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| Version 3 | Version 4 |
|---|---|
| Labour leadership: Andy Burnham raises Tory infiltration fears | Labour leadership: Andy Burnham raises Tory infiltration fears |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| Several thousand Conservatives may be planning to vote in the Labour leadership election, Andy Burnham's campaign has said. | Several thousand Conservatives may be planning to vote in the Labour leadership election, Andy Burnham's campaign has said. |
| Michael Dugher, who is chairing Mr Burnham's campaign, called for an "urgent meeting" of candidate teams to address the issue. | Michael Dugher, who is chairing Mr Burnham's campaign, called for an "urgent meeting" of candidate teams to address the issue. |
| There are also claims individuals supporting Jeremy Corbyn are being unfairly banned from taking part. | There are also claims individuals supporting Jeremy Corbyn are being unfairly banned from taking part. |
| Labour said it had "a robust system" to stop "malicious applications". | Labour said it had "a robust system" to stop "malicious applications". |
| Mr Corbyn, Mr Burnham, Yvette Cooper and Liz Kendall are all standing. | Mr Corbyn, Mr Burnham, Yvette Cooper and Liz Kendall are all standing. |
| Polls suggest Mr Corbyn is the frontrunner. | Polls suggest Mr Corbyn is the frontrunner. |
| 'So desperate' | 'So desperate' |
| New regulations allow members of the public to sign up to vote as a "registered supporter" for £3. | New regulations allow members of the public to sign up to vote as a "registered supporter" for £3. |
| Some have been told their vote will be discounted. | Some have been told their vote will be discounted. |
| Mr Burnham's team has written to Labour's general secretary claiming "a Conservative MP, Conservative media commentators, and Conservative councillors" have all been rejected. | Mr Burnham's team has written to Labour's general secretary claiming "a Conservative MP, Conservative media commentators, and Conservative councillors" have all been rejected. |
| The letter added: "This suggests the 121,000 registered supporters could include several thousand Tory infiltrators, as well as supporters of other parties seeking to have a vote in the election." | The letter added: "This suggests the 121,000 registered supporters could include several thousand Tory infiltrators, as well as supporters of other parties seeking to have a vote in the election." |
| Comedian Jeremy Hardy, meanwhile, suggested the party was seeking to "rig" the election by wrongly barring left-wing supporters of Mr Corbyn from taking part. | Comedian Jeremy Hardy, meanwhile, suggested the party was seeking to "rig" the election by wrongly barring left-wing supporters of Mr Corbyn from taking part. |
| Mr Hardy was told his vote would be discounted, despite being a Labour member in the past. | |
| He said he had supported Green candidate Caroline Lucas in her constituency at the election, but Mr Corbyn's candidacy meant he felt he could "come home to Labour". | |
| He accused Labour of trying to "change the rules of a game during an election". | |
| "The Labour Party might be trying to invite a legal challenge so that they can say 'let's just scrap the election'," Mr Hardy added. "They are so desperate that I wouldn't be surprised." | |
| Former Labour MP Andrew MacKinlay also accused the party of misusing canvass returns - collected at election time to gauge the level of support for candidates - to find people who have previously voted for other parties. | Former Labour MP Andrew MacKinlay also accused the party of misusing canvass returns - collected at election time to gauge the level of support for candidates - to find people who have previously voted for other parties. |
| He said the exclusion process had been "arbitrary" and "unfair". | He said the exclusion process had been "arbitrary" and "unfair". |
| "The Labour party has got to stop today doing this," he added. | "The Labour party has got to stop today doing this," he added. |
| Iraq apology | Iraq apology |
| But a Labour spokesman said the party was confident "the processes of verification and handling applications are compliant with the Data Protection Act." | But a Labour spokesman said the party was confident "the processes of verification and handling applications are compliant with the Data Protection Act." |
| He added: "All applications to join the Labour Party as a member, affiliate or supporter are verified and those who are identified by our verification team as being candidates, members or supporters of another political party will be denied a vote." | He added: "All applications to join the Labour Party as a member, affiliate or supporter are verified and those who are identified by our verification team as being candidates, members or supporters of another political party will be denied a vote." |
| Also on Friday, Mr Corbyn said he will formally apologise on behalf of the Labour Party for taking the country to war with Iraq if elected leader. | Also on Friday, Mr Corbyn said he will formally apologise on behalf of the Labour Party for taking the country to war with Iraq if elected leader. |
| Mr Corbyn told the Guardian the party would "never again flout the United Nations and international law" | |
| Labour leadership contest | Labour leadership contest |