Jeremy Corbyn formally blocked from running as a Labour MP at next election

Jeremy Corbyn has been banned from standing as a candidate for Labour at the next general election.

The National Executive Committee (NEC) voted 22 to 12 to approve a motion from Sir Keir Starmer to prevent his predecessor from being endorsed.

Shabana Mahmood, a Labour MP and the party’s national campaign co-ordinator, called the move a “clear demonstration” of the current leadership making changes “to make sure that we can win the trust of the British people again”.

But supporters of Mr Corbyn have braded the decision an “anti-democratic stitch-up”, saying local constituency members should get to decide his fate.

The veteran MP, 73, has represented Islington North for the past 40 years and must now decide if he wants to stand as an independent candidate, having been a member of the Labour party since he was 16.

Politics live: All eyes on Jeremy Corbyn’s next move

Such a move could cause a distracting challenge for Sir Keir at the next election, with Mr Corbyn retaining significant support among constituents who have voted for him in 10 consecutive elections since 1983.

Mr Corbyn, who was suspended from the parliamentary party following a row over antisemitism, accused Sir Keir of “undermining the party’s internal democracy” ahead of the vote, but was ambiguous about his future.

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0:33 Sky News asked Jeremy Corbyn about his future

Approached by Sky News before a rally outside parliament protesting against the government’s illegal immigration bill on Monday, the former Labour leader said he was not giving interviews and appeared agitated when asked what he will do next.

Sir Keir’s motion said Mr Corbyn “will not be endorsed by the NEC as a candidate on behalf of the Labour Party at the next general election”.

It cited the dismal defeat Mr Corbyn led Labour to as leader in the 2019 general election in arguing his candidacy should be blocked.

Labour’s chances of winning the next election and securing a majority in the Commons would be “significantly diminished” if Mr Corbyn was endorsed, the motion argued.

Ms Mahmood, the Labour MP for Birmingham Ladywood, said: “Keir has taken responsibility, he continues to take responsibility, Jeremy has failed to do that and that’s why we’ve made the decision we have today.”

She said Mr Corbyn had still not acknowledged the seriousness of the findings of a report into antisemitism in the Labour party under his leadership.

Responding to claims the move is anti-democratic, Ms Mahmood said: “Constituency members do get a chance to vote, and they always do, but it is always left to the NEC to endorse those candidates, so this is the NEC doing exactly what it’s there to do.”

Image: Supporters of Mr Corbyn have braded the decision an “anti-democratic stitch-up”

‘Anti-democratic stitch-up’

The decision to block Mr Corbyn has not been welcomed in all wings of the parliamentary party, where Mr Corbyn retains the support of those aligned with the Socialist Campaign Group.

Bell Ribeiro-Addy MP said it should be up to Mr Corbyn’s local constituency members to decide – something which they have called for themselves.

Nadia Whittome MP, who has served on Sir Keir’s frontbench, described the motion as “divisive, an attack on party democracy and a distraction”.

And Momentum, the left-wing grassroots group set up in the wake of Mr Corbyn’s leadership victory, called it an “anti-democratic stitch up”.

A spokesperson said: “Keir Starmer was elected on a pledge to end NEC stitch-ups and let local members decide their candidates. Yet at a stroke his paper bans a former Party leader from seeking the Labour nomination in a constituency he has won ten times and represented for over forty years.

“This unjust decision drives a massive wedge within the Labour Party and risks alienating the millions of people, especially young people, who were energised by Jeremy’s socialist politics.”

Mr Corbyn was suspended from the parliamentary party in October 2020 over his reaction to a damning report by the Equality and Human Rights Commission into how antisemitism complaints were handled under his leadership.

Immediately after its publication, Mr Corbyn claimed “the scale of the problem” of Labour antisemitism allegations was “dramatically overstated for political reasons by our opponents”.

He has been sitting in the Commons as an independent since his suspension, but he is still a member of the wider Labour party.

However, party rules mean he could lose that membership if he does announce he will run against an official Labour candidate.

In a statement on Monday, Mr Corbyn said Sir Keir had “broken his commitment to respect the rights of Labour members and denigrated the democratic foundations of our party”.

He did not say if he would run at the next election but said of those who support him: “Our message is clear: we are not going anywhere. Neither is our determination to stand up for a better world.”