‘A retrograde step’: Jeremy Corbyn is readmitted to Labour
'Labour’s mountain to climb to win back the trust of our community just got higher' a joint statement from the Board, JLC and CST read
Jeremy Corbyn will be readmitted to Labour just weeks after he was suspended for saying the scale of antisemitism in the party was “dramatically overstated”.
A source close to the former opposition leader said Mr Corbyn would be readmitted though has not yet been formally told, following a meeting of the disputes panel of the party’s ruling National Executive Committee.
Following news of his re-admitting to the party, Jewish groups were quick to condemn the action, with a joint statement issued by communal leaders saying “Labour’s mountain to climb to win back the trust of our community just got higher. Campaign Against Antisemitism said the “Jewish community has been conned”, while the Jewish Labour Movement accused the party of having “expedited this case for hearing by a factionally aligned political committee”.
Mr Corbyn had the whip withdrawn and was suspended from the party over his response to a damning Equality and Human Rights Commission which found that the party had broken the law in its handling of antisemitism complaints.
He had claimed that while “one antisemite is one too many” the “scale of the problem was also dramatically overstated for political reasons by our opponents inside and outside the party, as well as by much of the media”.
His suspension came after his successor as Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer said that people who believed it was “exaggerated, or a factional attack” were “part of the problem” and “should be nowhere near the Labour Party either”.
But Mr Corbyn acknowledged ahead of a meeting of the disputes committee on Tuesday that concerns around antisemitism in Labour were not “exaggerated”.
He revealed he had given a statement to the party in an attempt to “clear up any confusion” over his initial response and a broadcast interview given in the wake of the report.
READ MORE:
- Starmer: Corbyn’s readmission to Labour ‘another painful day for the community’
- OPINION: Oh, it’s fine, we asked some Jews and they said it was okay
- ANALYSIS: Is ‘antisemitism’ no longer fit for purpose?
In a statement aimed at clarifying his comments, Mr Corbyn had said: “We must never tolerate antisemitism or belittle concerns about it. And that was not my intention in anything I said this week.
“I regret the pain this issue has caused the Jewish community and would wish to do nothing that would exacerbate or prolong it.
“To be clear, concerns about antisemitism are neither ‘exaggerated’ nor ‘overstated’.
“The point I wished to make was that the vast majority of Labour Party members were and remain committed anti-racists deeply opposed to antisemitism.”
Jewish community leaders rejected his clarification, with the President of the Board of Deputies of British Jews’ branding it a “pathetic non-apology.”
Following the decision on Tuesday evening, a spokesperson for the Jewish Labour Movement said it was “extraordinary that just weeks after the EHRC found that the Labour Party had discriminated against Jewish members through political manipulation of the disciplinary process, it appears that the Party expedited this case for hearing by a factionally aligned political committee.”
The Jewish Labour Movement’s statement on Jeremy Corbyn’s readmission to the Labour Party pic.twitter.com/eMMjJgKoJm
— Jewish Labour Movement (@JewishLabour) November 17, 2020
Calling Jeremy Corbyn’s statement “insincere and wholly inadequate”, and having “offered no apology.. or contrition”, JLM say “today’s decision will only embolden those who agreed with him.”
“Once again we find ourselves having to remind the Labour Party that Jeremy Corbyn is not the victim of Labour antisemitism – Jewish members are.”
In a joint statement issued by Board of Deputies President Marie van der Zyl, Jewish Leadership Chair Jonathan Goldstein and Community Security Trust Chief Executive Mark Gardner, the communal leaders condemned the decision as a “retrograde step for the Party in its relations with the Jewish community.”
“Jeremy Corbyn’s dismissive approach to the damning EHRC’s findings rightly saw him suspended. For Jeremy Corbyn’s allies on the NEC to expedite his case whilst hundreds of other cases languished under his tenure, and his confected non-apology earlier today adds insult to injury.
“This politicisation of the process goes against what the EHRC recommended just last month.
“Labour’s mountain to climb to win back the trust of our community just got higher.”
Meanwhile, Gideon Falter, Chief Executive of Campaign Against Antisemitism, said the “shambolic” suspension and re-admitting of him was “nothing more than a media stunt to blunt the blow of the EHRC’s report last month”.
“By readmitting Mr Corbyn, the Labour Party has once again excused antisemitism and proved itself unwilling to address it.
Accusing the party of a “failure to implement an independent disciplinary process” he said the “Jewish community has been conned.”
Karen Pollock, Chief Executive of the Holocaust Educational Trust asked, “‘What message does this send?
“Zero tolerance” either means zero tolerance or it’s meaningless. The scathing report from the EHRC less than three weeks ago outlined a stream of racism and discrimination by the Labour Party on Jeremy Corbyn’s watch. Yet here we are. Once again Corbyn has failed to take responsibility and the Labour Party have let him off the hook’”
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.
