Corbyn is no saint

There is a myth about Jeremy Corbyn that is enthusiastically promoted by his starry-eyed followers. They suggest that the Labour leader is a monastic, selfless figure with no interest in power or its earthly trappings; it is only his devotion to his socialist principles that has brought him to his current office. Even some of the Labour MPs who have this week quit his front bench in disgust at his woeful performance as leader have sought to spin this tale, writing public letters about his gentle kindness and dedication to the cause.

This is, of course, nonsense. For evidence, look to the way Mr Corbyn has responded to the stunning and unprecedented revolt in his parliamentary party. Mr Corbyn has comprehensively and catastrophically lost the confidence of his colleagues. He cannot remotely pretend to lead an effective Opposition, let alone a potential government. He has failed in every possible way, and brought his party to the brink of destruction. And yet he clings on to his office, utterly indifferent to the enormous and possible irreparable damage he does to the party he claims to serve.

He has survived thus far, and may yet do so for some time to come, because he has the support of Labour members – or, at least, the support of the members he brought into Labour. They include a motley collection of Trotskyites, Socialist Workers and other dregs of the hard-Left, militants who practise division and entryism in the name of their doctrine. Such people do not care one jot about party or principle, much less the country as a whole. Neither does their leader. The longer Mr Corbyn hangs on, the more he reveals his true nature.