Top Jeremy Corbyn aide Andrew Fisher suspended by Labour amid Class War

Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn most senior policy adviser has been suspended following allegations he behaved with contempt towards the party by urging voters to back a Class War candidate.

Andrew Fisher had faced calls for his expulsion after suggesting people should vote for a Class War candidate against Labour’s Emily Benn in the Croydon South seat in May.

Mr Fisher’s appointment is one of a number to Mr Corbyn’s close circle that have proved controversial among Labour MPs.

Andrew Fisher, Corbyn’s policy advisor, had his party membership suspended on Friday as part of an increasingly public battle for control of the party between backbench Labour MPs and the party leader.

But the aide now faces a probe from Labour’s NEC and the powerful group will draw up a full report with “recommendations for disciplinary action if appropriate”, according to a Labour spokeswoman.

“I think people expect us to be realistic and perhaps be realistic in the sense that maybe there are a few policies that are too complex, that it’s just not possible to master while we’re in opposition”, Mr Little said.

The Labour Party has converged on Palmerston North as its first annual conference since last year’s disastrous election result kicks up a gear.

Fisher apologised “unreservedly” for the tweet.

He also described Labour’s frontbench under Ed Miliband as “the most abject collection of complete shite” and once appeared to tweet support for Green MP Caroline Lucas to beat a Labour candidate. Although this could have killed the story, it is understood that general secretary Iain McNicol was happy to allow the complaint to be elevated to the status of a formal investigation.

Labour’s rule book states that any member who ” supports any candidate who stands against an official Labour candidate… shall automatically be ineligible to be or remain a party member”.

Channel 4 News said Mr Fisher had been suspended for “administrative” reasons.

David Cameron taunted Mr Corbyn over Mr Fisher’s left-wing reputation at Prime Minister’s Questions in the House of Commons this week, branding the former union official a “Trotskyist”.

Labour needs to get its act together, make changes and present itself as a united, disciplined political party if it wants to have any chance of success in 2017, its president says.

“These rules must apply equally to all members whether they deliver leaflets, are elected representatives or are staff in the leader’s office”, they said in a joint statement.