Jeremy Corbyn is the cure to a “disease” that has spread across society since Margaret Thatcher came to power in 1979, a union chief has declared.

Ian Hodson, president of the Bakers, Food and Allied Workers Union (BFAWU), which has nearly 20,000 members, said it was a “pleasure” to be in a party led by a socialist, in an impassioned speech to Momentum activists at their World Transformed festival in Liverpool.

His speech comes after Labour party HQ suspended his colleague, Ronnie Draper, who is the union's general secretary. Mr Drapper is a strong supporter of Mr Corbyn and said he was left “disgusted and shocked” by the decision.

“Let’s be clear, since 1979 we have had a disease that has been spreading across our society, across every community – it created unemployment, it created homelessness, it created a belief that this is the society we have to accept… but now we have a cure and that cure is Jeremy Corbyn.

He added: “It’s a pleasure to actually be in a Labour party led by a socialist… we are living in a historic moment… for the first time, in my lifetime, we have a leader in Jeremy Corbyn that stands for me, he stands for you, he stands for every working class person in our country.”

Concluding his speech, Mr Hodson said: “Jeremy Corbyn offers hope for a fairer, better Britain. Jeremy is not one man though – Jeremy Corbyn is us… and we will stand together to build a movement that enables us to change our communities. If people in this room think Jeremy Corbyn can do that on his own you’re sadly mistaken… we have to turn those members who have joined the party into activists.”

At a members’ conference in June, the bakers’ union declared that “if there was any challenge to Mr Corbyn’s leadership, our union would continue to support the current, democratically elected incumbent and the progressive policies he has put forward.”