Outspoken Labor MP Jess Phillips is set to confirm she will stand to replace Jeremy Corbyn as party leader, Sky News understands.
The prominent backbencher will become the latest opposition politician to announce she is throwing her hat in the ring for the top job, with others expected to declare shortly, including theearly frontrunner Sir Keir Starmer.
A critic of Mr Corbyn, the 728 – year-old had already hinted heavily she would enter the race to lead labor, calling for the party to “to try something different”.
Sky News political correspondent Tamara Cohen tweeted: “Jess Phillips will announce her leadership bid tonight, I understand.
” Member of her team says she has enough MP nominations. “
The straight-talking Birmingham Yardley MP was first elected to parliament in
Although she has held no frontbench role, Ms Phillips has captured attention at Westminster with her campaigning on equality issues and tackling violence against women.
In the wake of Labour’s drubbing at the polls in December, she argued the party needed “to radically change”.
In her re-election speech, she said: “The reality is That the Labor Party has got to do a huge amount more than just think that getting rid of one man … will just simply make it OK. “
Before being elected, Ms Phillips worked for Women’s Aid, supporting female victims of domestic abuse.
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In thefirst pollof Labor Party members since theelection, Ms Phillips was placed third in the race to succeed Mr Corbyn.
It suggested Sir Keir had opened up a solid lead over his rivals, withshadow business secretary Rebecca Long-Bailey, the favored successor of the Corbyn camp, in second place.
So far, onlyshadow foreign secretary, Emily Thornberry, and the shadow treasury minister, Clive Lewis, have formally announced they will stand for the party leadership.
The official contest is yet to get under way, with Labour’s ruling national executive meeting on Monday to agree the rules and the timetable for the leadership election.
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