John McDonnell: Labour treatment of Jewish group brutal

Former Shadow Chancellor John McDonnell has accused Labour of treating a Jewish group within the party “brutally”.

Last week a report on Labour’s handling of the anti-Semitism row under Jeremy Corbyn found supporters and critics had used it as a “factional weapon”.

Mr McDonnell claims the report shows the party used its disciplinary procedures to target members of the pro-Corbyn Jewish Voice for Labour (JVL)

He said a disproportionate number of JVL members had been disciplined, suspended and expelled from the party.

Members of the group were 35 times more likely to face anti-Semitism investigations than other, mostly non-Jewish, Labour members, he claimed.

The JVL says it stands for “rights and justice for Jewish people everywhere, and against wrongs and injustice to Palestinians and other oppressed people anywhere.’

Barrister Martin Forde QC was asked by the party to chair an inquiry into the contents and leaking of an internal Labour dossier in 2020.

But Mr Forde concluded factionalism was “endemic” within the party and the issue of anti-Semitism was weaponised by both sides, not just the right.

In a letter to Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer and Labour’s general secretary David Evans, Mr McDonnell said the party needed to be a “broad church with different ideological and policy positions legitimately contained within it”.

The Forde report showed just how far the party’s culture had been and was from this, he argued.

Mr McDonnell said the treatment of JVL and many of its members had been “disregarding, disrespectful, at times uncaring, even brutal, and, some have argued, has amounted to discrimination”. Some of those facing disciplinary action have been accused of supporting groups such as Labour against the witch hunt, which have subsequently been expelled.

But the former shadow chancellor accused the party of refusing to engage with JVL. which he said represented a large number of Jewish Labour members.

JVL was formed in 2017, when Jeremy Corbyn was Labour leader. The group says it opposes “all forms of racism” and “attempts to widen the definition of anti-Semitism beyond its meaning of hostility towards Jews as Jews”.

It has been strongly criticised by other Jewish groups. The much larger Jewish Labour Movement -which has been affiliated to Labour since 1920 – has called its views an “extreme fringe”. Board of Deputies of British Jews president Marie van der Zyl said JVL was “a tiny organisation whose odious views are representative of no one but themselves”.

Mr McDonnell said the Forde report showed the party’s disciplinary procedures had been used to target specific individuals for factional purposes.

The former shadow chancellor called on Sir Keir to address the “injustice meted out to JVL and its members”.

In response, Labour said: “We’re proud of the changes that have been made under Keir Starmer and David Evans’ leadership but there is no room for complacency so we will always look at ways to improve our culture and practice to support all protected characteristics.

Its new independent complaints process would ensure that complaints involving all protected characteristics would be decided “impartially, fairly and rationally”, it added.

Protected characteristics are those which it is against the law to discriminate against someone because of.

They are age; disability; gender reassignment; marriage and civil partnership; pregnancy and maternity; race; religion or belief; sex; and sexual orientation.

Allegations of anti-Semitism in the Labour party dogged much of Jeremy Corbyn’s time as leader, along with criticism of his handling of the issue.

In October 2020 – six months after he stood down – the Equality and Human Rights Commission identified serious failings in leadership and an inadequate process of handling anti-Semitism complaints.

Mr Corbyn said the scale of the problem had been “dramatically overstated” by his opponents “inside and outside the party”.

He was suspended from Labour – and though he was readmitted, he has not regained the parliamentary party’s whip and continues to sit as an independent MP.