Andrew Marr repeatedly charged Rebecca Long-Bailey of being the continuity Corbyn candidate after she refused to distance herself from the far-left of the Labour Party. Ms Long-Bailey appeared to suggest it was sexist to brand her a continuity candidate – a claim that Marr shot down. He said: “It’s not about gender, it’s about your politics.”

Marr pointed out Ms Long-Bailey herself had recently said the party “must not retreat” from the policies upheld by Jeremy Corbyn, John McDonnell and Diane Abbott.

Ms Long-Bailey is currently struggling to overtake the leadership favourite Sir Keir Starmer in the race to succeed Mr Corbyn.

Marr said: “I know you don’t like being called the continuity Corbyn candidate but Corbyn only last month said at a meeting ‘It is an absolute pleasure to be here alongside Becky Long-Bailey, our candidate for leader’.”

He also pointed out that key supporters of Jeremy Corbyn, including the founder of Momentum Jon Lansmann and trade union chief Len McCluskey, both backed Ms Long-Bailey’s bid for power.

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She responded: “Jeremy and I are friends but it’s quite disrespectful when I’m termed the continuity candidate.

“I’ve always been strong in my principles, people know what I believe in.

“To suggest I’m a continuation of any individual is disrespectful, not least because I am a woman.”

Marr hit back: “But it’s not about gender, it’s about politics.

“You are the candidate of the socialist campaign group. That is Jeremy Corbyn, John McDonnell, Diane Abbott, you and Richard Burgon.

“So it’s not about whether you’re a man or woman, it’s about the politics.”

The BBC host added: “Lets turn to your own words. You said ‘I don’t disagree with the policies, I spent the last four years writing them’.

“You also said, ‘I’ve learned so much from Jeremy, John and Diane we must not retreat from that politics’.

“You are in the same tradition as Corbyn’s politics, aren’t you?”

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During the interview, Ms Long-Bailey also said it would be “disastrous” to advocate rejoining the EU.

She claimed that the “compromise position” of Jeremy Corbyn did “so much damage” to the Labour Party.

Ms Long-Bailey added: “Our role now is to set out a positive vision of what Great Britain looks like outside of the European Union.

“We can’t just tell our voters they got it wrong. We must make that vision positive.”

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