Suspended MP Chris Williamson, who has been called a "Jew-baiter" for his repeated interventions in Labour's antisemitism crisis, is to sue the party to force it to re-admit him.

Mr Williamson was suspended in February for saying the party had been "too apologetic" over Jew-hate only to be readmitted in June and then re-suspended two days later after a backlash from Labour MPs and Jewish groups.

On Wednesday, a source close to Mr Williamson confirmed legal papers had been filed in court against the party's decision.

Mr Williamson has also used social media to try and raise money from supporters.

On Tuesday night, he tweeted a crowdfunding campaign launched by a group called the “Campaign for Chris Williamson”, which seeks to raise £75,000 to cover the legal costs.

Mr Williamson wrote that he had “dedicated my life to the Labour party since I was 19 years-old, and I’m 63 next month. I would hugely appreciate your support in helping to overturn the unconstitutional decision to ‘re-suspend’ me from the party I love.”

The campaign’s website states that Mr Williamson’s original suspension in February came about after “a pressure campaign against the Labour Party by opponents of a Corbyn-led socialist government”, adding: “The smears against him are a proxy for attacks on Jeremy Corbyn and the Labour Left.”

The campaign has raised more than £17,000, with the organisers stating that any money raised over the £75,000 “could allow us to begin building a legal fighting fund for the Labour Left, defending other comrades who have been maliciously accused and hounded out of the party.”

The campaign, which is a registered company, has just one officer - Professor David Miller, who has previously defended people including Ken Livingstone and anti-Zionist Tony Greenstein and dismissed allegations of antisemitism within Labour as “mostly false”.

He once said security concerns of Jewish students were “propaganda which they have been schooled with”.

When Mr Williamson was initially re-admitted, it was after a three-member panel of Labour’s National Executive Committee rejected a recommendation that his case be referred to the party’s highest decision-making body, the National Constitutional Council (NCC), for consideration.

However the suspension was re-imposed after widespread backlash, including a letter of protest against the decision signed by 121 Labour MPs and peers.

Since he was re-suspended, Mr Williamson has said his case has done to the NCC and he faces possible expulsion.

A Labour spokesperson said: “Chris Williamson is suspended from the Labour Party pending a hearing of the National Constitutional Committee, Labour's highest disciplinary body.

“We do not give a running commentary on individual cases.”