ALL of Gwent’s local Constituency Labour Parties (CLPs) have nominated Keir Starmer to be the next leader of the Labour party.

Blaenau Gwent, Torfaen, Islwyn, Caerphilly, Monmouth, Newport East and Newport West CLPs have all chosen Keir Starmer as their preferred leader.

Blaenau Gwent, Torfaen, Newport East, Newport West and Caerphilly all chose Angela Rayner for Deputy Leader, with Monmouth choosing Rosena Allin-Khan and Islwyn opting for Ian Murray.

The Labour membership vote will begin on February 24, ending on April 2 with the result being announced on April 4.

A CLP is an organisation of members of the British Labour Party who live in a particular parliamentary constituency.

Blaenau Gwent MP Nick Smith – a strong supporter of the Keir Starmer leadership campaign – says he believes Keir is the man to unite the party and get Labour back on its feet.

Nick Smith MP said: “I am pleased that all of our Gwent CLPs have agreed that Keir Starmer is the best person to unite the Labour Party and take us forward.

“I am proud to have nominated Keir myself, because – while we have some very good candidates – I think he is absolutely the right person for the job.

“During the General Election I spent a lot of time talking to a great many people on the doorsteps in Blaenau Gwent.

“It would be wrong to say that Brexit never came up, but far and above the most common concerns I heard from disaffected Labour supporters were around the need for a fresh start for the party.

“Many people told me how they desperately wanted to vote for Labour, but felt they ‘couldn’t’ this time.

“This disaffection manifested into the Labour party’s worst election since the 1930s. No bones about it, we took a hammering."

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Labour suffered one of its worst general election results in living memory as dozens of seats that the party had held on to for decades fell to the Conservatives.

The Conservatives, under Boris Johnson, won a Commons majority of 80, stealing seats from Labour heartlands.

In the aftermath, leader Jeremy Corbyn said he would not lead the party in the next general election.

Sir Keir Starmer, Rebecca Long Bailey, Lisa Nandy, Jess Phillips and Emily Thornberry are all into the next round of the contest to become Labour leader, after winning the support of enough MPs and MEPs.

But Smith said his constituents had shown a preference for Starmer: “When I was having difficult conversations with voters, I would often ask who their ideal candidate for leader would be.

“I can categorically say that Keir Starmer was head and shoulders the preferred choice.

“It’s clear to me that people want a Labour leader they can have confidence in. I believe that Keir Starmer is that leader."