Labour veteran Frank Field says he is 'not jumping' as he considers triggering by-election
Frank Field has told ITV News he will "think hard" about whether to trigger a by-election after resigning the Labour party whip on Thursday.
The MP for Birkenhead also denied accusations that he had jumped before he was pushed, insisting he was "not going anywhere".
Mr Field stepped down the whip citing Labour's handling of anti-Semitism, accusing Labour of "intolerance, nastiness, and intimidation".
Despite not ruling out a by-election, the veteran MP hoped to remain the MP for Birkenhead come the next general election.
"I will obviously think hard about this and, when I meet the chief whip this afternoon, ask him if I should cause a by-election," he told ITV News.
"I will be the MP for Birkenhead, providence willing, at the next election. I'm not going anywhere, I don't know what they're saying, I'm jumping. I'm not for jumping," he continued.
Writing in the Liverpool Echo on Friday, Mr Field said the party must stop making excuses for its "blatantly racist toleration of anti-Semitism" instead position themselves as a "leading force" against racism.
He said hopes of an inclusive debate under Jeremy Corbyn were "wide of the mark" as anti-Semitism had become "more than tolerated" under the leader.
Mr Field, a supporter of Mr Corbyn in the 2015 leadership race, said the party had not only failed to expel anti-Semites but was doing nothing to ensure "Labour’s dominant values of debate, good will, and inclusiveness".
"The Party must recognise the culture of intolerance, nastiness, and intimidation that it has allowed to grow unchecked and expel local members whose public conduct is simply disgraceful," he wrote in the letter to his constituents.
Mr Field wrote that it was "with considerable sadness" he had written to the party's Chief Whip, Nick Brown on Thursday to resign from the Labour whip.
Labour sources have said Field’s wish to serve as an Independent MP while remaining a member of the party is “not possible”.
Under the Parliamentary Labour Party standing orders, which governs MPs, anyone who takes such action will usually get a letter asking them to retake the party whip within 14 days or face expulsion.
Labour’s shadow justice secretary Richard Burgon last night called on Mr Field to fight a by-election, tweeting: “Politicians who are elected as Labour MPs by their constituents and who then leave the Labour Party should do the right and respectful thing and call a by-election straight away.
“They should ask for their constituents’ consent to continue to represent them on a different basis.”
Mr Field, the one-time minister for welfare reform, who was charged by Tony Blair to reform the welfare state by “thinking the unthinkable”, said in his letter to the Chief Whip he was resigning for "two principal reasons".
“The first centres on the latest example of Labour’s leadership becoming a force for antisemitism in British politics.
“The latest example, from last week, comes after a series of attempts by Jeremy to deny the past statements and actions by him were antisemitic.
“Britain fought the Second World War to banish these views from our politics, but that superhuman effort and success is now under huge and sustained internal attack.
“The leadership is doing nothing substantive to address this erosion of our core values.
“It saddens me to say that we are increasingly seen as a racist party. This issue alone compels me to resign the whip.”
Labour deputy leader Tom Watson said Mr Field’s resignation should serve as a “major wake up call” to the party.
He said: “This is a serious loss to the party and I deeply regret Frank’s decision. It reflects both the deep divisions in the party and the sense of drift engulfing us."
Former Labour home secretary Lord Blunkett said he had tried to dissuade Mr Field from resigning.
He told the Daily Telegraph: “I understand that his constituency party membership has been giving him an incredibly hard time, which is unforgivable and reminds me vividly of the Eighties, when I was involved as a member of the national executive committee in dealing with these people, particularly from Merseyside.”
Labour MP Wes Streeting (Ilford North) raised concern Mr Field “won’t be the last” to resign.
He said: “Antisemitism and the toxic political culture in the Labour Party are issues that need to be immediately addressed by the Labour leadership if they’re to stop this becoming a full-scale existential crisis of the Labour Party."
But speaking on BBC’s Newsnight, Labour MP Chris Williamson said: “The only intolerance that I’ve seen is inside, or a section of the parliamentary Labour party who have not been prepared to honour the democratic decisions of Labour Party members.”
Mr Field, who chairs the Commons work and pensions committee, has faced criticism from party members for his voting record on key Government Brexit legislation and last month lost a motion of no confidence in his local party.
A spokesman for Jeremy Corbyn said: “Jeremy Corbyn thanks Frank Field for his service to the Labour Party”.