Shadow Defra secretary Kerry McCarthy has resigned in the wake of a bid to oust Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn over the weekend.

Following last week’s Brexit vote, senior Labour MPs Margaret Hodge and Ann Coffey submitted a motion for a vote of no confidence in the Labour leader. Shadow Foreign secretary Hillary Benn has been sacked by Corbyn, allegedly after encouraging other members of the Shadow Cabinet to resign.

Benn’s sacking on Sunday was followed by a number of resignations from Labour’s front bench team, including Bristol East MP McCarthy.

The former shadow secretary, who was appointed to Labour’s front bench in September 2015, said the referendum result was “A huge disappointment” in her resignation letter. She said, “Many of the critical issues handled by the Department [for Environment Food and Rural Affairs] are intrinsically linked with our membership of the European Union” and added, “Vital protections won through our EU membership must not be jettisoned” as a result of the vote, though she said this will require “Strong leadership from the Labour party, and an alternative vision for government, which is seen as credible by the wider electorate.”  

By Monday, 22 shadow ministers and their parliamentary aides had been sacked or resigned. Mr Corbyn, who is making new appointments on Monday ahead of a meeting with the Parliamentary Labour Party on Monday evening, said he regretted the resignations, but pledged to stand in any leadership election.