Labour divided over fresh Syria vote

Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond and Defence Secretary Michael Fallon have been calling lawmakers in the opposition Labour Party to urge them to defy their leader Jeremy Corbyn and back attacks on the Islamist extremist organization’s bases in Syria.

When asked whether he would resign over the issue, he told Marr that “I’m not going anywhere”.

Labour is deeply divided over the issue, with Mr Corbyn – who is opposed to air strikes – facing calls for his MPS to be given a free vote ahead of his meeting with the shadow cabinet.

She told the rally, “I hope that under Jeremy Corbyn’s leadership Labour MPs will do the right thing”. The decision will be made on Monday.

“Who do these people think they are?”

In a letter last week to members of the shadow cabinet and subsequently to ordinary members of the Labour Party – amongst whom his support ratings have been steadily rising – Mr. Corbyn put forth his arguments on why he opposes intervention.

Mr Corbyn is opposed to bombing in Syria because he believes that it could make the situation worse if indiscriminate or accidental civilian deaths strengthen support for Isis. “Party membership has gone up, we’ve forced the government into a retreat of tax credits, we’ve forced the government into a retreat on police cuts, we’ve forced the government into a retreat on a Saudi prisoner contract”.

He also “seriously questioned” the Prime Minister’s claim there are 70,000 moderate Syrian troops to tackle IS forces on the ground and voiced doubts about their “loyalties”.

In an article for Huffington Post, Mr McCluskey – who backed Mr Corbyn’s leadership bid – made clear he thought the Prime Minister’s plan to extend airstrikes from Iraq to Syria was “illegal and irrational”. The UK is now participating in US-led airstrikes in Iraq.

Shadow Chancellor John McDonnell argued all party leaders should give their MPs a free vote.

Newport West MP Paul Flynn said there were “terrible divisions” in the party, and a “gulf” between the leader and his shadow cabinet. Because I don’t think there is a convincing enough plan about what happens next after that.

It would be Mr Corbyn’s decision to go, he said, not for MPs to throw him out.

“The Government position on this is very clear, the Prime Minister has set out a very clear strategy”. The poll has been criticised as an attempt to use his grassroots powerbase to “bounce” the shadow cabinet into submitting.

But “Jeremy will be speaking for majority Labour Party opinion, he will be speaking on the basis of Labour Party policy and he will be speaking as the elected leader of the Labour Party elected with a landslide no previous Labour leader could possibly enjoy”.

He said: “In principle I’m not against taking military action which would have to be taken to tackle ISIL”.

Jess Phillips told BBC Radio 4’s The World This Weekend: “If the Labour Party as a collective group of people can not have a consensus position on this, that is very, very lamentable”.

Fallon added that it would “certainly make it more difficult” if Corbyn directed his MPs to vote against action in Syria.

Some 5,000 people also protested in Madrid against military action, with many wary of Spain becoming a target for militants again after Al-Qaeda-inspired bombers blew up commuter trains in the Spanish capital in 2004, killing 191 people.