Portsmouth councillor who quit Labour will vote for Theresa May ahead of Jeremy Corbyn

A Portsmouth councillor who quit the Labour party has said he would vote for Theresa May ahead of Jeremy Corbyn at the next general election.

By The Newsroom

Published 27th Sep 2016, 08:26 BST

Updated 5th Oct 2016, 14:43 BST

John Ferrett quit the Labout party this week

John Ferrett yesterday resigned as leader of Portsmouth City Council’s Labour group after 27 years with the party.

It comes after Mr Corbyn was re-elected as national Labour leader. Cllr Ferrett says Mr Corbyn is ‘too left wing’ and believes Labour does not stand any chance of getting into government with him as leader.

The Paulsgrove councillor has revealed plans to become an independent, but when asked who he would vote for between Ms May and Mr Corbyn at the next general election, he went for the Tory prime minister.

Cllr Ferrett told BBC Five Live: ‘I would choose Theresa May.

‘The most important thing is national security and Jeremy Corbyn cannot keep our country safe.’