Jeremy Corbyn insists he WON’T quit as Labour leader and says he has a ‘people’s mandate’ to cling on
The embattled leftie played down the turmoil in his party as he addressed a rally in London
JEREMY Corbyn insisted he would not quit as Labour leader when he addressed a rally in London this evening.
The embattled leftie – whose own Labour MPs voted by 172 to 40 for him to step down yesterday – insisted he was here to stay when he spoke at the School of Oriental and African Studies.
Addressing a crowd of supporters, Corbyn downplayed the turmoil in his party.
He said: “I have done my best over this year to develop the policy changes we want and to reach out to people – and to recognise that there are many people in the party who don't completely agree with the direction I want to take it.
“But I also recognise that the mandate was given by hundreds of thousands of ordinary people joining in a political process, just as is happening across Europe, just as is happening across the United States.
“Because they want to see a politics that is more reflective of them, their lives, their community and aspirations – rather than the economic orthodoxy of the retreat of the wealth to the wealthiest that the poor may get poorer. It is simply immoral and wrong.
“Surely together we have strength.
“Surely together we can harness the technology we've got and not be afraid of press barons who attack us.
“That's why we contested the leadership of this party a year ago, that's why I'm very proud to be carrying on with that work.”
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Caroline Hill, Chairwoman of Young Labour, echoed his defiant speech at the rally.
She said: “We can continue to let the MPs play their games in Parliament, it doesn't seem to be going anywhere – Jeremy's definitely not.
“We know he has the support of thousands of party members, we know that the unions support Jeremy.
“Screw those people messing around, we're not going anywhere.”
But the Labour leader may be forced out if he is unable to form a Shadow Cabinet, with his ministers resigning in their droves.
Today the shadow education secretary Pat Glass – who was only appointed on Monday – quit after just two days in the job, saying his position was “untenable”.
Meanwhile, Corbyn brushed off heckles from his own Labour supporters while giving his speech in London.
He dismissed the referendum result as a “vote of anger” and said the decision to ask the British people whether they wished to leave the EU “wasn’t [his] wish”.
One heckler called him a 'moron'.
But Labour activist Claire Hurley said: "We got involved in getting Jeremy elected - we worked democratically to make him the elected leader.
"The people, the mass, young people coming together and fighting for what we believe in - this coup by the PLP is nothing short of an assault on our democracy.
"In this time post-Brexit when we are all so worried about what the future is going to bring we need to stand with Jeremy Corbyn.
"He's going to stand up for young people, he's going to stand up against austerity.
"It's a fight between a handful of Labour MPs and the mass of Labour supporters - we are the soul of the Labour Party."
She said they would be "going out making sure Jeremy Corbyn wins the next general election".