Read the Jewish Labour Movement's reaction to the BBC and The Times story on our final submission to the Equalities and Human Rights Commission.
Over the course of the last four years, the Jewish Labour Movement has consistently attempted to help the Labour Party and its leadership resolve the growing crisis of antisemitism within the Party, the wider Labour movement and the left.
Despite the thousands of complaints that have been made, and despite our best efforts, the Party has systematically ignored or downplayed the scale of the challenge it faces. When caught out over their inaction, the Party’s leadership has failed to be honest and transparent by misleading or directly lying to the public.
It is for these reasons that JLM referred the Labour Party to the Equalities and Human Rights Commission in November last year. Since then, a significant number of whistle-blowers have come forward to give evidence. Due to the sheer scale and complexity of the evidence presented to the EHRC, we were asked to provide final legal arguments in a closing submission, which was submitted last month. It is this document that The Times and BBC have obtained.
This submission summarises the testimony of whistle-blowers and members given to the EHRC. In some cases, the Commission has used its legal powers of compulsion, demonstrating the serious nature of this investigation. It is only because of the Party’s institutional failings to tackle the racism directed toward our members and supporters that such a statutory investigation by the equalities watchdog is necessary.
We take no pleasure in our submission being made public. JLM has been affiliated to the Labour Party for 99 years. We have campaigned in every past election for Labour candidates and a Labour Government. It is for this reason that we have made clear that we are only campaigning for exceptional candidates and our strongest allies at this election. Institutional antisemitism does not mean that every member is antisemitic, the membership includes many allies in the fight. Instead the Labour Party’s leadership and structures must answer for this problem.
In the last year, many individuals have and continue to come forward to assist JLM in making our case with the EHRC in the public interest. Each has expressed sincere regret and incredulity that the Party’s intransigence and unwillingness to take real action, has meant they felt the personal need and responsibility to do so.
Whilst we would not have wanted our final EHRC submission published by others in this way before the Commission was ready to publish its final report next summer, we have verified that this is an accurate version of our final submission.
JLM’s referral of the Labour Party to the EHRC in no way diminishes or absolves others in political life facing up to, and facing down, the growing tide of intolerance and discrimination that has corrupted the full spectrum of our political discourse. It is the duty of those who seek to lead our country to embody honesty and integrity. It will be for the public, not the Labour Party, to determine if Jeremy Corbyn has passed this test.
