Brexit supporter who egged Jeremy Corbyn jailed for 28 days

A Brexit supporter who egged Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn while shouting "respect the vote" has been jailed for 28 days.

John Murphy pressed an egg on to the politician's head as he visited Finsbury Park Mosque in north London on 3 March.

The 31-year-old, from Barnet in northwest London, pleaded guilty to a charge of assault by beating at Westminster Magistrates' Court.

Mr Corbyn, who was uninjured but was left with a red mark, reported that Murphy's face was "contorted" with rage and he appeared "very aggressive".

In a victim impact statement read to the court, Mr Corbyn described how he was "shocked and surprised" by the attack.

He said: "The assault was completely unprovoked and threatening.

"Whilst I'm determined to make sure I'm able to interact with people as I always have, I now have to be more cautious.

"I feel these kinds of attacks drive a wedge between elected representatives and those who elected them in the first place."

Before handing out the sentence, the judge warned that Murphy, who had four other eggs with him, he would likely face time in jail, saying: "This is a public servant and attacks on MPs must stop. The message must go out - this must stop.

"An attack like this is an attack on our democratic process."

Mr Corbyn's security protection is being reviewed as a result of the attack.

The Labour leader was with his wife Laura Alvarez and shadow home secretary Diane Abbott when he "felt a strike to the right side of his forehead and then realised someone had reached over his right shoulder and struck him," the prosecutor told the court.

The politician continued with his planned constituency events that day at the mosque and Muslim Welfare House.

He was taking part in the fifth annual Visit My Mosque day, in which Muslim places of worship across the UK open their doors to the public.

The attack on Mr Corbyn took place around a week after his party announced it would support a second referendum.

Remain-supporting MPs have also spoken of the abuse they have faced, including independent MP Anna Soubry saying she has been targeted by "very, very serious" death threats and Labour's Lloyd Russell-Moyle being grabbed by a man allegedly shouting "traitors".