Corbyn must rid Labour of anti-Semites or pay price

God knows they deserve some respite. In Scotland, Labour’s Anas Sarwar and the SNP’s Humza Yousaf have exposed Islamophobia in the country’s political mainstream while the shadow of sectarianism continues to raise its ugly head, however sporadically.

The scenes outside the House of Commons on Monday were on another level again.

Britain’s Jewish community are one of the quietest in the country.

For them to be protesting, so vociferously, in such numbers is a signal that it’s time to sit up and listen to what they are saying.

A signal to most people. But not to Jeremy Corbyn.

It’s not known how close to the demo Corbyn was on Monday. If it was visible to him, though, he should have been there.

He should immediately have walked from his office to persuade protesters that the Labour Party are their natural home. Nose-to-nose confrontation of prejudice is, to Corbyn’s credit, part of his DNA. Human empathy, which he showed plenty of in the wake of the Grenfell tragedy, is also part of his appeal.

So what was it he felt he had to fear in a discussion with protesters?

The accusation that Corbyn himself is anti- Semitic relies on thin circumstantial evidence – which is perhaps why the The Jewish Leadership Council chose some clever wording when it came to laying down their charge on Monday.

Corbyn, they said, had become a figurehead for anti-Semitism. That one is far more difficult for him to deny which, even in the post-Trump age, is a lamentable place for any leader of the Labour Party to be.

Many people have huge difficulties with the actions of the state of Israel.

But they are as much the responsibility of British Jews as the actions of Islamic extremists in Syria are of the Muslim mainstream here. The two can’t be conflated.

Corbyn is going to have to start looking a lot tougher on this issue or he risks losing support, not just from Jews but other religious communities as well.

He could start by speeding up the processes built to root out cranks such as Christine Shawcroft and Ken Livingstone.

There has always been an uneasy relationship in the country between the state and the churches.

But on this Easter Sunday, and in the week of the Passover, a show of tolerance from people of all faiths and none has never felt more necessary.

Corbyn must start looking a lot tougher on this issue or he risks losing support