Eight Welsh MPs resign from Labour front bench over Corbyn leadership
Three Welsh MPs have resigned from their shadow cabinet positions in protest over Jeremy Corbyn's leadership. Five others have quit more junior positions.
Owen Smith, Shadow Secretary for Work & Pensions, and Nia Griffith, Shadow Secretary of State for Wales, have become the latest Welsh MPs to resign from Jeremy Corbyn's shadow cabinet.
Smith, MP for Pontypridd, has called for deputy Labour leader Tom Watson should take over in a caretaker role.
Llanelli MP Griffith released a statement saying that though she admired Corbyn's "principled commitment", she no longer had confidence in his ability to bring unity to the Party.
Chris Bryant resigned as Shadow Leader of the House of Commons last night. He was followed this morning by Stephen Kinnock, who resigned as a Parliamentary Private Secretary, and Wayne David, who quit his shadow ministerial role. Nick Thomas-Symonds, Gerald Jones and Susan Elan Jones have all followed suit.
Speaking to ITV's Good Morning Britain, Chris Bryant revealed that he had warned Jeremy Corbyn that he would "destroy the Labour Party" if he stays on as leader.
Following this, Stephen Kinnock published his resignation letter on social media.
He criticised his leader's "half-hearted and lacklustre role" during the EU referendum campaign and concluded that Jeremy Corbyn was "no longer able to lead out party."
Caerphilly MP Wayne David also criticised Corbyn’s lack of enthusiasm for Labour’s Referendum campaign and argued that his response to the Referendum result highlighted Corbyn’s inability to be an effective Leader.
Corbyn has responded to the spate of resignations from his shadow cabinet with defiance.
"I was elected by hundreds of thousands of Labour Party members and supporters with an overwhelming mandate for a different kind of politics," he said.
Anyone who wanted to change the Labour leadership would have to stand in an election "in which I will be a candidate", he vowed.