On Saturday night a highly critical open letter to the Labour leader, circulating on Facebook, had been signed by almost 2,000 members in constituency parties across the country, around half of whom are believed to have voted for Corbyn as leader. The letter, organised by a group called Labour Against Brexit, accuses Corbyn of a “betrayal of your socialist values” and of backing a policy that will hurt working people.
One of the organisers, Jonathan Proctor of the North Tyneside constituency Labour party, told the Observer that the motive was not to destabilise Corbyn, but to stand up for Labour principles and values. He said the response from members since its launch on Friday had been overwhelming. [...]
Tulip Siddiq, the MP for Hampstead and Kilburn, has left her frontbench post, and two whips, Thangam Debbonaire and Jeff Smith, have said they will not vote for the bill. Another shadow cabinet member, Rachel Maskell, is said by colleagues to be considering resigning, and Clive Lewis, regarded as close to Corbyn early in his leadership, now says he will vote against the bill at third reading unless there are a series of safeguards.
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