John McDonnell defends calling Labour rebels 'f**king useless'
'Look, I'm an ordinary bloke, I used some bad language'
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Your support makes all the difference.John McDonnell has defended calling Labour plotters trying to get rid of Jeremy Corbyn "f***king useless," describing his remarks as "normal political descriptions".
Addressing thousands of supporters at the O2 forum in Kentish Town, Mr McDonnell said: “They have been plotting and conniving.
“The only good thing about it is that, as plotters, they’re f***ing useless, but don’t think they will stop there. They will come back and try to hit us again and we will defeat them again.”
His comments came after the party's National Executive Committee ruled Mr Corbyn's name should automatically appear on the ballot paper in the party's leadership contest.
Mr McDonnell insisted he was not referring to leadership challenger Angela Eagle when he made the comment, and said it was a joke.
"It was a stand-up comedy event. It was a joke. It was taken in a light-hearted way," he told BBC Radio 4's Today programme.
He also said his mother would "ash his mouth out with soap" for swearing.
"Look, I'm an ordinary bloke, I used some bad language. If my mum was still alive today she would be phoning me up to tell me she was going to come down and wash my mouth out with soap."
He insisted Mr Corbyn had not made a "big fuss" about receiving "death threat after death threat" since becoming leader and went on to say his "f**king useless* remarks referred to to a small, hard-core group in the party who had never accepted Mr Corbyn's leadership.
Mr McDonnell's incendiary comments came as veteran former minister Dame Margaret Hodge accused Mr Corbyn and his supporters of engaging in "dirty politics" as the party faced a bitter leadership battle set to eat up its energy over the next two months.
Mr Corbyn faces a leadership challenge from Angela Eagle and Owen Smith. The pair were reportedly at odds over the last few weeks over who should be the candidate to challenge the Labour leader.
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