Labour leader responds to claims he is too old and gives his views on Westminster harassment

Jeremy Corbyn looks perplexed when asked what he says to those colleagues who fear he could be too old to take Labour into the next election.

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As he sits down with the Guardian, the party leader says he has not seen a news story in the Independent suggesting frontbenchers have discussed the issue, with one shadow cabinet member saying a 2022 victory would mean Corbyn, now 68, in Downing Street at almost 78.

As he hears about the anonymous claim, he rolls his eyes. “There are about 80 people on the frontbench,” he says, before insisting that his age is not a barrier. “Do I look fit or not?” he asks, throwing his hands in the air with a smile. He points out that he regularly cycles and runs four or five kilometres every week in his constituency.

“I am the age I am. It is not a secret – and I consider myself perfectly fit and able to do what I do. I’m actually younger than other leaders,” he adds, naming Donald Trump – whose own physical fitness has been in the news.

So Corbyn’s many criticisms of the American president have nothing to do with his 71 years of age?

He laughs. “No, it’s not about age. It is about attitudes, it is about beliefs and how you see yourself. And I am quite comfortable, quite happy and I consider myself fit.”



The Labour leader does look relaxed and well. He is speaking after taking on Theresa May during prime minister’s questions on Wednesday, challenging her over the collapse of Carillion in a performance that attracted mixed reviews.

Facebook Twitter Pinterest Jeremy Corbyn: ‘I am quite comfortable, quite happy and I consider myself fit.’ Photograph: Alicia Canter/The Guardian

He starts the interview by offering a round of teas, and then wandering off to the office kitchen, smiling at a toddler running up the corridor. Corbyn jokes that the child, who is the son of a member of staff, is already signed up to “tiny tots for socialism”.

Then he returns, clutching a jar of his own homemade jam that he found abandoned on a desk, and turns to talk about new policies on public sector contracts, how to handle some passionate anti-Brexit views within Labour, and the party under his leadership.

“We’ve got between 550,000 and 600,000 members and we are getting a whole different dynamic in the party and a different sense of the collective about it – it’s lovely. A great atmosphere in the party,” he says.



“I realise the media always want to report news that is negative, but this is positive.”

Corbyn welcomes the election of three new members to Labour’s NEC governing body, including the Momentum founder, Jon Lansman.

Some see the move, which further strengthens the leader’s support in the governing body, as a major victory for the left in a party turf war. Corbyn dismisses the suggestion and plays down reports of tensions a day earlier over a vote to switch the chairmanship of the Labour’s key disciplinary committee.

The decision to replace Ann Black with Christine Shawcroft led to claims and counterclaims from different wings in the party, with some calling it democracy in action, while others said the committee would now be less tough on those accused of antisemitism.

Shaking his head, Corbyn responds: “I wasn’t at the meeting [but] there was an election and a new chair of the disputes committee was elected. The outgoing chair remained in the meeting.”

He says the group then collectively dealt with three individual cases in different manners, adding that the priority was for allegations to be dealt with thoroughly and quickly and within the law.

“Essentially what I want is an atmosphere in the party where we deal with issues in an open and friendly manner,” he says.

I have a civilised relationship with a number of Tories

On Westminster’s sexual harassment scandal, which has affected Labour alongside other parties, he calls such behaviour “disgraceful and wrong and appalling” and says he wants cases thoroughly investigated. But Corbyn says it is important to offer pastoral support for both the victim and the accused.

Asked about comments by the leftwing commentator Paul Mason that MPs ought to have the threat of deselection “hanging over” them every five years, Corbyn opts for different language.

“Look, [we] will look at democracy within the party and look at the process of selections. We should all be accountable all the time. I’m accountable to my party, I’m accountable to my constituency and I’m quite comfortable with that,” he says.



Does he consider himself a Corbynite? “No, I’m not a Corbynite. I’m JC,” he says with a laugh.

One question raised by the Labour MP Laura Pidcock, who was recently promoted, has been whether it is appropriate to build friendly cross-party relationships.

Is Corbyn friends with any Tories?

“I have a civilised relationship with a number of Tories – I discuss issues with them. Listen, David Davis and I worked very closely to try to get Shaker Aamer back into this country,” he says of an effort to get a British resident freed from Guantánamo Bay. “Indeed we went to Washington together – Andrew Mitchell, David Davis, Andy Slaughter and me – and we succeeded.”

In fact, when he talks of senior Tory figures trying to “grandstand in favour of a free market economy” after the EU referendum he mentions Boris Johnson and Liam Fox, but not Davis, the Brexit secretary.

“The Brexit secretary could be included in those remarks, but as I said the Brexit secretary is a complex character because he and I have worked together on issues of justice,” adds Corbyn, before making clear that he “fundamentally disagrees” with Davis over the strategy around leaving the EU.



Not that the veteran leftwinger has a historically warm relationship with the Tories. Back in 1984, when he was described as a “Labour scruff” by one Conservative MP, Corbyn hit back: “It is not a fashion parade. It is not a gentleman’s club. It is not a bankers’ institute. It is a place where the people are represented.”

Then he proudly showed off his jumper, knitted by his mother, before saying it was disgusting to see “large Tory MPs with even larger stomachs” emerge from fleets of limousines each night to vote in parliament.

These days, he takes a more polite approach, but it remains clear – especially on Wednesdays – that there is no love lost between Corbyn and May.