Labour faces legal challenge over new rules on anti-Semitism which ‘could let bigots off the hook’
Activists threatened to take Jeremy Corbyn's party to court after bosses approved a controversial new definition of anti-Semitism
JEREMY Corbyn’s Labour was last night facing a humiliating legal challenge after approving a new anti-Semitism code condemned by the Jewish community.
Activists and campaign groups were “examining options” including taking Labour to the European Court of Human Rights.
And the Labour Against Anti-Semitism group said it would be speaking to the Equality and Human Rights Commission.
The extraordinary move came after Labour’s ruling NEC body approved new guidelines that will allow activists to escape punishment even if they compare current Israeli policies to the Nazis.
Chief Rabbi Ephraim Mirvis warned that accepting the code would send an “unprecedented message of contempt” to the Jewish community.
Labour MPs had urged the NEC to accept the widely-recognised 16-point International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance definition of Jew hate.
But Mr Corbyn, Momentum and the GMB union were among those which backed a new version approved by a sub-committee last week – which critically left out 4 IHRA definitions of anti-Semitism.
Critics say the new definition could allow some Labour members currently suspended for anti-semitism BACK IN to the party.
In the charged NEC meeting one member Pete Willsman allegedly told the room: “Some of the people in the Jewish community are Trump fanatics – I’ll take no lectures from them.”
Jeremy Corbyn supported the new code as did Keith Vaz – who told colleagues Ken Livingstone had been treated “very badly” by the party.
The NEC agreed to “further review” the matter.
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But one source told the Jewish Chronicle: “This is utterly pathetic.”
Richard Angell of Progress – the centre-left movement - stormed: “After a two hour discussion, Jeremy Corbyn and the Momentum dominated NEC have agreed to ignore the Jewish community, 68 rabbis, the Labour Jewish Movement and the parliamentary Labour party, endorsed a paper bounced through the last few minutes of a protected sub meeting and offered a sop of a consultation on something that has now been agreed, twice.
“It is utterly pathetic. Labour has brought shame on itself and can no longer call itself an ally to British Jews.”
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