Petition to sack BBC political editor Laura Kuenssberg removed after abuse from sexist trolls

A petition calling for BBC political editor Laura Kuenssberg to be sacked has been taken down after it was hijacked by sexist trolls.

The 38 Degrees petition alleged that Kuenssberg had been biased against Labour and party leader Jeremy Corbyn.

It attracted more than 35,000 signatures - but was also bombarded with sexist and abusive language aimed at the journalist.

An agreement was then reached between 38 Degrees and the petition creator to take it down from the site.

38 Degrees executive director David Babbs said: “I am really concerned a petition hosted on the 38 Degrees website has been hijacked and used as a focal point for sexist and hateful abuse made towards Laura Kuenssberg on Twitter.

“There is no place in the 38 Degrees family for sexism or any form of discrimination or hate speech.”

Kuenssberg was accused of being biased against Labour and Jeremy Corbyn in her coverage of the local and regional elections.

She was named as the BBC’s first female political editor in July last year.