Hard-left activists seize control of panel which rules on bullying and racism in Labour in fresh victory for Corbyn
Momentum supporter Christine Shawcroft is now the party's disciplinary boss
JEREMY CORBYN’S hard-left backers today seized control of the body that investigates racism, bullying and sexual harassment in Labour.
Christine Shawcroft, a Momentum supporter once suspended by the party, took over as Labour’s disciplinary chief as pro-Corbyn followers voted to oust veteran chair Ann Black.
Ms Shawcroft was temporarily suspended in 2015 for supporting the disgraced mayor of Tower Hamlets, Luthfur Rahman.
The coup is the first show of strength by Momentum - Jeremy Corbyn’s standing army - since his supporters seized control of Labour’s ruling NEC body on Monday.
And the move immediately sparked fresh fears of a cull of moderate Labour MPs and members by Corbyn supporters.
Momentum was set up as a grassroots movement backing Jeremy Corbyn after he won the Labour leadership in 2015.
On Monday, Momentum founder Jon Lansman and two others from the group won slots on Labour’s NEC - giving Corbynites the balance of power on the body that sets policies and rules.
Moderate MPs reacted in horror and vowed to stand as independents in the Commons if threatened with de-selection in the run-up to the next election.
Speaking today, Stephanie Lloyd of the centrist Labour group Progress said: “Targeting Ann Black shows the contempt the Momentum-left have for party democracy when things do not go their way.”
Ms Shawcroft was suspended by Labour in 2015 after echoing Ken Livingstone in her public support for Mr Rahman.
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She said the temporary suspension was a “travesty, an injustice and miscarriage of justice”.
Ann Black in November spoke of the importance of deciding long-standing abuse cases, notably anti-Semitic ones.
She said: “Anyone who thinks these cases are trivial should read the obscene, racist, misogynistic, homophobic and anti-semitic sewage which we have to wade through.”