Chief Rabbi said he did not hear from Corbyn after general election intervention
New leader and deputy 'have described how they are acutely aware of the depth of concern and of upset within the Jewish community over antisemitism in the Labour Party', he added
Chief Rabbi Ephraim Mirvis said he had not heard from Labour’s former leader Jeremy Corbyn since his unprecedented intervention during the general election.
The faith leader warned in The Times in December that Corbyn was unfit for high office in light of his handling of antisemitism allegations and accused him of being “complicit in prejudice.”
BBC Radio 5 Live presenter Emma Barnett asked Rabbi Mirvis whether Corbyn had been in touch with him since his criticism – to which he replied “no, never heard from him.”
During the interview broadcast on Tuesday afternoon, Rabbi Mirvis congratulated Labour’s new leader Keir Starmer and deputy Angela Rayner, who were elected on Saturday.
“They have described how they are acutely aware of the depth of concern and of upset within the Jewish community over antisemitism in the Labour Party over the past four and a half years,” he said, praising comments on the subject made by Starmer over recent days.
“I hope that [Keir Starmer] will indeed take swift and decisive action to eradicate the scourge of antisemitism from within the Labour Party”, he added.
Jewish leaders praised Starmer in a joint statement on Tuesday after he pledged in a video call to set a “new standard” on the party’s handling of antisemitism.
Starmer, who was joined by Labour’s new deputy leader Angela Rayner, spoke to representatives from the Board of Deputies, Jewish Leadership Council, Community Security Trust and Jewish Labour Movement.
During the call, the former shadow Brexit secretary vowed to start work on setting up an independent disciplinary process, cooperate with the Equality and Human Rights Commission’s investigation into allegations of antisemitism in the party, and order a report on all outstanding disciplinary cases this week.
Thank you for helping to make Jewish News the leading source of news and opinion for the UK Jewish community. Today we're asking for your invaluable help to continue putting our community first in everything we do.
For as little as £5 a month you can help sustain the vital work we do in celebrating and standing up for Jewish life in Britain.
Jewish News holds our community together and keeps us connected. Like a synagogue, it’s where people turn to feel part of something bigger. It also proudly shows the rest of Britain the vibrancy and rich culture of modern Jewish life.
You can make a quick and easy one-off or monthly contribution of £5, £10, £20 or any other sum you’re comfortable with.
100% of your donation will help us continue celebrating our community, in all its dynamic diversity...
Engaging
Being a community platform means so much more than producing a newspaper and website. One of our proudest roles is media partnering with our invaluable charities to amplify the outstanding work they do to help us all.
Celebrating
There’s no shortage of oys in the world but Jewish News takes every opportunity to celebrate the joys too, through projects like Night of Heroes, 40 Under 40 and other compelling countdowns that make the community kvell with pride.
Pioneering
In the first collaboration between media outlets from different faiths, Jewish News worked with British Muslim TV and Church Times to produce a list of young activists leading the way on interfaith understanding.
Campaigning
Royal Mail issued a stamp honouring Holocaust hero Sir Nicholas Winton after a Jewish News campaign attracted more than 100,000 backers. Jewish Newsalso produces special editions of the paper highlighting pressing issues including mental health and Holocaust remembrance.
Easy access
In an age when news is readily accessible, Jewish News provides high-quality content free online and offline, removing any financial barriers to connecting people.
Voice of our community to wider society
The Jewish News team regularly appears on TV, radio and on the pages of the national press to comment on stories about the Jewish community. Easy access to the paper on the streets of London also means Jewish News provides an invaluable window into the community for the country at large.
We hope you agree all this is worth preserving.