Labour’s ‘independent’ anti-semitism probe chief has joined party
LABOUR’S review of anti-semitism came under fire last night after its chairman, Shami Chakrabarti, admitted that she had become a party member.
Miss Chakrabarti, former head of human rights group Liberty, was drafted in by the leadership at the height of the row over Ken Livingstone’s Hitler outburst last month.
But launching the review yesterday, she faced questions over her independence after revealing that she had joined the party on the day she was appointed to the role.
Miss Chakrabarti said she wanted to reassure party members she would be ‘working for, and in the best interests of, the Labour Party’ – prompting questions about whether she would be sufficiently critical.
In a second blow, it emerged that one of the inquiry’s vicechairmen, Professor David Feldman, is a supporter of a group of academics which dismissed some of the allegations about Labour and anti-semitism as ‘baseless and disingenuous’.
Professor Feldman, the director of the Pears Institute for the Study of Anti-semitism, who is a signatory to the Independent Jewish Voices group, had ‘distanced himself’ from the statement and disagreed with parts of it, Miss Chakrabarti said.
‘I am completely confident that he approaches this inquiry with an open mind, as do I,’ she said.
She also revealed that Jeremy Corbyn would be expected to give evidence to her inquiry – raising the prospect he could be asked why he said Hezbollah and Hamas were his ‘friends’.
Jewish groups and Tory politicians have called on the Labour leader to distance himself from the terrorist groups because of their explicit anti-semitism. Miss Chakrabarti said her review will not ask for evidence from Mr Livingstone, because he is facing a separate disciplinary investigation that could result in his expulsion from the party.
The ex-London mayor was suspended from the party last month after claiming that Hitler was a ‘Zionist’. He said the Nazi leader backed moving German Jews to Israel ‘before he went mad’.
Nor will Miss Chakrabarti’s review ask for evidence from Bradford West MP Naz Shah. She is also facing a separate disciplinary investigation after it emerged that she had endorsed Jews in Israel being moved to the US in an online post two years ago, before she became an MP.
Yesterday Miss Chakrabarti said her inquiry would look at anti-semitism and other forms of racism, including Islamophobia.
But she rejected suggestions that the probe had been ‘diluted’ by the extension of its remit. Asked whether her party membership would undermine confidence in the inquiry, she said: ‘I consider myself to be independ- ent. I do not think I am less independent for making absolutely clear that I share the values of the Labour Party constitution.’
Her review will make recommendations on setting ‘boundaries of acceptable behaviour and language’ and strengthening how the party deals with racism. The panel will report its findings by the end of June.
Last night Tory MP Oliver Dowden said: ‘Labour’s antisemitism inquiry is rapidly losing all credibility. It now turns out it will be conducted by a Labour member, rushed through in a few weeks and won’t even compel Ken Livingstone to give evidence. It looks like Labour is just trying to sweep its anti-semitism problem under the carpet.’
‘Rapidly losing all credibility’