Jeremy Corbyn has said that the local Labour party needs to be allowed to decide whether he stands at the next general election, and not Sir Keir Starmer.

Mr Corbyn’s comments this morning (December 5) came after the Labour party leader said on BBC Radio 4 that he does not see circumstances in which the Islington North MP will be Labour's candidate.

Mr Corbyn told the Islington Gazette: “I don’t know why he [Sir Keir Starmer] would say that. The local party ought to be in the position to decide who the candidate is, not the party leader.”

Former Labour leader Mr Corbyn had the whip removed over his response to the scathing Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) report into antisemitism in the party.

Sir Keir, who replaced Mr Corbyn as leader in 2020, told the Today programme: “I don’t see the circumstances in which he will stand at the next election as a Labour MP.”

at the next election as a Labour MP."

Mr Corbyn said: "I am honoured to be the full-time representative of Islington North, and will continue to tackle the most important issues - the cost-of living crisis, stagnant wages and growing inequality - affecting my constituents. 

"I was elected as a Labour MP and proud to be so. I have made it clear that the whip was wrongly removed, and it should be re-instated. Labour members have the democratic right to choose their candidate. Currently, members in Islington North are being denied that right, and it should be restored immediately."

Mr Corbyn, who has represented Islington North since 1983, could potentially stand as an independent, relying on his personal appeal to constituents and backed by the devoted supporters who helped propel the left-winger to the Labour leadership.

Asked whether he believed Mr Corbyn could stand as an independent against a Labour candidate, Sir Keir said: “I can only speak for the Labour Party, I can’t speak for Jeremy on this.”

Mr Corbyn had the whip removed and was suspended by Labour in the aftermath of the highly critical EHRC report in 2020.

He had his party membership reinstated within weeks, but Sir Keir refused to readmit him to the group of Labour MPs.

In his initial response to the EHRC report, Mr Corbyn claimed the scale of antisemitism in the party had been “dramatically overstated for political reasons” by opponents both inside and outside Labour, along with the media.

But he later attempted to clarify his comments in a statement to the party, saying concerns about antisemitism are “neither ‘exaggerated’ nor ‘overstated'”. 

Islington North constituency Labour party has yet to select its candidate for the next general election.