Labour has appointed Laura Murray, a former close aide to Jeremy Corbyn, as its head of complaints, sparking controversy because she was involved in a row over allegations the leader’s office had interfered in the disciplinary process.
Numerous emails were leaked to the Sunday Times while Murray was working for the Labour leader which appeared to show her being asked to advise on disciplinary cases – a process intended to be separate from the leader’s office.
Among the emails, one appeared to show Murray was involved in the case of a Labour member who was later arrested as part of a police inquiry into antisemitism. She had advised the member be investigated but had not said she should be suspended.
Murray had emailed party officials to say “although [the member’s] tweets are drawing upon conspiracy theories, they are about Israel and no mention of Jews or Jewishness etc”.
When the emails were revealed, a Labour spokesman said Murray was giving advice, rather than a ruling. The spokesman said her advice was no longer sought after Jennie Formby became Labour’s general secretary.
Murray has also been threatened with libel action by the Countdown presenter Rachel Riley, who has been a vocal critic of Labour’s handling of antisemitism, for comments Murray made about her on social media.
The Labour MP Margaret Hodge said the appointment was “both mad and deeply insulting” and suggested she did not trust the hiring process. “This decision only reaffirms why I have absolutely no trust in the existing complaints process. We must have an independent system now,” she tweeted.
The Jewish Labour Movement (JLM) also said it had no trust in the appointment. “Given the levels of political interference from the leader’s office, including Laura Murray, into complaints revealed recently, personally, this is the last thing that will restore confidence in a broken and corrupt system,” a spokesman said.
The JLM said the party should have agreed to have “a fully independent, properly resourced system” that could be “a clean break from the current failed system”.
However, Murray has previously been defended by the former chair of JLM Jeremy Newmark, who said he had found her to be responsible and fair.
“The existence of a serious antisemitism problem in Labour is no excuse to bully women/party staff,” he tweeted after the emails were leaked. “Actual text of leaked emails shows Laura Murray responded in a responsible and fair matter – exactly what most would want to see (and consistent with all my dealings with her).”
A Labour party source said: “Our recruitment processes are open, fair and designed to find the best person for the job, and that’s what happened in this case.”
Labour MPs including Ruth Smeeth, Stella Creasy and Wes Streeting submitted a motion at the last meeting of Labour parliamentarians before the Easter recess, demanding the party commit to a fully independent process for complaints.
The motion, which is likely to be voted on by MPs at a forthcoming meeting of the parliamentary Labour party, also demanded the release of evidence given to the Equality and Human Rights Commission for its preliminary investigation into Labour’s handling of antisemitism claims.
It also called for the party to provide details of the number of complaints made regarding antisemitism each month in the last five years, and which complaints were investigated and acted upon.
Murray’s role is one of two senior positions dealing with the behaviour of members. She will lead the team that examines submitted complaints and suggest those that merit further investigation, which are passed on to the head of investigations. The role is overseen by the party’s head of legal and governance, Thomas Gardiner.
Recommendations for sanctions are then passed on to the party’s elected governing body, the national executive committee.
If a member is recommended for expulsion, they must attend a hearing of the party’s highest disciplinary body, the national constitutional committee, which is elected and quasi-judicial.
