15:12

A source close to the whips office said Rosie Winterton’s sacking had come as a complete shock. The source said Winterton had believed she was still bridge-building between the leader’s office and the parliamentary Labour party, and had been having conversations about mediation and a possible return to shadow cabinet elections over the last few days.

A surprise call then came from Jeremy Corbyn’s office and Winterton, who was expecting to continue talks about party unity, was sacked. “It came completely out of the blue,” the source said. “It’s not where we thought we were at all.”