Rishi Sunak plays the role of the toy soldier as he gets behind the wheel of an armored vehicle during the whistle stop tour of Cornwall, while Sir Keir Starmer is snubbed by the child after being accused of “lying” about the Dianne Abbott inquiry, as the Labor campaign crisis continues.

Rishi Sunak looked to be having the time of his life during a tour stop in south-west England as Sir Keir Starmer grappled with a civil war breaking out in his own camp.

The beaming prime minister played a toy soldier as he sat behind the wheel of an armored vehicle and chatted with locals in a campaign pub on Thursday.

On his latest visit on a quick tour of Cornwall and Devon, Mr Sunak found himself climbing into the seat of a Jackal 3, the latest in a range of armored vehicles made by Devon company Supacat.

His playful trip came as Sir Keir continued his own campaign for Number 10, outlining his plans to reduce NHS waiting lists during a visit to the West Midlands.

After hosting a question and answer session, Sir Keir took a group selfie with dozens of student nurses and trainee doctors – but appeared to be disappointed by one baby who hilariously turned down an opportunity shooting by blocking the camera with your hand.

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak played a toy soldier as he got behind the wheel of an armored vehicle in Honiton

Sir Keir Starmer’s campaign trail took him to the West Midlands, where he took a selfie with student nurses and medical trainees.

But he had less luck with a photo opportunity with a baby who blocked the camera with his hand

The Labor leader’s attempts to convince voters today took a toll on his party.

In another twist in Labour’s candidacy drama on Wednesday, MP Lloyd Russell-Moyle said he had been suspended from the party over what he called a “vexatious and politically motivated complaint” against him.

The Labor row deepened tonight as a defiant Mrs Abbott vowed to remain MP for Hackney North “as long as possible” – and accused Labor of wanting to “exclude” her from Parliament.

Mr Starmer is facing a growing backlash over his treatment of Ms Abbott, 70, who has been MP for Hackney North and Stoke Newington since 1987.

Ms Abbott was suspended from the Labor parliamentary party for more than a year amid an investigation into comments she made about Jewish people in a letter to the Observer newspaper in April 2023. But it emerged the investigation had ended months earlier .

Britain’s first black female MP reinstated the Labor whip yesterday but initially appeared to confirm this morning that she had been banned from standing.

The situation descended into confusion again hours later when she posted on social media that she was “dismayed” by “reports” that she would not be allowed to stand.

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak sits in an armored vehicle at Supacat Ltd

Mr Sunak gestures during a question and answer session at Supacat Ltd during a Conservative Party election campaign event

The Prime Minister even sat down with locals at The Drewe Arms Community Pub in Exeter

Labor leader Keir Starmer and shadow health secretary Wes Streeting attend a campaign event at Three Counties Medical School

But a Labor row has marred the campaign, with Diane Abbott (pictured) vowing to remain an MP and accusing the party of trying to ban her.

Mr Starmer later told reporters in the West Midlands that “no decision has been made to ban Ms Abbott”.

But after a chaotic afternoon in politics, Mrs Abbott played it down, telling a crowd of around 200 supporters outside Hackney Town Hall this evening: “I was shocked to learn yesterday that I will be banned from standing for the Labor Party .

“I was selected by members of my local party, many of whom are here today, but the national party insists I be banned.” She said she had not been given a reason for the ban, adding: “They just want me out of parliament.

“So I’m so shocked and so alarmed by what’s happening because it’s like you’re not allowed to be a Labor MP unless you’re prepared to repeat everything the leader says.”

The Labor veteran vowed to carry on, telling his supporters: “You’ve always been there for me in good times and bad. And I will always be by your side. I’m not going to be intimidated. I will be your deputy as long as I am allowed.

She added: “I remember when I first stood as a Labor MP in 1987, people thought I couldn’t win.

“People thought you couldn’t elect a black woman to parliament because it had never been done before. But the locals went out, campaigned, knocked on doors and made me the first black woman MP in the UK.

“And I have to keep faith with that loyalty – I have to keep faith in my principles, I have to keep faith in standing up and speaking up for equalities, poor people, for the community here in Hackney.

“So I promise you that as long as possible I will be Member of Parliament for Hackney North and Stoke Newington.”

The dramatic day inside the labor camp came as Mr Sunak continued his campaign in the South West.

In Drewsteignton in central Devon, Rishi Sunak met a group of people who had taken community ownership of a village pub.

Labor Party leader Keir Starmer speaks during a Labor General Election campaign event at Worcester City Football Club

He sat down at a long table with the pub committee and drank a pint of lemonade from a pint of traditional beer.

He was joined by Mel Stride, the Work and Pensions Secretary and Tory MP for Central Devon.

In the corner of the small pub room, otherwise full of the Prime Minister, his team and the pack of photographers and traveling journalists, two French tourists watched the scene in amazement.

Earlier, Mr Sunak was said to have successfully spliced ​​a fiber optic broadband cable during a visit to the South West.

He met apprentices at Wildanet in Liskeard, a company upgrading broadband connections in Cornwall and Devon, where he was given the chance to put his technical skills to the test.

After removing one cable from a blue casing and wiping it with alcohol gel, he used a small device to join one to another.

In Drewsteignton in central Devon, Rishi Sunak met a group of people who had taken community ownership of a village pub.

Kiri James, 30, an apprentice field service engineer who led a demonstration for the Prime Minister, ran the cable through a test machine and said it made a perfect joint.

Mr Sunak threw his arms in the air in celebration as Ms James told him “Yes, it was a perfect match. If you are looking for a job in telecommunications…’

The Prime Minister earlier visited Long Rock train depot in Penzance, where he also met with apprentices, while promoting plans to boost apprenticeships while scrapping “broken” degrees.

Mr Sunak waded into Labor’s fray by saying the party needed to be “transparent” about Ms Abbott’s position.

Conservative chairman Richard Holden has written to Sir Keir demanding answers about the process. In a letter seen by the Jewish Chronicle, he accused Sir Keir of lying to the British public about the inquiry into Ms Abbott’s alleged anti-Jewish remarks.

Sir Keir’s campaign was thrown into disarray when backbench MP Mr Russell-Moyle said he was “gutted” after receiving an “administrative suspension letter” and being told he could not be a Labor candidate.

In a statement sent to the PA news agency, the MP for Brighton Kemptown and Peacehaven said: “Someone (who remains anonymous) made what I believe to be a vexatious and politically motivated complaint about my behavior eight years ago years. This is a false allegation that I completely dispute and believe was designed to disrupt this election.

“I don’t have enough time to defend myself because these processes within the party are taking too long, so the party has told me that I will not be eligible to be a candidate in the next election.”

A Labor Party spokesman said: “The Labor Party takes all complaints extremely seriously and they are fully investigated in accordance with our rules and procedures and any appropriate disciplinary action is taken.”