Jeremy corbyn

Jezza started PMQs with a bit of a wobble. As he got to his feet the applause from his Labour ‘friends’ sounded like the hoarse whooshings of a punctured beach ball. Corbyn nervously offered his sympathy to the Paris terror victims and expressed concern that the slaughter of 129 innocents might increase Islamophobia in Britain. The attacks, he said, ‘have nothing in common with the 2 million Muslims who live here.’ David Cameron agreed, partially. He drew a distinction between ‘the religion of peace’ (which is Islam, in case you were getting confused) and the ‘bile spouted’ by terrorist killers. But, he said, ‘it’s not good enough to say there’s no connection. They [terrorists] make the connection.

There is nothing wrong with Jeremy Corbyn saying he 'isn't happy' with a shoot-to-kill policy. On the contrary, it shows once again that he is a man of principle. We may not agree with, or like, his principles -- but can we at least recognise that, unlike his opponents, he is not bending to the national mood? He is not willing to ditch his integrity in order to ease the public's fear and sate our lust for a violent response to terror. For Corbyn's haters on the Labour right, his position proves once again that he is not a 'serious' person. For one of his shadow cabinet, his position even makes him a 'f---ing disgrace' Why? Corbyn may well be right. It's certainly not disgraceful to oppose a policy of legal killing.

Jeremy Corbyn addressed the Parliamentary Labour Party this evening and it appears to have been a difficult meeting — depending on who you listen to. Those inside the room have said Corbyn was ‘shouted down’ by MPs for his stance on military action and Syria, while others say he was ‘savaged’ over his shoot to kill remarks.

On Wednesday night, Jeremy Corbyn brought to an end one of the most undignified sagas in recent politics, cobbling together a shuffled compromise on his induction into the Privy Council. The Privy Council, as we’ve been told so often now, is the body of senior politicians that is allowed to receive security briefings. Membership would have required Corbyn - the life-long republican -  to vow 'not to know or understand of any manner of thing to be attempted, done, or spoken against Her Majesty’s person, honour, crown, or dignity royal'. Did he kneel, bob, or grab the royal paw in an firm egalitarian handshake? Does it matter?

As Seumas Milne attempts to settle in to his new job as Jeremy Corbyn's director of communications, the former Guardian columnist has got off to a rather shaky start. As well as making headlines himself over his controversial appointment, the negative press surrounding Corbyn has shown no sign of disappearing with a fresh storm recently emerging regarding Milne's colleague Andrew Fisher. Perhaps aware of his own shortcomings, Milne was even overheard outside a pub on Thursday asking the BBC's political editor Laura Kuenssberg for advice on how to do his job. Now, Corbyn's other original Guardian cheerleader Owen Jones has stepped in to offer Milne some advice of his own.

Although Jeremy Corbyn has faced criticism this week for failing to bow deeply enough at the Remembrance Day service in Whitehall, the left-wing messiah can at least count on the continuing support of his Corbynistas. In fact, one 18-year-old fan by the name of Kierran Horsfield has decided to do his own permanent tribute to the Labour leader, with an inking of Corbyn's face on his shoulder: https://twitter.com/_megoll/status/663815056967254016 Still, Mr S suspects Corbyn shouldn't take his popularity among fans as an indication of where he will stand in the polls -- after all, one woman did get a tattoo of Nigel Farage: https://twitter.

In last week’s Spectator,  Rod Liddle reported that his Tory-supporting wife is beginning to feel sorry for Jeremy Corbyn. ‘You lot want to watch it. I’m beginning to feel sorry for the bloke. The sympathy votes will be stacking up,’ Mrs Liddle informed her husband. At first, you might wonder what there is to feel sympathetic about. In his short tenure as leader so far, Corbyn has used his ‘huge mandate’ to put a stamp on Labour — allowing it to descend into public infighting over muddled policy positions, as well as riling his own MPs with an assortment of controversial appointments. But after this weekend’s 'row' about whether Corbyn bowed low enough at the Remembrance Sunday ceremony, I think Mrs Liddle has a point.