This article is more than 2 years old

This article is more than 2 years old

Senior allies of Jeremy Corbyn are divided over Momentum’s decision to pull its support for Pete Willsman, the Labour national executive committee member who suggested that Jewish “Trump fanatics” could be behind accusations of antisemitism in the party’s ranks.

Jon Lansman, the grassroots organisation’s founder, has been accused by the general secretary of the Fire Brigades Union, Matt Wrack, of “bottling it” and “cowardly” behaviour after withdrawing support for Willsman in the upcoming NEC election.

Momentum director Christine Shawcroft has also urged activists to back Willsman in defiance of the decision by her own organisation’s board.

The row exposes the simmering tensions between sections of the Labour movement over how to respond to dozens of allegations of antisemitism against Corbyn’s Labour.

It comes amid mounting speculation that Corbyn is preparing to deliver a speech on the party’s crisis which has dragged on for 28 months.

Momentum removed Willsman from its “JC9” slate for re-election after he was recorded at an NEC meeting last month saying that some of the antisemitism claims the party faced were made by Jewish “Trump fanatics” who were “making up duff information”.



Play Video 0:52 Peter Willsman dismisses Labour antisemitism claims - audio

Under intense media scrutiny, Willsman apologised for the remarks and agreed to take part in equality training.

Momentum released a statement saying Willsman’s remarks were “deeply insensitive and inappropriate” and had angered many in the Jewish community.

Wrack, who is a senior member of Momentum, told the Guardian it was wrong that a longstanding comrade such as Willsman had been abandoned by an organisation that was close to Corbyn.



“With this decision to drop Pete Willsman, the leadership of Momentum has bottled it. It is as if they have never gone to a political meeting before and heard someone rant about a subject, he said.



“I listened to that recording of Willsman. It was an angry rant, and not antisemitic at all.

“This decision is inept, cowardly and completely arbitrary. There was no discussion internally, it was imposed by the leadership.”

Calling on Lansman to democratise Momentum, Wrack said the decision could backfire on the left’s plans to transform Labour because Corbyn may need Willsman’s vote on the party’s ruling body.



“We have crucial reforms to get through. Tactically, I am not sure this was a good decision at all. [Lansman] needs to work collaboratively and in an open and democratic fashion to get Momentum back to being an organisation that fights for the left. We will not get Corbyn elected without the left working together and working democratically. Momentum must have a role in that,” he said.

Writing on her Facebook page today, Shawcroft said: “Support the JC9. ALL the JC9. Including Pete Willsman, including Jon Lansman. Unless you want to make Tom Watson very happy, which I, for one, don’t.”

She stood down as head of Labour’s disputes panel and resigned from the NEC after it emerged she had defended election candidate Alan Bull who had posted an article on Facebook claiming the Holocaust was a hoax.

A Momentum source dismissed Wrack’s criticisms and said the decision to drop Willsman from the re-election slate was democratically decided by the organisation’s governing body after two meetings.



“We have a movement of more than half a million people, including many younger activists,” the source said. “What message would it send if we asked them to support a candidate for Labour’s most powerful body who is clearly not up to the job?

“While nobody is claiming Pete’s comments were antisemitic, they were inappropriate and deeply insensitive in the current context, and clearly demonstrate he isn’t the person we need on the NEC.”



Momentum’s decision to drop Willsman has put the Labour leadership under pressure to reconsider disciplinary action against him, or even suspend him from the NEC.



Richard Angell, the director of the Labour centrist pressure group Progress, said Momentum’s decision to withdraw support for Willsman’s candidacy was a “half-measure”.

“Pete Willsman should not just be off their slate but off the whole NEC and facing disciplinary action,” he said.

Willsman’s name is still on ballot papers that have been sent to Labour members. Wrack said he would still be voting for him. Momentum’s Wirral group has also said it would back Willsman.