Labour conference: Leadership rules row putting voters off, says Jeremy Corbyn

Jeremy Corbyn says internal wrangling over how Labour elects its leader will put off hard-pressed voters.

Speaking to a youth rally at Labour's party conference, the ex-leader said the focus should be on "reaching out to every community" instead.

The opening day has been dominated by a row over proposed reforms from Mr Corbyn's successor Sir Keir Starmer.

He had to abandon plans to end "one member, one vote" rules after they were rejected by left-wingers.

But Sir Keir is pushing forward with watered down reforms that will still increase the power MPs have over choosing the party's next leader.

Mr Corbyn said Labour had "huge issues to face as a party ", but said members shouldn't "obsess ourselves with internal rule changes that nobody was demanding".

He said that "if you are somebody who is about to lose your job because furlough has come to an end", on a zero-hours contract, universal credit or can't afford to care for elderly relatives. "are you really very interested in a party that is more interested in talking about how it might or might not elect leaders in the future?".

He added: "This party - to grow... to win - must reach out to every community all over the country and be that campaigning force for all communities."

The row over Sir Keir's proposals - and the opposition of Mr Corbyn and his supporters - have dominated the first day of the party conference.

The party's general secretary David Evans earlier faced heckles of "Oh Jeremy Corbyn!" as he asked members why they joined the party.

But former shadow chancellor John McDonnell - a close ally of Mr Corbyn - told another fringe meeting: "The left is not undermining Starmer, Starmer is undermining Starmer".

Mr McDonnell said both he and Mr Corbyn had resolved to avoid personal attacks on Sir Keir when he was elected leader last year, but were instead offering a "critique".

And he urged "fed up" activists to stay in the party where "the battle needs to be waged".

Mr Corbyn was Labour leader up until the general election of 2019, where the party recorded its worst result since 1935.

The MP was granted a pass to this year's conference, despite being expelled from Labour in Parliament in an ongoing row over anti-Semitism.

But his appearances have been restricted to the fringe, rather than the main stage.