Jeremy Corbyn has issued a strong condemnation of antisemitism before a crunch meeting with Jewish communal groups, saying the party’s structures were unfit for purpose and that it must confront the fact that a number of members held antisemitic views.
The Labour leader said in the past fortnight alone, more than 20 individuals had been suspended from party membership, and more were being investigated.
Writing in the Evening Standard, before Tuesday’s meeting in parliament, Corbyn said: “We have not done enough to get to grips with the problem, and the Jewish community and our Jewish members deserve an apology. My party and I are sorry for the hurt and distress caused.”
Corbyn said Labour’s staff had been sent “examples of Holocaust denial, crude stereotypes of Jewish bankers, conspiracy theories blaming 9/11 on Israel, and even one member who appeared to believe that Hitler had been misunderstood”.
Corbyn and Labour’s new general secretary, Jennie Formby, are to meet representatives from the Board of Deputies of British Jews (BoD) and the Jewish Leadership Council (JLC), on Tuesday afternoon. Corbyn requested the meeting as part of efforts to tackle antisemitism.
The Labour leader said he would propose steps to address the lengthy delays in dealing with complaints of antisemitism, saying the party’s structures had been built for a smaller membership and were “simply not fully fit for purpose when it has come to dealing with complaints about antisemitism”.
Corbyn promised Formby had made the issue her priority and all investigations would be given the resources needed. The party would also embark on a programme of political education to deepen Labour members’ understanding of what antisemitism is and how to counter it, he said.
One cloud cast over the meeting is the postponement of a larger roundtable meeting involving more groups, scheduled for Wednesday, after the BoD and JLC said they would not take part.
Their decision is understood to be in response to an invitation extended to Jewish Voice for Labour, a pro-Corbyn and anti-Israel group that opposes the actions of the BoD and JLC.
In his piece, Corbyn also hinted at some frustration with that outcome, saying that he wanted to engage with smaller groups within the community who may not share the views of the JLC and BoD.
“I want to engage with the full range and diversity of Jewish organisations and have no truck with any attempt to divide the Jewish community into the ‘right’ and ‘wrong’ sort of Jews. Debate and pluralism are abiding characteristics of the Jewish community, and I celebrate them both within and without the Labour party,” he said.
Among the topics set for discussion is the request that Corbyn consider appointing an independent ombudsman on antisemitism in Labour, who would report not only to the party but to the BoD, a difficult consideration for the party and one that would require a party rule change
However, the shadow communities secretary, Andrew Gwynne, said Corbyn would go into the meeting without pre-judging its outcome.
“These are all valid ideas, I’m not going to dismiss it out of hand. We have to rebuild confidence in the Jewish community,” he said.
Corbyn’s op-ed in the Evening Standard came after an emotional call from a Holocaust survivor on Tuesday morning, saying the Labour leader must lay out concrete actions to expel antisemites from the party.
Susan Pollack, a Hungarian-born Auschwitz survivor, said she had become increasingly concerned about antisemitism and called for Corbyn toshow leadership on the issue.
Pollack, whose parents were murdered by the Nazis, and who was liberated in Belsen by British troops after a death march from Auschwitz, said Corbyn had to ensure antisemitism led to expulsions.
“We need to alert the members, all the members of the party, and make that clear that Corbyn will be watchful – and make it a public declaration. And that he will act, that means expulsion from the party,” she said.
The groups that Corbyn will meet on Tuesday represent Jewish communal groups, charities and elected members. The BoD is an elected Jewish communal body made up of 300 deputies chosen by synagogue memberships across the country, as well as other organisations including the Union of Jewish Students. The JLC acts as an umbrella for major British Jewish institutions and charities.
A key test for the outcome of Tuesday’s meeting will be a disciplinary hearing of Labour activist Marc Wadsworth, who came to prominence at the launch of a report into Labour and antisemitism, for challenging Jewish Labour MP Ruth Smeeth that she was working “hand in hand” with the media.
Wadsworth’s case will be heard by Labour’s national constitutional committee, a quasi-judicial body that has the power to expel members from the party. Campaign group Labour Against the Witch-Hunt has announced it will protest against the meeting on Wednesday morning.
Labour MPs are understood to have offered to support Smeeth on her way into the hearing, which will be in private. A decision is expected on Thursday.
