BARROW MP John Woodcock has defended his refusal to back Jeremy Corbyn’s no confidence motion in the government.

In a controversial speech that attracted both praise and anger in the House of Commons last night, the independent MP for Barrow and Furness claimed a Jeremy Corbyn government could never be trusted to finish the Dreadnought programme which is sustaining thousands of jobs in Barrow shipyard.

He said: “I will do whatever it takes to stop that man closing this town down.”

The MP was heckled by some of the Labour MPs sitting around him when he said Mr Corbyn and shadow chancellor John McDonnell were “not fit to hold high office”.

Before abstaining in the no confidence motion Mr Woodcock said: “Barrow-in-Furness is a shipyard town, it is woven into our history.

"More than 9,000 people in my constituency are directly employed by it and many more depend upon it. The leader of the opposition represents a chance that they cannot afford to take.”

The no confidence motion was defeated by 325 votes to 306.

Mr Woodcock's Commons speech was described as "the bravest and finest" from the opposition benches during Tuesday's debate.

Environment secretary Michael Gove added: “It takes courage - and he has it, having been elected on a Labour mandate in a working class constituency - to say that the leader of the party that he joined as a boy is not fit to be prime minister. He speaks for his constituents, and he speaks for the country.”

Speaking after the motion was defeated Mr Woodcock said: “It is dire that our broken political system is not offering the public a decent alternative to the failing Conservative government because of the way Jeremy Corbyn has captured the once decent, patriotic Labour Party.

"Britain deserves better than this but in the meantime I will do whatever it takes to stop that man closing this town down through his lifelong opposition to the Trident programme on which it depends – no matter how much stick I get."