Labour MP Rosie Duffield considers leaving party over ‘obsessive harassment’

Keir Starmer’s party has ‘offered me no support at all’, says MP for Canterbury

Labour MP Rosie Duffield (Kirsty O’Connor/PA) (PA Wire)

Labour MP Rosie Duffield has said she is considering leaving the party, as she accusing officials of failing to protect her from “obsessive harassment”.

The MP for Canterbury is thought to be meeting with senior Labour officials about her future after a party member accused her of moving away from her constituency.

Ms Duffield has come under fire over her views on trans issues, after expressing her opposition to “male-bodied biological men” being allowed to self-identify as female in order to access women-only spaces.

In a series of tweets, Ms Duffield said she was the victim of “personal, libellous, nasty and fictional crap” written by people in her own party.

Denying she had moved from her constituency, the MP said both current and former members were “absolutely obsessed by my private life for some reason”, adding: “I have been subjected to this rubbish for several years now. It is obsessive harassment.”

She said Kent Police, parliament’s security team and the Speaker’s office have been helpful, but Labour officials had not supported her – singling out both Jeremy Corbyn and Sir Keir Starmer for criticism.

“Neither the Labour Party or either the former or current Leader or the Whips’ office have done anything at all to stop it, to offer me any support, help or legal assistance,” she tweeted.

“It is the Labour Party that have offered me no support at all since I unexpectedly became an MP five years ago”, adding: “I am today considering my future in the party very carefully.”

The Canterbury MP decided to stay away from the Labour conference in Brighton last September. She said she has been unfairly branded “transphobic” for “knowing that only women have a cervix”.

Ms Duffield said in November she “sometimes” wishes she had never waded in to the debate, but said: “I’m not remotely transphobic. I can’t imagine wanting to discriminate or hate a group of people just for who they are and how they want to live.”

Asked about the row at the time if the conference, Sir Keir said the Canterbury MP was wrong to say that only women have a cervix but called for the debate to be conducted in a “respectful” way.

Deputy leader Angela Rayner said she was “concerned” about the level of abuse directed at female MPs.

A Labour party spokesperson said: “The party continues to be in touch with Rosie Duffield and has offered her advice and support.”