A former Labour MP and minister has resigned from the party after saying “it’s just not the place for me any more”.

Tom Harris said he was leaving after 34 years as a party member and described the decision as feeling “like a bereavement”.

Mr Harris served as MP for Glasgow Cathcart and then Glasgow South between 2001 and 2015 and as a transport minister under Tony Blair and Gordon Brown from 2006 to 2008.

He told The Herald: “I have not been kicked out. I’ve resigned. I’m just an ordinary member of the Labour Party who has decided to resign after 34 years.

“It felt a wee bit like a bereavement, I felt a bit emotional, but it’s just not the place for me anymore. It’s a personal decision. It’s not a comment on any people who have chosen to remain. This is just what’s right for me. It’s just a personal thing.”

He did not plan to join another party, he said.

The former MP is a vocal critic of Jeremy Corbyn but did not confirm whether his decision was linked to the antisemitism row gripping the party.

He lost his seat to the SNP in 2015 and this year published a book titled Ten Years in the Death of the Labour Party, looking at the decade since Tony Blair stepped down as prime minister in 2007.

Mr Harris said he had written to Scottish Labour last week to hand back his membership.

Protests against Labour antisemitism Show all 14 1 /14 Protests against Labour antisemitism Protests against Labour antisemitism Protesters clashed during the demonstration Reuters Protests against Labour antisemitism Members of the Jewish community hold a protest against Labour party leader Jeremy Corbyn and antisemitism in the Labour Party AFP/Getty Protests against Labour antisemitism Protesters hold placards and flags during a demonstration, organised by the British Board of Jewish Deputies for those who oppose antisemitism, in Parliament Square Reuters Protests against Labour antisemitism Hundreds of people gathered in Parliament Square to protest against antisemitism in the Labour Party EPA Protests against Labour antisemitism Labour MP Luciana Berger speaks during the protest PA Protests against Labour antisemitism A protester blows through a shofar during the demonstration Getty Protests against Labour antisemitism Members of London's Jewish community protest in support of Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn outside parliament EPA Protests against Labour antisemitism Labour MP John Mann speaks during a protest against antisemitism PA Protests against Labour antisemitism People protest against antisemitism in the Labour Party as Jewish community leaders have launched a scathing attack on Jeremy Corbyn, claiming he has sided with antisemites ‘again and again’ PA Protests against Labour antisemitism Labour politicians Stella Creasy and Chuka Umunna leave after attending the demonstration Getty Protests against Labour antisemitism A pro-Jeremy Corbyn protester holds a placard during a counter-protest Getty Protests against Labour antisemitism A support of the Labour Party hold up a placard during the demonstration Reuters Protests against Labour antisemitism Jeremy Corbyn supporters during the demo Reuters Protests against Labour antisemitism A protester holds up a sign reading ‘For the many, not the Jew’ AFP

His resignation was announced hours after Jeremy Corbyn used a newspaper article to try to defuse the antisemitism row engulfing Labour.

Writing in The Guardian, the Labour leader admitted the party “hasn’t done enough to foster deeper understanding of antisemitism among members” but vowed to “root out” anti-Jewish abuse.

He told Labour antisemites: “You are not my supporters and have no place in our movement.”