Seven U.K. Labour MPs Quit Party in Brexit Split With Corbyn
- Leadership’s handling of anti-Semitism row also key factor
- MPs to sit in new Independent Group inside U.K. Parliament
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Seven Labour politicians quit the U.K.’s main opposition party as Brexit cracked open the structures that have defined British politics for decades, just six weeks before the U.K. is due to leave the European Union.
At a snap press conference in London, the members of Parliament stood up to explain why they had resigned in protest at Jeremy Corbyn’s leadership of the party. Just five minutes earlier, they’d pressed the button in unison on their resignation emails. Luciana Berger, Chris Leslie, Angela Smith, Gavin Shuker, Mike Gapes, Ann Coffey and Chuka Umunna will now sit in an “Independent Group” they want to become a new force in U.K. politics.