Keith Vaz on Labour's panel to select Manchester Gorton candidate

The seemingly indestructible Keith Vaz has popped up again, reports the Daily Mirror.

He is to be a member of the panel that will select Labour's candidate for the Manchester Gorton by-election:

Mr Vaz was drafted onto Labour's five-strong selection panel at the last minute at the expense of shadow cabinet minister Rebecca Long-Bailey, a close ally of Mr Corbyn.

Angry sources close to the Labour leader accused Mr Watson of organising an “ambush” during a fiery telephone meeting on Monday that resulted in Ms Long-Bailey being booted off the panel.

Her name had been on a draft list drawn up by Mr Corbyn’s office ahead of the meeting - but in a telephone conference call key figures from the ‘moderate’ wing of the party including Mr Watson voted her off.

The move will shift the balance of power on the panel significantly, with Labour ‘moderates’ confident that with Mr Vaz’s support they can now block the selection of Mr Corbyn’s favoured candidate.

When we have made jokes about washing machines and noted that not all his Labour colleagues have a high opinion of Mr Vaz - take the mayor of Leicester, for instance - it is worth saying something about the failure of the Corbynites.

Manchester Gorton will be the 11th parliamentary by-election since Jeremy Corbyn became Labour leader. In not one of them has the party fielded a candidate who is clearly a supporter of his.

The Labour Party gained many new members because of Corbyn, but they lack the organisational skills or the energy to reshape it in his image.