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A Tory MP has deleted a tweet accusing Jeremy Corbyn of 'selling British secrets to Communist spies' after the Labour leader threatened to take legal action.

Ben Bradley tweeted accusing the Labour leader of selling British secrets in reference to accusations Mr Corbyn knowingly met with Soviet spies at the height of the Cold War.

The Tory youth spokesman posted: "Corbyn sold British secrets to communist spies... get some perspective mate!! Your priorities are a bit awry! "

A spokesman for the Labour leader said: "Jeremy has instructed solicitors to contact Ben Bradley to delete his libellous tweet or face legal action."

But Mr Corbyn has not taken legal action regarding other allegations that he met with Soviet spies during the 1980s.

Twitter users encouraged the Labour leader to take action against the defamatory remarks.

Leading commentator Owen Jones Tweeted that Mr Corbyn should instruct his lawyers.

Mr Bradley later deleted the libellous tweet but made no apology to Mr Corbyn.

While Labour MP David Lammy suggested that Theresa May should get her so-called fake news unit to look into Mr Bradley's comments.

It comes as Tory security minister Ben Wallace compared the Labour leader to Soviet double agent Kim Philby.

He tweeted: “‘Jeremy has been interested in Foreign Policy issues his entire political career’ - Labour MP Louis Haigh , BBC Daily Politics - yup so was Kim Philby.”

Jeremy Corbyn has admitted meeting with a Czech diplomat but denied knowing he was a spy.

(Image: Getty)

It’s claimed Mr Corbyn had met with one agent on four occasions.

Mr Corbyn, who was given the codename “COB”, has admitted meeting Czech national Jan Sarkocy.

But the Labour leader insisted he believed Mr Sarkocy, who was booted out of the UK in 1989, was a diplomat.

There is no evidence to suggest Mr Corbyn knew the agent was a spy.

(Image: PA)

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A spokesman for Jeremy Corbyn said when the claims emerged: “The claim that Jeremy Corbyn was an agent, asset or informer for any intelligence agency is entirely false and a ridiculous smear.

“Like other MPs, Jeremy has met diplomats from many countries. In the 1980s he met a Czech diplomat, who did not go by the name of Jan Dymic, for a cup of tea in the House of Commons. Jeremy neither had nor offered any privileged information to this or any other diplomat.

“During the Cold War, intelligence officers notoriously claimed to their superiors to have recruited people they had merely met.

“The existence of these bogus claims does not make them in any way true, as The Sunday Times found out to its cost when it published fabricated allegations about former Labour leader Michael Foot and the KGB.”

Mr Bradley, who represents Mansfield, caused outrage when offensive comments he had made as a student came to light.

In a series of blogposts he called for the unemployed to have vasectomies and said it would be “incredibly sensible” to relocate people on benefits hundreds of miles from home.