New Labour members will be required to sign a code of conduct about online behaviour or face being barred from the party in a bid to tackle a "tsunami of online abuse".

Labour now has 551,000 members, reinforcing its position as the largest political party in Europe, but it has been beset with reports of members engaging in abusive exchanges, particularly with so-called "moderate" MPs who have opposed Jeremy Corbyn's leadership.

The new policy, agreed by Labour's National Executive Committee on Tuesday, came hours before voting in the party's leadership contest came to a close. Any votes received after midday today will not be counted.