Benn keeps post amid Labour reshuffle

Three members of Corbyn’s frontbench resigned in protest on Wednesday, while a senior party figure admitted to The Daily Beast, “this is a complete and utter shambles”.

The removal of Pat McFadden as shadow Europe minister drew the resignations of junior frontbenchers Jonathon Reynolds and Stephen Doughty, with Reynolds quick to attack the UK’s anti-militarist movements.

In a brief phone call this morning Mr Corbyn told Mr Dugher he hadn’t liked an article he wrote in the New Statesman on December 30 on a “revenge reshuffle” not being an example of Labour’s “new politics”.

But on his relationship with Shadow Foreign Secretary Mr Benn, he said: “I have had lots of conversations with Hilary Benn and we get on fine”.

Mr Corbyn fired Mr McFadden for “disloyalty” after he appeared to criticise his stance on terrorism.

When asked about his exchanges with Michael Dugher, whom he sacked as Shadow Culture Secretary, he said: “We’ve had an exchange of views”.

The target Corbyn and his allies really wanted was Hilary Benn, who had humiliated his boss by giving a bravura speech in favor of bombing ISIS in Syria.

He said he would be carrying on with his job “exactly as before”.

“Jeremy’s position as leader is secure, he got a huge mandate – whichever of the other [Labour Leadership] candidates Jonathan Reynolds voted for, between them they didn’t come anywhere near Corbyn”.

“Some shadow cabinet ministers had got into the habit of regularly attacking the elected leadership, tipping over into abuse”, the source said.

Reynolds said: “I can not in good conscience endorse the worldview of the Stop the War Coalition, who I believe to be fundamentally wrong in their assessment and understanding of the threats the United Kingdom faces”.

He said he was angry that people in Mr Corbyn’s team had been deliberately briefing newspapers that the New Year reshuffle was pay-back for the way people voted against air strikes on Syria. Corbyn has promised a new style of politics to re-energize a party that has lost two consecutive elections to prime Minister David Cameron’s Conservatives, most recently in May.

“I believe Labour needs to work out how to build an economy that generates a much greater degree of prosperity, is much more successful at tackling inequality and poverty, and which is radical in pursuing more democratic and inclusive political change, such as via electoral reform”.

The MP was one of a number of openly LGB politicians in Labour’s shadow team – alongside Shadow Commons Leader Chris Bryant, and First Secretary of State Angela Eagle.

Fabian Hamilton, the MP for Leeds North East, has been made a shadow foreign minister to replace Doughty, who resigned from the post live on TV.

Mr McDonnell said the shadow cabinet reshuffle was “never going to be this hyped-up Night of the Long Knives”.

A Black Country MP claims he has been sacked from the shadow cabinet for speaking out after the Paris terrorist attacks.