Labour leadership: Rebecca Long-Bailey, Lisa Nandy and Jess Phillips join Keir Starmer in passing first round of contest

Rebecca Long-Bailey has 26 nominations
Bloomberg via Getty Images
Jacob Jarvis9 January 2020
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Rebecca Long-Bailey, Lisa Nandy and Jess Philips have joined Sir Keir Starmer in receiving enough nominations to pass the first round of the Labour leadership contest.

The party confirmed that the trio had all secured the required 22 backers, made up of MPs and MEPs, on Thursday evening.

Ms Long-Bailey has 26, while the other two competitors to pass today are on 22 each.

Sir Keir has gained a further lead in backers, with 59 supporters - more than double the number of his nearest rival Ms Long-Bailey.

Meanwhile, the two other confirmed contenders Emily Thornberry and Clive Lewis have seven and four respectively, with nominations set to close on Monday.

Ms Thornberry was previously optimistic despite her lack of backers and told the BBC: “I have a number of people who have pledged to support me. I am out there making the argument, let’s see what happens."

A new Labour leader is set to be announced on April 4, after the numbers are whittled down.

Sir Keir is seen as the favourite, with a YouGov poll previously predicting a win for the north London MP.

He also received the backing of Unison, the UK's largest union.

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