Corbyn could back changes to rules on reselection

JEREMY CORBYN could back the mandatory reselection of Labour MPS amid fears he is preparing to mount a purge of moderate members.

A senior source close to the Labour leader said that he was considering the idea as part of plans to “democratise” the party, despite vehement opposition. It came after Chris Williamson, a shadow minister and one of Mr Corbyn’s closest supporters, said that automatic reselection could help “concentrate minds” among his parliamentary colleagues.

Ian Lavery, Labour’s chairman, has also given his backing to a change to the current rules under which MPS cannot be reselected. Under the plans all Labour MPS would have to win support of half of their local party members to stand in the general election.

The source close to Mr Corbyn said: “There’s no doubt there will be changes to the way the party operates to take into account the fact that we’ve now got upwards of 550,000 members. We want to see a much more engaged, proactive and democratic organisation.

“When it comes to the selection and reselection of MPS, there already is a system in place of trigger ballots in normal circumstances and the Labour party nationally is discussing when selections will take place.”

The comments represent a shift from 2015, when Mr Corbyn said: “I do not support any changes to Labour’s rules to make it easier to deselect sitting MPS.”