Corbyn’s successor as Labour leader doesn’t need ‘ovaries or a Northern accent’, says Starmer ally

Fightback begins even as Long-Bailey is poised to enjoy clear run as the Corbynite candidate

An ally of Keir Starmer has ridiculed the idea that the next Labour leader must “have ovaries or a Northern accent”, even as Rebecca Long-Bailey strengthened her status as favourite.

The shadow business secretary is poised to be the Corbynite candidate, with the backing of her close friend Angela Rayner, the education spokeswoman, who is no longer expected to run.

But Jenny Chapman, Sir Keir’s deputy in the Brexit brief until she lost her Darlington seat, said it was “patronising” to Northern voters to rule him – a man with a North London seat – out of the race.

He has yet to declare he will be a candidate, but Ms Chapman joked that she would be “sitting in Keir Starmer’s office until he agrees to stand”.

“What people are saying is that they want a leader that they feel could be the prime minister,” she said, recounting her experiences on the doorstep.

“It was about, 'do I trust this person with my mortgage, with the future, with my children, with my pension? And I think that Keir has the qualities that they're looking for.”

She told the BBC: “Nobody on doorsteps of Darlington said the next leader has to have ovaries or a northern accent, and I think that's such a patronising attitude to think that presenting someone who speaks the northern accent means you're going to win support in the North.”

Ms Long-Bailey, the MP for Salford, can be expected to hoover up the support of Unite and other big trade unions if Ms Rayner smooths her path, by opting to run for deputy only.

She enjoyed a leading role in the election campaign, including as Labour's spokeswoman in TV debates, and has stood in for Jeremy Corbyn at prime minister's questions.

Much of the early speculation in the leadership race has focused on the need to appeal to Labour heartland voters who deserted to the Tories – and the fact that the party has never had a female leader.

Sir Keir is also disadvantaged by having pushed hard for Labour to back a Final Say referendum and to support Remain, which has been blamed by Corbyn supporters for the election disaster.

However, an online poll for the influential LabourList website suggests the race will be neck-and-neck, with backing for Ms Long-Bailey (14.4 per cent) only slightly ahead of that for Sir Keir (13.8 per cent).

And a YouGov found only 8 per cent of British voters believe the leader should be a woman – while more than 80 per cent said they had no preference.

Ms Chapman added: “I didn’t lose my seat because Jeremy Corbyn is a man from north London.

“People in Darlington have just elected an MP whose party is led by an old Etonian from Islington, who speaks Latin! This Westminster media obsession with personalities misses the point entirely.”