JEREMY Corbyn faced a backlash after sacking Owen Smith from his shadow cabinet over Brexit.
Smith was replaced as shadow Northern Ireland secretary after calling for a second Brexit vote.
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Smith said he had been sacked for his views on the “damage” Brexit will do to the UK’s economy and the Good Friday Agreement.
In a message to Corbyn he added: “Those views are shared by Labour members and supporters and I will continue to speak up for them, and in the interest of our country.”
Smith, who unsuccessfully challenged Corbyn for the party leadership in 2016, won public support from pro-EU Labour figures – with former Northern Ireland secretary Lord Hain accusing the Labour leader of a “terrible Stalinist purge”.
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