Jeremy Corbyn leaves door open to staying in Shadow Cabinet after quitting as leader
2 min read
Jeremy Corbyn has said he would be willing to remain a member of the Shadow Cabinet after he quits as Labour leader.
He said he would "see what it is" if his successor offered him another frontbench position.
Rebecca Long-Bailey has already said that she would be willing to have Mr Corbyn in her top team if she beats Keir Starmer and Lisa Nandy to the post.
Deputy leadership candidate Richard Burgon has also said he would like to see the current leader back on the front bench.
Asked by the BBC if he would serve in the next Shadow Cabinet, Mr Corbyn said: "I'm happy to serve the party in any capacity because my whole life has been about making my contribution in Parliament, holding government to account and of course speaking out on policy areas and I've been proud to lead the party for the past five years, proud of the policy achievements we've made and of thhe huge growth in membership."
After being asked if he would accept a job if offered one, he replied: "See what it is. I didn't know I was going to be offered anything. You're telling me something I didn't know."
Ms Long-Bailey said earlier this month she would hand Mr Corbyn a high-level brief if she becomes leader.
She said: “I’d like to but I don’t know whether he wants to do it because he said not.”
The Salford and Eccles MP added: “It’s up to him. I love him so.”
And Mr Burgon said Mr Corbyn could continue to play a “valuable role” on Labour’s front bench, saying: “If he was Shadow Foreign Secretary, that would be ideal.”
PoliticsHome Newsletters
PoliticsHome provides the most comprehensive coverage of UK politics anywhere on the web, offering high quality original reporting and analysis: Subscribe
