Ken Livingstone has been rebuked by Labour after he admitted to campaigning in the local elections despite being prohibited from doing so under the terms of his suspension.

The former London mayor is suspended indefinitely over remarks he made linking Adolf Hitler and Zionism, but has been knocking on doors in his local area.

While Jewish leaders and Labour MPs have demanded his expulsion from the party, Mr Livingstone remains unrepentant and this morning said he was confident he would be reinstated as a Labour member.

In an interview with LBC, Mr Livingstone said that the anti-Semitism crisis gripping Labour was a “complete diversion” ahead of the local elections and he would not be discussing the issue until after polling day.

"We had this last year in the run-up to the local elections then,” he added. “We had it two years ago in the run-up to the election of Sadiq Khan.

"It didn't damage us at the last two local elections but it is a complete diversion. Every Labour MP should just be focused now on getting out the Labour vote and winning council seats."