Jeremy Corbyn could be the next Prime Minister if he wins the Labour leadership race, senior Conservative Ken Clarke has said in a warning to fellow Tories.
The minister without portfolio said that Mr Corbyn’s populist left-wing policies could prove difficult to beat, and argued that the Islington North MP is closer to the centre than former Labour leader Michael Foot, who suffered a humiliating defeat in 1983.
“Don’t underestimate Jeremy Corbyn,” Mr Clarke, who has served as the Chancellor and Home Secretary, told The Huffington Post.
“If you have another recession or if the Conservative Government becomes very unpopular, he could win,” he added.
Clarke, a grandee fondly nicknamed “The Beast”, told the website that Mr Corbyn’s popularity lies in his appeal as “a non-politicians answer to the Westminster establishment”.
