Angela Eagle has said her challenge for the Labour leadership is a bid to "heal the party", as leader Jeremy Corbyn urged her to "think again".
"This isn't about splitting, this is about reuniting our party," she said. Mr Corbyn, who was elected by Labour members but is now opposed by many of his own MPs, said he was "disappointed" but would fight the challenge. Labour's ruling National Executive will decide whether Mr Corbyn must seek MPs' nominations to run again. He told BBC One's Andrew Marr the legal advice he had been given was that he would automatically be on the ballot paper in the leadership contest, without having to seek the backing of MPs - the majority of whom oppose his leadership. Union leader Len McCluskey has warned of "a lasting division" in the party if Mr Corbyn's name does not appear. Labour leadership election rules Who's in and who's out of the shadow cabinet? Ms Eagle would not say whether she thought Mr Corbyn should automatically be in the contest - saying that was up to the National Executive. But the former shadow business secretary told BBC Radio 5 live's Pienaar's Politics: "I think we need someone who can heal the party. "I think we need to have somebody that can lead the Labour Party forwards and unfortunately Jeremy has lost the confidence of the vast majority of his parliamentary party. "We need a strong and united Labour Party that can put a very compelling case to the British people to deal with the challenges that Brexit will give." Media captionLabour leader Jeremy Corbyn says he is "disappointed" in Angela Eagle's challenge Giving a series of interviews on Sunday, she told ITV's Peston on Sunday Mr Corbyn was not a "bad man" but was also "not a leader". She said deputy leader Tom Watson, chief whip Rosie Winterton and Parliamentary Labour Party chairman John Cryer had all been trying to get him to recognise he had to quit, but: "He's hiding behind a closed door, denying that this is a fact. That's not leadership." She said she believed she was the person to lead the party into the next general election, which she believed would come earlier than 2020. Eagle 'should think again' Mr Corbyn told the BBC he was "disappointed" Ms Eagle had chosen to run against him and would fight any bid to keep him off the ballot paper. He said: "I would ask her to think for a moment, this is the opportunity of the party to unite against what the Tories are doing to put forward an agenda that is different from the austerity agenda put forward by the Tories and gain a lot of ground." Mr Corbyn, who was backed by more than 250,000 Labour members in last year's leadership election, added: "If at the end of the day an election, somewhere, results in a different leader, so be it. "But I would be irresponsible if I walked away from a mandate that I was given and a responsibility that I was given. I ask colleagues to respect that as well." No confidence vote A vote of no confidence in Mr Corbyn by Labour MPs last month was passed by 172 votes to 40. But in last year's leadership election Mr Corbyn was elected by the wider membership on the first ballot with almost 60% of the vote. If the National Executive Committee, the governing body and administrative authority of the Labour Party, says Mr Corbyn would have to seek nominations from fellow MPs - as Ms Eagle does - and he could not get enough, he may be excluded from the leadership race. Mr Corbyn said times had changed since former leader Neil Kinnock faced a leadership challenge and had to seek MPs' backing: "That was in 1988, the electoral college system has now been abolished, we now have a one member one vote system." Image copyright AFP Image caption Len McCluskey says those wanting to keep Jeremy Corbyn off the ballot paper risk damaging the Labour party Mr McCluskey, head of the Unite union which is Labour's biggest donor, said: "I must warn that any attempts to keep Jeremy Corbyn, elected just 10 months ago with an enormous mandate, off the ballot paper by legal means risks a lasting division in the party. "It is time for everyone to commit to a democratic and dignified procedure as the only way to avert such a disaster for working people." It comes after deputy party leader Tom Watson called off talks aimed at ending the crisis in Labour. Unite had been due to meet representatives of Mr Corbyn and Labour MPs in Brighton on Sunday. Mr Corbyn's declaration to continue "come what may" meant there was "no realistic prospect of reaching a compromise" over the leadership, Mr Watson said. Former Labour front bencher Owen Smith, who is also thought to be considering a leadership bid, described the turmoil as "the greatest crisis facing Labour in generations". "I remain extremely concerned that a small number of people from both the left and right of our party seem intent on letting it split. The Labour movement must come together to avoid this at all costs," he said.
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