Labour block Jamie Driscoll from North East mayoralty contest | Labour

A left-wing regional mayor has been blocked from being Labour’s candidate to contest the North East mayoralty, sparking fresh allegations of “factionalism” within the party.

Jamie Driscoll, the serving mayor for the North of Tyne – an area that includes Newcastle, North Tyneside and Northumberland, said on Friday that he had been “barred” from running for the new mayoral authority without explanation.

The former shadow chancellor John McDonnell blamed “out of control” factionalism in Keir Starmer’s Labour party for the decision to exclude the supporter of the former leader Jeremy Corbyn.

Driscoll, described as the “last Corbynista in power”, was omitted from a longlist that includes the Northumbria police and crime commissioner Kim McGuinness.

The former MEP Paul Brannen and Newcastle’s city councillor, Nicu Ion, also feature.

McDonnell said omitting Driscoll from the list despite him being “widely credited with doing a great job” was “staggering news”, adding: “To refuse to allow a serving mayor on to even a selection long list demonstrates that factionalism in the party is completely out of control.

“There can be no other motive for excluding him.”

The decision came after Starmer blocked Corbyn from standing for the party in Islington North at the next general election. Labour said the party holds “candidates to a very high standard”.

“During this process, some applicants did not meet the threshold required to proceed to the longlist stage. We do not comment on individual applications,” a statement said.

“Local members now have a fantastic longlist of candidates from which they will choose the Labour party’s candidate to be the very first North East mayor.”