Ex-PM Blair joins Labour centrists in fear of parties left turn

Amid concerns that non-Labour supporters have infiltrated the ballot, it’s emerged 1,200 members or supporters of another party have already been excluded from voting in the contest, including hundreds who stood against Labour in local or national elections. Ex-chief Ed Milliband resigned in the wake of the party’s election defeat last May.

North Islington MP Mr Corbyn said Labour is paying the price for Mr Blair’s decision to go to war in Iraq, and pledged never to go to war “on behalf of whatever capricious US president happens to be in office at that time”.

“The party is walking eyes shut, arms outstretched, over the cliff’s edge to the jagged rocks below”, he wrote.

Campaigning in Scotland, he said: “Let’s be adult about it”.

YouGov found Corbyn had the support of 53 percent of voters and was heading for a landslide victory over his rivals. The Guardian conceded though that the three mainstream candidates “failed to inspire”.

As the deadline passed for registering to vote in the election, several Labour MPs spoke out to express fears that infiltration by far-left or mischievous non-Labour members could twist the outcome of the race.

Tony Blair argued that the Labour Party was “in danger more mortal today than any point in the past 100 years of its existence”, as the leadership race between four candidates enters its final phase.

In Manchester, Ms Cooper admitted she may lose support for attacking Mr Corbyn, but insisted: “It’s not about personalities”.

Another candidate hoping to become deputy leader of the Labour Party has met members in Ipswich to explain why he wants the job.

Labour leadership elections will conclude September 10.

Mr Burnham’s comments contrast to what he said yesterday.

Middlesbrough councillor Jordan Blyth, one of the Teesside4Corby rally organisers, said: “We are bringing Jeremy to Middlesbrough so that more working class people can hear his message and ask him questions”.

Jeremy Corbyn now has the support of more than half of those with a vote in the Labour leadership contest, ahead of Andy Burnham, Yvette Cooper then Liz Kendall.

When registrations ended on Wednesday there were almost 611,000 people signed up to vote in the contest.

“It would seem unlikely that they would be genuine Labour members”.

The leader of the Basingstoke Labour party, Councillor Gary Watts, told The Gazette that Yvette Cooper was his first preference, adding: “I think she recognises that we have got to be more pro-business”.