LABOUR LEADER JEREMY Corbyn has suffered in-fighting among his party for quite some time now, dating back to when he took over the reins in 2015.
Now, as the party enters its first general election under Corbyn, internal recriminations are set to continue as Labour’s manifesto was leaked to the press a week early last night.
To top off this bad news for Corbyn, a car he was a passenger in ran over the foot of a BBC cameraman as his convoy tried to avoid the cameras as he slipped into a morning meeting.
Brexit plans
It is believed that only Labour’s most senior figures had access to the 43-page draft of the party’s manifesto.
While Corbyn has widespread support among the party’s grassroots, the parliamentary wing of the party has long been sceptical and tried to oust him from his position already.
An internal investigation will examine how the information made its way to the British press.
Wherever the leak came from, it is a blow to the party who had planned to officially launch its manifesto next week.
Among the pledges, which are yet to be signed off, the party said it would guarantee a “meaningful vote” on the final Brexit agreement and rules out leaving the European Union without a deal.
Labour recognises that leaving the EU with ‘no deal’ is the worst possible deal for Britain and would do damage to our economy and trade.
“We will reject ‘no deal’ as a viable and negotiate transitional arrangements to avoid a cliff-edge for the UK economy,” the draft manifesto said, according to The Daily Telegraph newspaper.
The draft manifesto also details Labour’s view on immigration – a key factor in Britain’s referendum last year on leaving the EU.
Labour pledges to make no “false promises” on cutting the number of migrants, in a nod to the Conservatives’ unfulfilled promise to reduce arrivals to tens of thousands.
As well as renationalising railways, the party also plans to introduce state-owned energy firms and hike corporation tax on large companies, said the media reports.
Toe-curling
BBC cameraman Giles Wooltorton, meanwhile, was injured today as a car bringing Corbyn to a meeting ran over his foot.
Wooltorton was treated by paramedics at the scene.
The car belonged to the Metropolitan Police, which will conduct its own investigation into the incident.
With reporting from AFP
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