs, alonside Ann Coffey, who last week wrote to PLP chair John Cryer requesting a vote of confidence in Corbyn.

“Jeremy is a problem on the doorstep,” Hodge said today.

The backbencher said there is an “overwhelming rejection” of Corbyn among Labour MPs and called on friends of the leader to persuade him to step aside.

She also described the result of the EU referendum as “a test of leadership – and he failed it”.