A PETITION has been launched calling for the reinstatement of three expelled members of the Labour party in South West Surrey.

Long-standing Labour activists Steve Williams, Kate Townsend and Robert Park were sacked by the party after publicly backing National Health Action’s Dr Louise Irvine as their preferred candidate at the June 8 general election.

The petition, found online at www.ipetitions.com/petition/reinstate-the-godalming-three, expresses “outrage” at the members’ expulsion and has attracted almost 100 signatures since September 5.

It comes after the South West Surrey Constituency Labour Party (CLP) passed a motion in June demanding the immediate reinstatement of its three members - to be debated at the Labour annual conference, taking place from September 24 to 27 in Brighton.

Backed by a ‘progressive alliance’ of local Labour, Green Party and Lib Dem members, Dr Irvine won a 20 per cent share of the vote to finish second behind Jeremy Hunt in June - a dramatic improvement on her previous showing at the 2015 polls.

However, Labour HQ’s chosen candidate David Black also improved his vote share to finish comfortably in third, ahead of the Lib Dems and UKIP - and afterwards hit out at local party members for betraying the “blood of your heart”.