Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer calls for Claudia Webbe to resign

Claudia Webbe made several threatening phone calls over a two-year period, Westminster Magistrates' Court heard

Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer has called for Claudia Webbe to resign following her harassment conviction.

The former Labour MP for Leicester East, who is now independent, was given a suspended jail sentence on Thursday.

Webbe, who was jealous of her partner Lester Thomas's relationship with Michelle Merritt, threatened an acid attack and to share nude images of her.

Sir Keir said Webbe, 56, "should stand down [as an MP] and if she doesn't we will support a recall petition".

Speaking on the Andrew Marr Show, Sir Keir said Labour would push for such a petition to force a by-election if she did not quit the Commons.

"When Claudia Webbe was charged the Labour Party suspended her," he said.

"When she was then convicted, we didn't argue with the conviction, we expelled her from the Labour Party.

"We now say she she should resign and we would support a recall petition."

Webbe says she is still with her partner Lester Thomas

A recall petition - where Webbe's constituents would be asked if they want to replace her - would trigger a by-election if at least 10% of constituents supported it.

However, it can only be opened once all appeals have been extinguished and the conviction is not overturned.

'I am innocent'

Webbe said she was appealing against her conviction, adding she was "surprised" the Labour Party had not waited until the conclusion of the legal process before expelling her.

In a statement, she said: "I am very disappointed by the decision of the magistrate and want to strongly reiterate that I am innocent.

"I fully expect the appeal to be granted and that, ultimately, it will be successful."

Sir Keir Starmer wants Webbe to quit the Commons, he told Andrew Marr

Webbe was elected as Leicester East MP in December 2019, succeeding Keith Vaz. The month before the veteran MP had announced he would be retiring from Parliament, a decision that came soon after a Commons standards commission found he had "expressed willingness" to buy cocaine for others.

She has also worked as a Labour councillor in Islington, north London, where she lives.