Labour bosses say Dan Jarvis must quit as MP if elected South Yorkshire mayor
2 min read
Dan Jarvis has been told he must stand down from parliament if he is voted in as the first elected mayor of South Yorkshire.
The former shadow minister won 58% of the vote as he defeated Sheffield councillor Ben Curran to win the nomination last week.
However outgoing Labour General Secretary Iain McNicol and his successor Jennie Formby have reinforced the party's position that MPs cannot hold more than one full-time elected post simultaneously, in a letter to the Barnsley MP.
It is understood that discussions are ongoing between Mr Jarvis and the Labour Party to try to resolve the dispute after it was reported he was given until 5pm yesterday to make his position clear.
In a major boost for the MP, PoliticsHome has also learned that all of Labour’s Yorkshire and Humber MPs, as well as the leaders of Sheffield, Doncaster, Rotherham and Barnsley councils have all backed his mayoral campaign.
That means Labour officials would probably face a huge backlash if they tried to strip him of his candidacy.
Prior to his selection, Mr Jarvis said being forced to quit the Commons would be “needlessly squandering” his position to pile pressure on the Government in Westminster.
Following the nomination, he said: “The election of a Mayor comes at a pivotal moment for the Sheffield City Region.
“To make the most of new opportunities, our first mayor will need to work with both local and national government to negotiate the best possible deal for the people of South Yorkshire.
“Only then will the mayor be able to end the status quo of how decisions are made and how public services are delivered; and use both devolution and cooperative principles to offer a more radical and effective way of serving the public.”
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