SHADOW chancellor John McDonnell predicted yesterday that Jeremy Corbyn is likely to face a leadership challenge in “the next few days” but warned coup plotters to “calm down” and respect democratic process.

He said: “Jeremy is leader of the Labour Party, elected with the largest mandate any political leader had from his political party only nine months ago.”

Mr McDonnell also warned that Mr Corbyn would be automatically on the ballot paper and had a good chance of winning another election.

Mass rallies to defend Corbyn are expected to take place up and down the country over the next few days and 60,000 people have joined the Labour Party in the last week, with most saying they were in it to defend Mr Corbyn.

He said it was “really disappointing” that shadow ministers had chosen to resign “at a time when our country needs us and people to step up to the plate” and urged MPs to “behave responsibly” and work with Mr Corbyn.

Despite the mass resignations Mr McDonnell said they had filled the shadow cabinet and many junior positions and said the people who had continued to stand by Mr Corbyn were the “heroes and heroines of our movement at the moment.”

Ex-shadow business secretary Angela Eagle and ex-shadow work and pensions secretary Owen Smith are among those expected to challenge Mr Corbyn.

However it appears that Ms Eagle, who voted for the Iraq war and then against an inquiry, and abstained on 2015’s controversial Tory Welfare Bill vote, had designs on the leadership before her tearful resignation.

The online domain name angela4leader.org was registered last Saturday, the day that Hilary Benn was rounding up support to move against Mr Corbyn.