A FORMER city MP has written an open letter to Labour party members urging them not to abandon the party after the general election.

Michael Foster was the MP for Worcester between 1997 and 2010.

Mr Foster told the Worcester News: “Jeremy Corbyn made the mistake of ignoring the concerns of working class voters.

“Labour has had to appeal to middle England to get any chance of victory.

“The election was won and lost on these working class votes.

“I met people in Worcester who wanted to vote Labour but couldn’t because of the leadership.

“There’s people like me who are moderate and I don’t want people to walk away from the party in the future.”

“If Jeremy Corbyn resigns, and we get a leadership contest, I want the right person in place for the job.

In the letter, he said: “After each of the previous three [general elections], our party has tacked further to the left. Perhaps now is the time to realise that capturing the centre ground, the moderate voter, is essential if we want to win. Our country has changed, and not for the better. Inequality is greater and the need to address this has become more pressing. According to all the evidence available, our policy offer at the election was popular – it spoke loudly of the need to speak up for the many and not the few – but voters turned their back on it simply because they did not trust Labour to deliver. If it sounds as if I am angry, it is because I am. But not for my sake. “Thousands of people in Worcester and millions across our planet, need a progressive Labour government, one firmly committed to deliver social justice; reduce inequalities, tackle climate change and deliver first-class public services. “They are the ones who have been let down by the failed Corbyn experiment.”