Jeremy Corbyn accuses ITV journalist of 'harassment' when asked about general election

Labour leader requests staff leave the building after being asked how he feels about prospect of early general election

Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn (Getty Images)

Jeremy Corbyn has accused an ITV News reporter of “harassment” after she attempted to ask him if he supported calls for an early general election.

Libby Wiener, a political correspondent at ITV, tried to speak to the Labour leader after his speech at a conference organised by the thinktank Class. She asked: “Would you be happy if Theresa May called a general election?”

It comes after the High Court ruled MPs must be consulted on Brexit, leading to suggestions the Prime Minister may have to call a general election in order to secure Parliament’s support for her Brexit plans.

Asked about the prospect on Saturday, Mr Corbyn responded by saying to his staff: “Can we go outside? We’re being harassed here”.

An aide to Mr Corbyn attempts to block the camera, saying: “Would you stop? He’s not doing interviews. He’s not doing interviews.”

Before they leave the building, the adviser tells Ms Wiener: “You are so rude. I thought you were a professional. Look at you.”

The reporter replies: “I am a professional and the country wants to know what the leader of the opposition thinks about the possibility of a general election.”

The Labour leader watches from behind a glass window before he and his team hurry from the building.

The incident prompted a mixed reaction on social media, with some accusing the Leader of the Opposition of running away from legitimate questions while others felt the reporter has been overly aggressive.

Some who claimed to witness the incident said the reporter had interrupted a conversation Mr Corbyn was having with two children.

Mr Corbyn used his speech at the event to demand Theresa May explain her Brexit negotiating plan to Parliament "without delay".

He said: “Thursday’s High Court decision underlines the necessity that the Prime Minister brings the Government’s negotiating terms for Brexit to Parliament without delay."

“Labour accepts and respects the decision of the British people to leave the European Union. But there must be transparency and accountability to Parliament about the Government’s plans."

“I suspect the Government opposes democratic scrutiny of its plans because - frankly - there aren’t any plans, beyond the hollow rhetoric of ‘Brexit means Brexit’.”

The Leader of the Opposition also told the Sunday Mirror that Labour could attempt to block Article 50 – the process by which Britain must begin its withdrawal from the EU – if the Prime Minister does not guarantee she will be pushing for the UK to remain in the single market.

He said: "The court has thrown a big spanner in the works by saying Parliament must be consulted."

"We accept the result of the referendum. We are not challenging the referendum. We are not calling for a second referendum. We're calling for market access for British industry to Europe."