A leading left-wing Labour MP has pulled out of a rally for peace in Ukraine after party bosses reportedly threatened to withdraw the whip.
Hayes and Harlington MP and former shadow chancellor of the exchequer John McDonnell was set to speak at a Stop the War Coalition (StWC) meeting at Conway Hall in central London on Wednesday evening.
Other speakers announced included StWC convenor Lindsey German, Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament chair Kate Hudson and former Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn, who was suspended as a member of its parliamentary group on the orders of his successor Sir Keir Starmer.
"If he goes, he’ll lose the whip. Any Labour MPs who speak at anything that is anti-NATO from now on are likely to be out," a Labour source told the Huffington Post.
The backbencher told insider website LabourList that he had cancelled his appearance for fear of causing a "distraction" — but did not explicitly deny the "speculation" about "reports of threats if I do."
"People are dying on the streets of Ukrainian cities. This is not the time to be distracted by political arguments here," McDonnell said. "Now is the time to unite and do all we can to assist the people of Ukraine desperately seeking asylum and to do all we can to bring about peace."
“Nothing is more important at this time. Nothing should distract us from that. So I won’t feed into that distraction by going tonight," McDonnell added.
The veteran left-winger conceded that other party members would "want clarity over the Labour Party’s attitude to attending demonstrations organised by Stop the War," but concluded: "It’s important for socialists to stay on the pitch for as long as it takes."
Two weeks ago Starmer threatened to suspend 11 Labour MPs, including McDonnell, and two members of the House of Lords from the Labour whip if they did not withdraw their signatures from an StWC petition which blamed NATO's expansion for the crisis, challenging the organisation's claim to be a "defensive alliance".
Another statement from the peace group after hostilities broke out last week demanded Russia withdraw its forces from Ukraine and for both sides to "de-escalate".
But Starmer has attacked any suggestion of “false equivalence” between the Cold-War alliance's drive eastward and Russia's concerns over nuclear security and civilians in the breakaway eastern Donbass region of Ukraine, still under constant shelling by Kiev's forces.