Ex Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn has been suspended by the party over his response to a damning watchdog report on antisemtism.
A party spokesperson said of the former leader:“In light of his comments made today and his failure to retract them subsequently, the Labour Party has suspended Jeremy Corbyn pending investigation. He has also had the whip removed from the Parliamentary Labour Party.”
In a scathing report, the Equality and Human Rights Commission found Labour was responsible for "harassment and discrimination" and backed an "independent" antisemitism complaints process.
The EHRC also found evidence of "political interference" in the complaints process, with 23 instances of inappropriate involvement by the Leader of the Opposition’s Office (LOTO) when Corbyn was in charge.
It stated: "It is hard not to conclude that antisemitism within the Labour Party could have been tackled more effectively if the leadership had chosen to do so."
However, Corbyn's response to the report has been criticised. He posted on Facebook:
"The EHRC’s report shows that when I became Labour leader in 2015, the Party’s processes for handling complaints were not fit for purpose. Reform was then stalled by an obstructive party bureaucracy. But from 2018, Jennie Formby and a new NEC that supported my leadership made substantial improvements, making it much easier and swifter to remove antisemites. My team acted to speed up, not hinder the process."
He added: "One antisemite is one too many, but 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. That combination hurt Jewish people and must never be repeated."
Corbyn's claim that antisemitism had been "overstated" angered figures in the party.
His remarks also jarred with what his successor Keir Starmer said.
Starmer described today as a “day of shame” for Labour over the report.
He said he was “truly sorry” for the pain and grief caused to Jewish people and promised the findings of the report would be implemented in full.
Responding to his suspension, Corbyn said: "I will strongly contest the political intervention to suspend me. I’ve made absolutely clear those who deny there has been an antisemitism problem in the Labour Party are wrong. I will continue to support a zero tolerance policy towards all forms of racism."
