Abbott defies Starmer with vow to remain MP for 'as long as possible'

Labour veteran tells crowd of supporters she won't be 'intimidated'

- Peter Walker, Pippa Crerar, Jessica Elgot

Diane Abbott has promised to stay on as an MP for "as long as it is possible", setting up a probable clash with Keir Starmer after a deal for her to retire from parliament broke down.

Abbott, the UK's first female black MP, had been set to make a "dignified exit" from parliament after a near 40-year career, in an arrangement in which she was given back the Labour whip after an investigation into comments she made about racism.

But the deal appeared to collapse after an unknown Labour source briefed journalists that Abbott would nonetheless be barred from standing again in her Hackney North and Stoke Newington constituency, prompting fury from her allies at her treatment.

Starmer denied yesterday that she had been barred, but speaking to cheering supporters outside Hackney town hall in east London, Abbott said she was "not going to allow myself to be intimidated or frightened".

She went on: "I promise you that, as long as it is possible, I will be the member of parliament for Hackney North and Stoke Newington." She had posted on X earlier in the day that she would be "campaigning for a Labour victory".

It was the first serious setback in what has otherwise been a smooth start to Labour's election campaign, which has seen complaints from the leftover internal factionalism.

In what is likely to be seen as another attack on the party's left, the Brighton Kemptown MP, Lloyd Russell-Moyle, said on Tuesday evening that he had been suspended by Labour and would not be allowed to stand in the election.