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A senior Jewish peer said today he “isn’t sure” whether he could stay in Labour under Jeremy Corbyn as the anti-Semitism row continued to engulf the party.
Tony Blair’s former chief fundraiser and close ally, Lord Levy, said a “certain element” within the party’s Left-wing had made him doubt whether Mr Corbyn is committed to the party’s zero-tolerance rhetoric.
He spoke out after some Labour MPs joined protesters outside parliament last night following claims from Jewish leaders that Mr Corbyn had become a figurehead for anti-Semitism.
Asked if he still felt at home in the party, Lord Levy replied: “I’m not sure. The provenance of Corbyn comes from a certain element of the Left and they seem to be able to call the shots.”
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The peer, who also served as Mr Blair’s Middle East envoy, told the BBC Radio 4 Today programme: “You have a community that is very, very anxious at the moment with regard to the Labour Party and its stance on anti-Semitism.”
“It’s one thing saying these things and it’s another thing acting on them and behaving in the right way. I don’t believe that has been done,” said
Mr Corbyn has been plunged into the bitter row after it emerged he supported the artist of an anti-Semitic mural painted on a wall in London’s East End in 2012.
He has apologised for not having properly studied the mural before commenting on it and has requested a meeting with the Jewish Board of Deputies, claiming that he is a “militant opponent of anti-Semitism”.
He said he recognises that anti-Semitism has surfaced within the party and they have been “too slow” in dealing with cases.
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MPs from both Labour and the Conservative party joined the Jewish Board of Deputies and the Jewish Leadership Council with “Enough is Enough” banners in Parliament Square last night to pressure Mr Corbyn into doing more to tackle anti-Jewish sentiment.
Hours before the rally, a Momentum branch in Merton was forced to expel one of its members after they wrote a post on Facebook post saying “What exactly is anti-Semitic about ‘that mural, in any case?”
They also described the outcry over the mural a “smoke screen”.
Jackie Schneider wrote on the Merton Facebook page that the person had been referred to a complaints procedure and “will no longer be a member of Momentum”.
Today a key ally of Mr Corbyn admitted Labour has taken too long to stamp out antisemitism in the party.
Shadow business secretary Rebecca Long-Bailey said it was imperative for the party to urgently address the problem to ensure that the Jewish community felt welcome.
She said: “Jeremy has always been a militant opponent of antisemitism, but too often the issue has been dismissed as a few bad apples when we need to take very serious root and branch action, to root out the cause of the problem.”
Labour will now draw up educational programmes for all members to better inform them on what constitutes anti-Jewish behaviour.@KateProctorES