Anti-Semitism storm will cost Labour votes in City Hall elections, Corbyn told

Labour members of the London Assembly wrote to the party’s ruling National Executive Committee
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Labour faces “serious electoral damage” in next year’s City Hall elections unless the party urgently tackles anti-Semitism, Jeremy Corbyn was warned today.

Labour members of the London Assembly wrote to the party’s ruling National Executive Committee saying the party “should be ashamed” at the way it had failed to tackle attacks on Jewish members.

The letter, signed by 11 of the group’s 12 members, was sparked by the BBC Panorama programme last week in which party activists spoke movingly about their experiences.

The letter, which has been passed to the Standard, states: “We are concerned that the apparent continued reluctance of some of our most senior Labour Party representatives and officials to take this seriously is damaging our claim to be an anti-racism party. There are too many people giving too many examples of anti-Semitic behaviour, and examples of it not being tackled, for this to be dismissed as an attack on the leader of the Labour Party and his allies.”

The letter expresses “deep concern” at the tone and content of the debate on anti-Semitism in meetings, online forums and social media, “much of which is not being reported but nonetheless is very much out there”.

It says members are leaving “because they do not wish to be associated with such vile views” and adds: “It is also likely to have the effect of causing serious electoral damage to the Labour party in London.”

It calls for a code of conduct to be imposed in which Labour election candidates condemn anti-Semitism, starting with the Assembly elections.

The letter also calls for people making “comments similar to neo-Nazis and other Holocaust deniers” to be expelled. Labour group leader Len Duvall told the Standard: “I think it’s not just a London problem, it’s a party problem. We have got a small minority of people who are continuing to be offensive and racist in their behaviour.

“The most severe cases are incompatible with being a member of the Labour Party. The issue has gone on for far too long. The leader made a fairly strong statement at the weekend.

“We now need to take action. Some of the utterances and some of the behaviour is just vile. We would not allow it towards BAME [black and minority ethnic] members. Why are we allowing it towards Jews?”

The letter’s signatories include Nicky Gavron, a party grandee who is Jewish and served as a deputy mayor to Ken Livingstone, and two of Mayor Sadiq Khan’s deputy mayors, Fiona Twycross and Joanne McCartney. Mr Khan said after watching the “heartbreaking” Panorama that Labour’s leadership needs to ensure “right now” that the party “gets much better at tackling the scourge of anti-Semitism”.

A Labour spokesman said that anti-Semitism cases that have gone through disciplinary procedures since September 2015 accounted for just 0.06 per cent of the party’s membership and added: “Since Jennie Formby became general secretary the rate at which anti-Semitism cases have been dealt with has increased more than four-fold.”

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