Jeremy Corbyn branded a Mike Ashley-style tyrant over threats to deselect critical MPs by Labour leadership challenger Owen Smith
The veteran leftie was compared to the Sports Direct boss after he was embroiled in a row over MPs being bullied
LABOUR challenger Owen Smith has branded Jeremy Corbyn a Mike Ashley-style tyrant over his threats to deselect critical MPs.
He hit out as the hapless Labour chief was embroiled in a bizarre row with one of his own MPs over whether the Mr Corbyn had threatened to call his dad to "bully him into submission”.
Turning up the pressure in the leadership election Mr Smith blasted: “It’s not ‘kinder or gentler’ if you are the boss of an organisation and the workers are unhappy and you threaten to give them the sack.
“It’s the sort of thing you would see at Sports Direct, but it’s not what you should be expecting in the Labour Party.”
Sports Direct boss Mike Ashley was accused by MPs today of running his empire like a “Victorian workhouse” and has been subjecting staff to “appalling” working conditions.
Mr Smith’s damning comments came a day after Mr Corbyn opened the door for a bloody purge of Labour moderates by making them all re-apply to be MPs.
Declaring war on rebels as he launched his own leadership campaign, Mr Corbyn said there would be a “full selection process” in every seat before 2020.
Talking to Sky News on Friday morning, Mr Smith said it was “deeply saddening for all of us to see” abuse and bullying “bubbling up” in the party.
Attacking Mr Corbyn he claimed: “Under his leadership there has been a culture of bullying, I fear, abuse in the Labour Party that we have never seen before.
“Women in Labour have found themselves subjected to awful misogynistic abuse.
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“Some of our Jewish MPs have been subjected to anti-semitic abuse, some of our Asian MPs have been abused.
“None of that can be acceptable in the Labour party and it cannot be tolerated.”
And he laid blame for the abuse squarely at his leader’s door, saying “something has gone badly wrong under his watch.”
“Jeremy always says he doesn't condone it, but somehow under his leadership - we can’t deny the facts - this wasn't something we saw in the Labour Party before Jeremy Corbyn became Leader and it’s now become commonplace,” he added.
An angry Mr Corbyn denied suggestions he was a menace, saying: "I don't do any abuse, I don't do any bullying."
A statement from his office said: As Owen knows, Jeremy wasn’t calling for anyone to be sacked.
“It is sad to see Owen stoop to the level of personal; abuse, which detracts from a proper debate on the values, principles and policies that will deliver a Labour Government.
“When he is ready, I am prepared to have that debate with him.”