Two of Labour’s London mayoralty hopefuls clashed yesterday as the fallout from Emily Thornberry’s “condescending” white van tweet continued.

Tottenham MP David Lammy described the social media scandal which saw her sacked from the shadow cabinet as symptomatic of Labour’s disconnection from working-class voters.

But fellow London MP Diane Abbott insisted Ms Thornberry was “not a snob” and said party leader Ed Miliband had “made a mistake.”

The difference of opinion could be the opening salvo between the pair vying to win the Labour nomination for City Hall.

Ms Thornberry had posted a photo on Twitter while campaigning in the Rochester and Strood by-election showing a house which had three England flags hanging from its windows and a white van parked outside.

Mr Miliband said he was “angry” that she had posted a photo that was seen by some as “sneering” at the owners.

Defending the former shadow attorney general, Ms Abbott said: “Emily Thornberry is not a snob, she doesn’t look down on council tenants.

“She couldn’t hold her seat — which is quite a marginal one — if she didn’t do a lot of work with council tenants.

“She has probably knocked on more council estate doors than many of her critics.”

Speaking to Sky News, she added that sacking Ms Thornberry had “made it a bigger story than it otherwise would have been.”

But Mr Lammy wrote in the Mail on Sunday: “Large parts of the country feel that Labour not only disagrees with them, they think we disapprove of them too.”

“A sense of mutual disdain between the mainstream parties and working-class England is driving voters away from politics or towards so-called anti-politics parties such as Ukip.”

Mr Lammy and Ms Abbott are among the most high-profile candidates standing to be Labour’s candidate for London Mayor elections in 2016.

Blairite former culture secretary Tessa Jowell also said she would run yesterday but said it was “not the right time” to formally enter the contest.