Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn steps down as head of parliamentary anti-nukes campaign amid Trident row
Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn has stepped down from his post as leader of a cross-party group opposing the proliferation of nuclear weapons amid growing discontent over the Labour party's stance on Trident.
Corbyn resigned as chair of the Parliamentary Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament (CND), and has been replaced by Caroline Lucas, the Green Party announced in a statement this afternoon.
Lucas, the Green MP for Brighton Pavilion, took the reins of the group earlier today, according to the statement.
Corbyn, 66, has been a member of the national CND organisation since he was a teenager. According to the Green Party statement, he stepped down from chairing the parliamentary group "because of time pressures".
Commenting on her appointment, Lucas said: "It’s an honour to be named as the chair of Parliamentary CND at a time when the debate our nuclear arsenal is at the centre of the political stage.
"As the pro-Trident political consensus crumbles I’ll be highlighting the growing case against renewing these extremely costly and utterly unnecessary weapons."
Corbyn has come under increased pressure in recent weeks over his apparent plans to reverse the Labour party's support for Trident.
Earlier today, Labour's general secretary Iain McNicol dismissed speculation that there would be any change to the party's position in the coming months, reportedly telling a parliamentary meeting that any changes in the way Labour determined party policy would have to be agreed at the party's annual conference in September.