JEREMY Corbyn is set to hold on to his job as leader of the opposition until April, with Labour opting for a brutal four-month-long leadership contest.
Rumours over the weekend had suggested the beleaguered left-winger – who announced his intention to resign following last month’s disastrous election result – could, at the insistence of family, stand down sooner rather than later.
But yesterday, at a meeting to decide the timetable for the leadership contest, Labour’s ruling National Executive Committee said the postal ballot of members will run from February 21 to April 2, with a special conference to announce the winner two days later.
“We are by far the largest political party in the UK, with well over half a million members,” a spokeswoman said.
“We want as many of our members and supporters to take part, so it has been designed to be open, fair and democratic.”
Under the terms of the contest, candidates will need to secure the nominations of least 10% (22) of the party’s MPs and MEPs.
READ MORE: How long do Scottish Labour think voters will wait for their revival?
Those who succeed will then go forward to the second stage when they must get the nominations of 5% of all constituency Labour parties or three Labour affiliates – of which at least two must be trade unions – comprising at least 5% of the fully paid-up affiliate membership.
The freeze date for new members to join and be eligible to vote will be January 20 in the postal ballot.
As in 2016, people will be able to join as a registered supporter for a fee of £25 provided they are on the electoral register and meet the membership qualification criteria for membership of the party.
So far five candidates have announced they intend to stand for the leadership: frontbenchers Keir Starmer, Emily Thornberry and Clive Lewis, and backbenchers Jess Phillips and Lisa Nandy.
READ MORE: Long-Bailey receives backing for Labour leadership bid
Shadow business secretary Rebecca Long-Bailey, above, is also widely expected to run. She is said to have the backing of the current leadership and is seen as a Corbyn continuity candidate.
Former deputy leader Tom Watson, however, cautioned the party against choosing her. He told Sky News: “The one that I worry about – but I don’t know what she stands for – I mean, when I look at Rebecca Long-Bailey, she’s really the continuity candidate,” he told Sky News.
“She sort of stands for Corbynism in its purest sense and that’s perfectly legitimate but we have lost two elections with that play.
“But she hasn’t said anything yet. As far as I know, she has not formally announced and it might be that she chimes a different note in her opening bid and that she wants to take the party in a different direction and she’s very candid about what went wrong.”
The same rules and timetable will apply to the contest to succeed Watson.
It’s believed Scottish Labour’s Ian Murray is to throw his hat in the ring for the number two job.
Reports in The Scotsman suggest the Edinburgh MP is set to make an announcement today.
If true, Murray will face off against Corbyn-supporting shadow education secretary Angela Rayner.
Why are you making commenting on The National only available to subscribers?
We know there are thousands of National readers who want to debate, argue and go back and forth in the comments section of our stories. We’ve got the most informed readers in Scotland, asking each other the big questions about the future of our country.
Unfortunately, though, these important debates are being spoiled by a vocal minority of trolls who aren’t really interested in the issues, try to derail the conversations, register under fake names, and post vile abuse.
So that’s why we’ve decided to make the ability to comment only available to our paying subscribers. That way, all the trolls who post abuse on our website will have to pay if they want to join the debate – and risk a permanent ban from the account that they subscribe with.
The conversation will go back to what it should be about – people who care passionately about the issues, but disagree constructively on what we should do about them. Let’s get that debate started!
Callum Baird, Editor of The National
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here