Labour leadership hopeful to say ‘the Tory press are so desperate for Corbyn to win that they’re making up stories to give the impression that he already has’

The rightwing press are so desperate for Jeremy Corbyn to win the Labour leadership race that they are inventing stories to give the impression he already has, according to rival candidate Andy Burnham.

Burnham will be speaking on a campaign visit to Pudsey, West Yorkshire on Monday to mark the final 10 days of campaigning before the vote among more than 550,000 party members and affiliates closes. He will insist that tens of thousands of people are still to vote in the election for the next Labour leader and that there is everything still to play for.

Polling puts Corbyn securely ahead in the race, which is being conducted on an alternative vote system, but sources in the campaign teams of Yvette Cooper and Burnham both claim that their candidate is best placed to win on the strength of the second preference votes if Corbyn gets less than 50% of the first preference vote.

“The Tory press are so desperate for Jeremy Corbyn to win that they’re making up stories to give the impression that he already has,” Burnham will say. “The future of the Labour party hangs in the balance. I believe I am the only candidate in this race that can stand in the way of Jeremy Corbyn.”

“Over this long weekend, I have spoken to Jeremy Corbyn supporters who are now moving to my campaign. I feel encouraged going into the final 10 days and will be fighting for every vote.”

“Millions of vulnerable people, suffering under the Tories, are in need of a Labour government. Those left to vote must think who is best placed to win for Labour in 2020.”

☾gamze☽ (@ZeKaplan) Jeremy Corbyn at the Notting Hill carnival! Gotta love him pic.twitter.com/ixWNeMZDAp

Corbyn, the leftwing MP for North Islington, spent Sunday at the Notting Hill carnival in west London where he posed with fans and met the event’s organisers.

His team claims that more than 30,000 people have attended Corbyn’s rallies since the beginning of July. By Saturday night, the campaign had 15,000 registered volunteers and raised £180,000 through online crowd funding, with the average donation a little over £23.