Corbyn: Keir can’t ban me, I will stand as Labour MP if members agree

The former Labour leader has no intention of running as an independent

Jeremy Corbyn says attempts to block him from running as the Labour member for Islington North are “undemocratic”.

Responding to comments made by Sir Keir Starmer earlier on Wednesday, the former Labour leader said it was up to the members of his local constituency party to decide on candidates – and not the party leadership.

In a statement delivered in east London on Wednesday morning, Starmer announced a ban on Corbyn standing for Labour at the next election and told fellow MPs to quit the party if they do not like the direction he is taking it in.

Speaking to PoliticsJOE, Corbyn said that Sir Keir’s comments about his future were a “flagrant attack on the democratic rights of Islington North Labour Party members,” adding that “any attempt to block my candidacy is a denial of due process, and should be opposed by anybody who believes in the importance of democracy.”

There are no plans to announce his candidacy as an Independent MP, which would risk his expulsion from the Labour party altogether.

The member for Islington North said he was “proud to represent the labour movement in Parliament through my constituency” and that he was focused on standing up for workers on the picket line, the marginalised, and all those worried about their futures.

“Ever since I was elected as a Labour MP 40 years ago, I have fought on behalf of my community for a more equal, caring and peaceful society,” he said.

“Day in day out, I am focused on the most important issues facing people in Islington North: poverty, rising rents, the healthcare crisis, the safety of refugees, and the fate of our planet.”

“That is what I’ll continue to do. I suggest the Labour Party does the same,” he said.

Sir Keir announced a block on Corbyn’s candidacy following news that Labour had been taken out of special measures by the equalities watchdog, concluding a near three-year investigation.

The report, by the Equality and Human Rights Commission and published in October 2020, found that under Corbyn’s leadership, the Labour Party breached the Equality Act, having failed to effectively address antisemitism.