Labour torn apart by resignation of moderate Frank Field – as SECOND MP threatens to quit over anti-Semitism row

LABOUR is tearing itself apart today over the resignation of veteran Frank Field - as another MP is on the verge of quitting over the anti-Semitism row.

Allies of Jeremy Corbyn accused Mr Field of peddling "grotesque slurs" about anti-Semitism, as the party teeters on the verge of a huge split.

Respected backbencher Mr Field threw in the towel and resigned the Labour whip yesterday in protest over anti-Semitism and abuse claims that have riddled the party.

And this morning Ilford South MP Mike Gapes said he could follow suit if Labour didn't change.

He told the Evening Standard he felt "tainted and sickened" by what's happened to the party he joined 50 years ago, and he was "agonising" over what to do.

Last night friends of the Labour boss came out to attack the departure of Mr Field - who remains an MP but won't have to vote with Labour - and demanded he call a by-election to fight again for his Birkenhead seat.

Today Mr Field said the party had threatened to kick him out of the party he's been in for 60 years unless he withdrew his resignation from the whip - and he's got two weeks to change his mind. He's also looking for a lawyer to help him out, he added.

A Labour source said: “Frank met the chief whip today and they had an amicable discussion, where it was conveyed to him that resigning the whip means resigning from the party. That is the consequence of what he is doing.”

But Chris Williamson told the BBC's Newsnight that his departing attacks on the party were "grotesque slurs which have no basis in reality".

Completely ignoring the countless cases of anti-Semitism in the party and Mr Corbyn's links to, the Derby MP said: "The party has taken the issue of anti-Semitism very seriously; far more seriously than any other political party.

"It's so sad to see someone like Frank Field trashing Labour's anti-racist record".

And Labour's Shadow Justice Secretary Richard Burgon said Mr Field should leave his seat and call a by-election.

Other sources close to Mr Corbyn have said the veteran only quit because he was worried he would be forced out after a vote no confidence in his local area.

Mr Field, who has been in Parliament since 1979 and was a minister under Tony Blair, was facing a battle with local activists over his seat.

He said today he still wanted to stand as a Labour candidate, but if he wasn't allowed he would stand as an independent in the next election.

"I've been a member for 60 years, longer than Jeremy, I don't see why I should have to give up my membership," he told TalkRadio.

"I have Labour interests at heart and I will continue to vote alongside those in the Commons."

But Mr Corbyn's deputy Tom Watson warned that his departure is "a major wake-up call" and a "serious loss", adding: "We cannot afford to lose people of such weight and stature."

Mr Field will meet with Nick Brown, the party's chief whip, to discuss his options later today.

His critics say he can't stay a member of the party and be an independent MP.

The Labour boss is still under pressure after a summer of anti-Semitism storms engulfing his leadership.Mr Field said yesterday the party must adopt the full definition of anti-Jew hate in order to prove to the Jewish community the party are on their side.