‘Terrified’ leader is forced to deny he’s quitting

JEREMY Corbyn was forced to insist he would stay on as Labour leader yesterday as he was humiliated by dismal poll ratings and the shock resignation of one of his closest aides.

In a disastrous start to the party’s conference, Mr Corbyn’s policy chief quit with a warning that he will never get into No 10.

Andrew Fisher, his head of policy and author of the party’s last election manifesto, gave a devastating assessment of the Labour leader’s chances, accusing Mr Corbyn’s team of a ‘lack of professionalism, competence and human decency’.

Meanwhile, a string of polls made dismal reading for the Labour leader. One showed that a majority of voters who backed Labour at the last election now believe Mr Corbyn should stand down, while two others gave the Tories a significant lead.

And one senior Labour figure was reported to have claimed that Jeremy Corbyn was ‘terrified’ of having to become Prime Minister and that he ‘ didn’t like taking decisions’.

Yesterday, the Labour leader dismissed claims that he is on the verge of quitting as ‘ wishful thinking by some people’.

Mr Corbyn, 70, insisted he would lead Labour into the next election and will serve a full term as prime minister if he wins.

Appearing on the BBC’s Andrew Marr Show, he said: ‘I’m taking the party into the general election to end austerity, to bring forward policies that bring about a better standard of living and better opportunities for people all across this country.

‘I’m enjoying doing that, I’m campaigning all the time. I did 40 events during August alone all round the country.’

Asked if he would serve a full term, Mr Corbyn replied: ‘Of course. Well, why wouldn’t I?’

A poll today shows a majority of voters who backed Labour at the last election now believe Mr Corbyn should stand down.

According to the YouGov survey, 54 per cent of those who voted Labour in 2017 think he should go, with 58 per cent of the general public of the same opinion. In a further indictment, 69 per cent of the public and 58 per cent of those who voted Labour in 2017 said the party’s Brexit policy is either unclear or confusing.

It comes after polls at the weekend showed Labour trailing the Tories. A survey by Opinium put the party on 22 per cent, 15 points behind the Tories, while YouGov put Labour on 23 per cent, seven points behind.

Mr Corbyn was also rocked yesterday by the resignation of Mr Fisher. In a message to colleagues, leaked to The Sunday Times, Mr Fisher gave a devastating assessment of the Labour leader’s chances.

‘As the sole surviving staff member from Jeremy’s first leadership campaign, I think I’ve probably put as much into this project as anyone else,’ he said.

‘I leave proud of what we have collectively achieved, but I no longer have faith that we can succeed, although I do hope I’m wrong.’

Meanwhile, another poll has found that many Labour members want to abolish the monarchy and don’t support the national anthem. Only 29 per cent believe in retaining the monarchy while 62 per cent say that Britain should become a republic, it revealed.

And only 20 per cent say they would be ‘ happy’ or ‘proud’ to sing the national anthem while 50 per cent say they would be bored, embarrassed or angry.

The survey of 1,100 members also found that more Labour members – 32 per cent – blame the British government for the atrocities of the Northern Ireland Troubles, such as the Warrington and Birmingham bombings, than blame Republican terrorists like the IRA – 27 per cent.

Sixty-nine per cent of members support using strikes to overthrow a Conservative government, and 70 per cent agree with getting rid of Britain’s nuclear weapons.

The YouGov poll was commissioned by Mainstream, a new campaign aimed at combating extremism in public life. It is headed by former Labour minister Ian Austin, who quit the party in February over Mr Corbyn’s failure to tackle anti-Semitism.

‘I no longer have faith that we can succeed’