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Another week, another resignation by a Labour MP.

The departure of Tristram Hunt , hot on the footsteps of the resignation of Jamie Reed, will not be the last.

Mr Hunt has decided running a museum is better than being trapped in one.

He insists that his move to the Victoria and Albert Museum should not be seen as a reflection on Jeremy Corbyn.

Though it is hard to believe he did not survey the state of Labour and conclude he no longer wanted to invest in a party that was filled with crusty relics covered with the dust sheets of obscurity.

Mr Hunt was once considered one of Labour’s brightest stars who, if Labour ever returned to power, could have sat round the Cabinet table.

Now he will be in charge of looking after priceless cabinets and other pieces of ornate furniture.

He saw this as a better prospect that fighting the next general election under a leader in whom he had no confidence and on a platform he disagreed with.

We shall know if Hunt and Reed’s judgement is right when the by-elections are held.

If Labour holds both seats then the Corbyn project will be vindicated.

If there are a brace of defeats then expect other MPs to start brushing up their CVs.

Some will leave because of boundary changes or because they can no longer stomach the local infighting; others will conclude they are doomed to lose in 2020 and would rather find gainful employment now.

Whatever the reason, they point to a party that is moribund, depleted of morale and miserable about its future.

In the 1980s the moderates dug in and fought the party's left.

Now they appear to have little appetite for protecting their brand of Labour.

(Image: Sky News)

If you want to know how bad Labour’s problems are look at Sunderland, not Hunt’s seat in Stoke.

Last night Labour lost a by-election in the city to the Lib Dems.

While there are always local factors in play in any council contest, it should terrify the Labour leadership that the Lib Dems can score such as success in an area that heavily backed Brexit.

This is the challenge for Jeremy Corbyn. He must show that Labour is still an election winning machine.

If he fails to do so then many MPs will conclude his staying in power is a costly act of vanity rather than a well-intentioned attempt to create a better country.