Jeremy Corbyn refuses to intervene to stop deselection of Labour MPs

Anger over 'motion of censure' against shock Labour winner in Canterbury - but party leader says it 'would be wrong' for him to step in

Mr Corbyn instead urged his critics to 'turn our fire outwards', after months of bitter internal rows (Getty)

Jeremy Corbyn has refused to intervene to stop the threatened deselection of some of his backbench critics, as fourth MP faced action.

Some fellow Labour MPs reacted with anger after it emerged there will be a “motion of censure” against Rosie Duffield, who won Canterbury in shock victory last year.

The move, to come on Wednesday night, follows comments she has made criticising Mr Corbyn's handling of the antisemitism row which has gripped the party in recent months.

But, speaking to Labour MPs on Monday night, Mr Corbyn again refused to step into what he insisted were decisions for local Labour branches.

Instead, he referred to Labour MPs thwarted attempt to topple him as leader in 2016, saying: “I know what it feels like to be the target of a no confidence vote but it would be wrong for me to intervene in the democratic rights of any part of the Labour party.”

Speaking to the parliamentary party, Mr Corbyn instead urged his critics to “turn our fire outwards”, after months of bitter internal recriminations.

“The Labour party has always been a broad church and I'm determined it remains so.

“We will always have some differences of opinion and we must protect the right of criticism and debate but our first and overwhelming priority is to deliver for the people we represent and remove this Conservative government from office.

“We must focus on that priority and turn our fire outwards.”

At the meeting, the party leader was challenged over the fate of Ms Duffield and even urged to go to Canterbury to show his support for him.

In June last year, she pulled off a stunning triumph by winning the seat with a majority of just 187 from Conservative Julian Brazier, who had been the constituency’s MP for nearly 30 years.

Ms Duffield had warned that MPs could “go on strike” unless the party fully adopted all the internationally-recognised examples of antisemitism, which it finally did last week.

The motion of censure also criticises her for attending a demonstration against antisemitism in the Labour party in Parliament Square earlier this year.

Following the MPs’ meeting, one Labour MP told The Independent: “Jeremy is vulnerable unless he acts on this, because Rosie is not a factionalist in any way and is being targeted purely because of speaking up on antisemitism.”

Last week, former minister Joan Ryan, the Enfield North MP who chairs the Labour Friends of Israel group, and has spoken out about antisemitism, narrowly lost a confidence vote.

An Iranian state-backed TV station, which is banned in the UK, carried footage of her local party passing the vote and Ms Ryan claimed Iranian journalists had “infiltrated” the party to target her because of her support for Israel.

Two other MPs - Luton South’s Gavin Shuker and Chris Leslie, the Nottingham East MP - will also face a vote of all local party members after losing no confidence motions.

Mr Leslie said his party had been infiltrated by the “intolerant hard left” and the move had been “orchestrated nationally”.