A letter in the Financial Times

From Rt Hon Clare Short, London, UK, 25 July 2019

I was very surprised by your unbalanced editorial (“Anti-Semitism in Labour disfigures British politics’’, July 23 – see below) on anti-Semitism in the Labour party. The root of this problem is the growing awareness of the injustice and suffering inflicted by Israel on the Palestinians. In the face of this, and given Jeremy Corbyn’s history on the question, supporters of Israel have worked to extend the definition of anti-Semitism to include criticism of Israel. For example, the accusation of anti-Semitism is regularly thrown at people who support Boycott Divestment and Sanctions and argue that Israel should be held to the requirements of international law.

I think it is possible that some who feel strongly about the suffering of the Palestinians may make anti-Semitic remarks and should be held to account, but the research evidence is clear that anti-Semitism in the UK is rare and prejudice against Muslims is extensive, and both attitudes are concentrated on the right. What I have read of the reasons for suspension and expulsion from Labour in some of the notorious cases do not amount to anti-Semitism.

There is no doubt that Labour has handled the question in a muddled and hopeless manner. But no one, including the FT and those in the Labour party who hurl these accusations around, should allow the definition to be extended in this way. It is a false accusation when it extends to criticism of Israel. Its effect is to frighten people and prevent discussion of Israel’s cruelty to the Palestinians and grave breaches of international law and the geopolitical consequences of the west’s lack of commitment to international law on this question.

Rt Hon Clare Short

London, SW4, UK



Here is the text of the FT editorial

Jeremy Corbyn has allowed a vile strain of racism to infect his party

The Editorial Board, 21 July 2019

Britain’s opposition Labour party has a proud history of fighting discrimination and upholding the rights of ethnic minorities. Political opponents might fairly have accused Labour of being too spendthrift, too eager to raise taxes or too suspicious of the market economy. They would not have made much headway by attacking its staunch attachment to pluralist values.

Jeremy Corbyn’s leadership has put that record under serious threat. When Theresa May used one of her last prime ministerial appearances in the House of Commons to highlight the anti-Semitism that has gripped Mr Corbyn’s party, she was not just scoring political points. She was echoing the views of no fewer than 67 Labour peers who had just published an open letter accusing Mr Corbyn of failing properly to act against this vile strain of racism.

The letter, signed by nine former cabinet ministers, was just the latest in a series of protests. Several Labour MPs and peers have resigned from the party in disgust. The spread of anti-Semitism has been visible for some years. Yet Mr Corbyn has met each new instance of anti-Semitic behaviour with pro forma statements and desultory disciplinary proceedings. His latest initiative — providing “educational materials” to members on avoiding anti-Semitism — looks little different. The Equality and Human Rights Commission has launched an inquiry into whether Labour is now institutionally racist.

Mr Corbyn has said he wants to stamp out anti-Semitism. Yet former party officials have testified that the leader’s own office has been instrumental in slowing and diluting the effort. Instead of taking these whistleblowers seriously, Mr Corbyn’s allies have sought to impugn their motives.

Tom Watson, the party’s deputy leader, has been outspoken in demanding much tougher action. So too has Margaret Hodge, one of several Jewish backbench MPs who have been subject to vile anti-Semitic abuse — most of it from the wing of the party most closely associated with Mr Corbyn’s far-left politics. The standard response of the leader’s office is that such critics are plotting against him.

There have always been those on the far-left of British politics who have promoted the anti-Semitic tropes that cast Jewish financiers as the leaders of an internationalist capitalist conspiracy against the working classes. Among such groups, support for the legitimate demands of Palestinians for statehood merges into unthinking hatred of Jews. The difference now is that past Labour leaders have adopted a policy of zero tolerance, banishing such bigots to small extremist parties.

The anti-Semitism that Mr Corbyn treats as a minor blemish does not simply disfigure Labour. In an era of rising populism that has seen politicians on the far-right seek to scapegoat minorities of all colours, it feeds a dangerous upsurge in xenophobia. Mr Corbyn may have a point when he says that the Conservatives should tackle Islamophobia. But that is no excuse for the permissive approach that allows anti-Semitism to infect Labour.

It will take time to remove the stain on Labour’s reputation. It may well be too late for Mr Corbyn to recover his own credibility. But at the very least the Labour leader could seek to show that he does not share the dark prejudices of the anti-Semites. A first step would be to bar his aides and close supporters from any discussions of disciplinary cases. A second would be to listen carefully to the whistleblowers. And finally, Labour should scrap the present, internal disciplinary machinery in favour of a wholly independent process with the authority and resources to stamp out racism in the party’s ranks.