A FORMER Bournemouth councillor has accused Labour leadership hopeful Jeremy Corbyn of supporting terrorists - earning himself a rebuke from his wife.

Ben Grower, who was a Labour councillor for more than 40 years before he lost his seat in May, has been highly critical of Mr Corbyn on Bournemouth Labour's Facebook page.

He recently posted: "Why should anyone want to support a man who supports terrorists in Ireland and the Middle East?" And in another post about Mr Corbyn's links with pro-Palestinian activist Abou Jahjah he said: "Either Corbyn suffers from selective amnesia, is totally incompetent or just a plain liar. Personally I believe all three."

But his accusation that Mr Corbyn supported Hamas drew a retort from his wife Jilly Grower, also a Labour Party member. She said: "Who told you Ben that Jezza supports Hamas? Jezza believes (like most sane people) that Palestinians have rights."

She added: "He is a pacifist, you know nothing about him!!"

It's not the first time the pair have publicly aired their differences on Facebook. Immediately after the May General Election, Mrs Grower posted: "I wish Ed well, I don't blame him in any way," to which Mr Grower replied "Well I do!"

Mr Grower has also publicly attacked Mr Corbyn for his plans to apologise for the Iraq War if he wins the leadership election.

He posted: "Any apology by Jeremy Corbyn about the Iraq War will not be in my name - and thousands of others. Thatcher should have apologised for the Falklands War which cost more British lives defending a piece of rock in the South Atlantic than we lost in Iraq. Maybe he will apologise to Germany for the Nazi lives lost in World War Two whilst he is at it."

Mr Grower told the Echo he was supporting Yvette Cooper for the leadership because she would "make the best Prime Minister."

Asked about Mr Corbyn he said: "I think he would be an unsuitable leader of the Labour Party and not a patch on Yvette Cooper.

"I disagree with many of his views, especially his foreign policy and his association with Hamas and the other people in the Middle East."

When asked about his wife's views, he said: "I don't talk on behalf of my wife."