Vegetarian: Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn has said he wants to eat more vegan food: PA Archive/PA Images

Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn has denied rumours he is planning on going vegan but said he wants to “eat more vegan-friendly food”.

The committed vegetarian told workers at Lush cosmetics, a brand that markets itself as cruelty free, that he is “going through the process” of eating more vegan food.

A member of staff at the store had asked him if he would make “the next logical step to veganism” because “Britain’s first vegan Prime Minister would be something worth fighting for”.

Mr Corbyn replied: “It's a fair question. I eat more and more vegan food, and have more and more vegan friends. There are quite a lot of vegan MPs actually - not a lot, but there are some.

Foodie: Mr Corbyn said he has been anjoying trying more vegan food (JEREMY SELWYN)

“I think what has improved so much is vegetarian and vegan food has got so much better in recent years. I got fed up of going on a plane in the 80s and everyone would get their regulation rubber chicken and whatever with it.

“I would say 'where is my lunch?' and they would say 'yours is a special meal', like there is something badly wrong with you and they would bring this thing along. It was usually pretty grim when it got there.”

Mr Corbyn continued: “The food has got a lot better and vegan food - one of my close relatives has just become a vegan and I went to her house for dinner and it was absolutely brilliant.

“So I'm going through the process, all right? I won't go any further than that.”

A Labour Party spokeswoman later confirmed that Mr Corbyn had no plans to give up eating dairy all-together and was just intending on eating more vegan food.

She told Metro: “Jeremy Corbyn isn’t turning vegan. There’s been a bit of mischief in the reporting of what he said… He actually meant that he is “in the process' of eating more vegan food. That’s all."