Political shakeup as Brexit closes in

LONDON — Seven British lawmakers quit the main opposition Labor Party on Monday over its approach to issues including Brexit and anti-Semitism — the biggest shakeup in years for one of Britain’s major political parties.

The announcement ripped open a long-simmering rift between socialists and centrists in the party, which sees itself as the representative of Britain’s working class. It’s also the latest fallout from Britain’s decision to leave the European Union, which has split both of the country’s two main parties — Conservatives and Labor — into pro-Brexit and pro-EU camps.

Many Labor lawmakers have been unhappy with the party’s direction under leader Jeremy Corbyn, a veteran socialist who took charge in 2015 with strong grass-roots backing. They accuse Corbyn of mounting a weak opposition to Conservative Prime Minister Theresa May’s plans for leaving the EU — which is due on March 29 — and of failing to stamp out a vein of anti-Semitism in the party.

The splitters make up a small fraction of Labor’s 256 lawmakers, or of the 650 total members of Parliament. But this is the biggest split in the Labor party since four senior members quit in 1981 to form the Social Democratic Party.

Labor has been riven by allegations that the party has become hostile to Jews under Corbyn, a longtime supporter of the Palestinians.