Claims that Jeremy Corbyn will fail have become a ‘self-fulfilling prophecy’, close MP ally Clive Lewis warns

The shadow defence secretary said changing leader would not help Labour

Clive Lewis remains Labour's defence spokesperson in the House of Commons (PA)

Claims Jeremy Corbyn is an “unelectable leader” have become a self-fulfilling prophecy, one of his closest allies in the Parliamentary Labour Party has publicly said.

Clive Lewis, who is Mr Corbyn’s shadow defence secretary and was not one of the MPs to resign last month, also said the Labour leader and his team had made “mistakes”.

“It’s become a self-fulfilling prophecy that Jeremy Corbyn is an unelectable leader,” he said in a video interview with The Guardian newspaper.

“When elements of your own party are saying that and you’ve got pretty much the establishment media, including the so-called liberal wing of that media saying that, it does become a self-fulfilling prophecy.”

The frontbencher however warned that replacing Mr Corbyn was unlikely to revive the party’s fortunes, warning that victory for Owen Smith in the coming leadership election would likely be a “pyrrhic victory”.

“If people think changing leader is going to all of a sudden make our party electable I think they’re sadly mistaken,” the Afghanistan veteran said.

Mr Lewis – who is on the left of the party, nominated Mr Corbyn last year, and was elected in 2015 – put Labour’s current difficulties down to a variety of factors, including inexperience.

Jeremy Corbyn has refused calls by some of his own MPs to resign (AFP/Getty)

“You have to understand why Jeremy Corbyn, his office, his team has struggled – there are lots of reasons: you can’t blame it on the media, but it’s a factor. You can’t blame it all on elements of the PLP, but it’s a factor,” he said.

“And then you’ve also got the fact that the left has literally come from nowhere overnight into a position of leading Her Majesty’s Opposition. I think mistakes have been made and it’s been difficult because there just isn’t the experience there to be able to run an operation and hit the ground running.”

Mr Lewis spoke out earlier this month in a speech, warning that his party was facing an “existential crisis” and that it needed to rediscover its a purpose.

He said saving the party was not a “question of repositioning the Labour party on a simplistic left-right axis”.

He joins other left-wingers whose have raised concerns about the Labour leader in recent months. In early July Sheffield’s socialist MP Louise Haigh said she had made the “difficult decision” to vote no confidence in Mr Corbyn.

She said she had voted the same way as Mr Corbyn in every vote since he became leader but could no longer support him.

Despite the disquiet, YouGov polls suggest Mr Corbyn is well ahead with party members and set to win the next leadership election against Mr Smith.

The leader’s cause was also bolstered last week after the return of MP Sarah Champion to his frontbench.

Other MPs are understood to be considering a return if Mr Corbyn wins again; still others who are more hostile to Mr Corbyn are reportedly considering splitting to form another party.

This article's headline has been changed. It previously read "Jeremy Corbyn has become an 'unelectable leader', close MP ally Clive Lewis says"