Owen Smith in 'enemy territory' as he makes Labour leadership pitch in Liverpool

Labour rebel MPs opposed to Mr Corbyn are preparing to elect their own leader and launch a legal battle for the party's name

Owen Smith launches his 20 left-wing polices in Rotherham (Charlotte Graham)

Labour leadership challenger Owen Smith is taking his battle to topple Jeremy Corbyn into "enemy territory" with a campaign push in Liverpool.

With the Smith camp seeing the city as a Corbyn stronghold, they want the move to underline the would-be leader's aim to try and reunite the party around him.

The bid comes as Mr Corbyn holds another rally in Hull as the two men slug it out for the Labour crown through the summer before the winner is declared at the end of September.

The pitches came as former shadow cabinet member Angela Eagle warned Labour MPs to moderate their language after Mr Smith was forced to apologise for controversial comments aimed at Prime Minister Theresa May.

Mr Smith, who toppled Ms Eagle as the "unity" candidate tasked with ousting Mr Corbyn as Labour leader by dissenting MPs, drew widespread criticism for saying he wanted to "smash" Mrs May "back on her heels".

Ms Eagle told The Guardian: "He should have, and has, apologised. As someone that has heard cruel words spoken about me, I know that language matters. And we've all got a responsibility to be sensitive with our use of language.

"Owen has shown a capacity to recognise, and apologise for, insensitivity, and that's important."

Ms Eagle said it was "extraordinarily disingenuous" for Mr Corbyn's team to "cloak Jeremy in the mantle of feminism by saying that we have to be sensitive about our use of language, especially around women MPs".

She insisted she was not taking it personally that more anti-Corbyn MPs had backed Mr Smith over her as the best placed candidate to dislodge the leader.

The former shadow business secretary said she was trying not to dwell on threats received since she became the first to challenge for the leadership.

"I don't want to dwell on it, partially because if I dwell on it too much, or I talk about it too much, I just get a load more," she said.

Mr Smith initially refused to apologise for his comments regarding Mrs May, but was forced to do so after the controversy mounted.

The visit to Liverpool by Mr Smith sees him attending the city's gay pride celebrations, and meeting party members at a special event.

Meanwhile, Labour rebel MPs opposed to Mr Corbyn are preparing to elect their own leader and launch a legal battle for the party's name and assets if he triumphs in the membership ballot election, The Daily Telegraph reports.