Jeremy Corbyn blasts 'unacceptable behaviour' as he snaps at media amid ongoing Labour feud over Brexit

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Jeremy Corbyn lost his cool today as he snapped at a huddle of journalists who followed him through the Labour Party conference.

The Labour leader, under attack over his Brexit policy fudge, lambasted a crowd asking him questions, ahead of a number of crunch votes on the party's Brexit policy.

He hit out at media, accusing television crews and photographers of barging into delegates as they covered his tour of stands at the conference in Brighton.

As he was followed through the concourse, he said: "We’re doing stall visits at the moment and I think you’re shouting questions.

"You’re shouting questions at people it’s quite rude actually."

He then came to a stop and turned to those gathered and said: "Can I just say this to you: this is our conference these are our stalls.

"Your behaviour, pushing past people, pushing people over and pushing past people who want to legitimately want visit stalls is completely unacceptable.

"Can I ask you to behave with respect to our members and our conference?"

With hundreds of delegates calling for a campaign against Brexit, Mr Corbyn was forced to ask the big trade unions, including Len McCluskey of Unite, to bail him out ahead of three crunch policy votes.

The Left-wing movement Momentum was also under pressure to instruct its delegates to back Mr Corbyn.

But the powerful Unison trade union dismayed the party leader by backing a grassroots motion calling for Labour to come off the fence and campaign to remain in the European Union.

Hot seat: Jeremy Corbyn in a wicker car in Brighton
Getty Images

And three shadow ministers broke ranks by saying they would back Remain in a referendum , unlike Mr Corbyn who has refused to say what he would do.

The row overshadowed a major election promise by shadow chancellor John McDonnell to cut the average working week to just 32 hours .

He whipped up chants in the hall of “Oh, Jeremy Corbyn” and backed his leader’s offer of a referendum to “let the people decide” after the looming general election.

But in a round of interviews earlier Mr McDonnell showed his colours by saying he “can’t see a better deal” for the country than remaining in the EU .

United front: Shadow chancellor John McDonnell with Jeremy Corbyn at the Labour Party conference
AP

Mr McCluskey took to the stage and begged members not to defeat their leader so close to a general election.

“I implore you, please give Jeremy Corbyn the support he needs later ... so Prime Minister Corbyn can lead us to a bright new dawn.” Aslef’s Mick Whelan also intervened, saying: “What Len said.”

In a bombshell attack on the party’s National Executive, which issued a neutral motion suggesting a special conference to decide Labour’s position once an election is over, Momentum founder Jon Lansman took to Twitter to call it “a travesty”.

“Across the membership there are many different views on Brexit, and on the conference floor members should feel free to vote with their conscience,” he said.

The long-standing ally of Mr Corbyn added: “I’m completely supportive of Jeremy’s leadership but I’m incredibly disappointed with the process by which today’s NEC statement on Brexit was produced. There was no meeting, no discussion, no consultation with the membership.”

That produced a mocking tweet from deputy Labour leader Tom Watson, whom Mr Lansman tried to oust without notice, saying: “Irony is not dead”.

The three big votes this evening are: a rebel composite motion for an avowedly Remain position in a referendum; a leadership-backed composite motion putting forward a process of renegotiating a “credible” Brexit deal, and then putting it to a referendum with Remain on the ballot paper; and an NEC motion calling for a special conference to fix Labour’s stance.

There were plots to get the NEC motion withdrawn for breaches of process in issuing it.

There were also suggestions that Mr Corbyn’s allies would ensure that both of the main composite motions were passed — a device that would create a deliberate stalemate and trigger rules allowing the party leadership and trade unions to cobble together a manifesto policy in private.

Shadow foreign secretary Emily Thornberry was due to reiterate her call in the Standard last week for the party to back Remain in her keynote speech.

Shadow Brexit secretary Sir Keir Starmer stressed that a Labour government would “legislate immediately” for a new Brexit referendum, with the necessary law introduced in its first Queen’s Speech to get it through Parliament while negotiations with the EU took place on a new deal.

Mr McCluskey has said shadow ministers should get in line over Brexit or “step aside” from their roles.

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