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| Version 1 | Version 2 |
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| Justin Welby backs chief rabbi after Labour antisemitism remarks | Justin Welby backs chief rabbi after Labour antisemitism remarks |
| (about 3 hours later) | |
| Archbishop says Ephraim Mirvis’s comments highlight fear felt by many British Jews | Archbishop says Ephraim Mirvis’s comments highlight fear felt by many British Jews |
| The archbishop of Canterbury has in effect backed the chief rabbi’s comments on the Labour leadership’s record on antisemitism with a tweet highlighting the “deep sense of insecurity and fear felt by many British Jews”. | The archbishop of Canterbury has in effect backed the chief rabbi’s comments on the Labour leadership’s record on antisemitism with a tweet highlighting the “deep sense of insecurity and fear felt by many British Jews”. |
| Justin Welby does not explicitly refer to the Labour party, but his intervention a few hours after the chief rabbi’s excoriating public criticism of Jeremy Corbyn is significant. | Justin Welby does not explicitly refer to the Labour party, but his intervention a few hours after the chief rabbi’s excoriating public criticism of Jeremy Corbyn is significant. |
| In an article in the Times, Ephraim Mirvis, Britain’s most senior Jewish leader, accused Corbyn of allowing a “poison sanctioned from the top” to take root in the party, saying the way the Labour leadership had dealt with anti-Jewish racism was “incompatible with the British values of which we are so proud – of dignity and respect for all people”. | In an article in the Times, Ephraim Mirvis, Britain’s most senior Jewish leader, accused Corbyn of allowing a “poison sanctioned from the top” to take root in the party, saying the way the Labour leadership had dealt with anti-Jewish racism was “incompatible with the British values of which we are so proud – of dignity and respect for all people”. |
| Welby posted on Twitter: “That the chief rabbi should be compelled to make such an unprecedented statement at this time ought to alert us to the deep sense of insecurity and fear felt by many British Jews. They should be able to live in accordance with their beliefs and freely express their culture and faith.” | |
| Acknowledging the Church of England’s own history of antisemitism – the subject of a major report last week – Welby continued: “None of us can afford to be complacent. Voicing words that commit to a stand against antisemitism requires a corresponding effort in visible action.” | Acknowledging the Church of England’s own history of antisemitism – the subject of a major report last week – Welby continued: “None of us can afford to be complacent. Voicing words that commit to a stand against antisemitism requires a corresponding effort in visible action.” |
| The chief rabbi’s comments were also supported by the rabbi Julia Neuberger, a crossbench peer, who said the Jewish community had been gripped by anxiety. | |
| Speaking on BBC Radio 4’s Today programme, Lady Neuberger said that under Corbyn’s leadership “there has been this insidious antisemitic tone to quite a lot of what’s happened and an unwillingness to really face it”. | |
| She added: “If they’re not willing to tackle that, if they’re not willing to apologise for it, if they’re not willing to sympathise, then something is going very wrong. | She added: “If they’re not willing to tackle that, if they’re not willing to apologise for it, if they’re not willing to sympathise, then something is going very wrong. |
| “A political party where some of its members leave because of antisemitic taunting, which still cannot deal with it, makes people feel very uncomfortable.” | “A political party where some of its members leave because of antisemitic taunting, which still cannot deal with it, makes people feel very uncomfortable.” |
| Britain was still “a very good place to live as a Jew”, she added. “But, and it’s an important but, I think what people are feeling is that that is shifting.” If a Corbyn government was elected, “then I think this comfortable place to live may feel less comfortable”. | Britain was still “a very good place to live as a Jew”, she added. “But, and it’s an important but, I think what people are feeling is that that is shifting.” If a Corbyn government was elected, “then I think this comfortable place to live may feel less comfortable”. |
| Alf Dubs, a Labour peer who came to the UK as a child and refugee in 1939, said Labour was “moving forward” on antisemitism. “Labour has been much too slow in getting to grips with this … but we’re getting there,” he told the Today programme. | |
| There had been “quite a big push” to deal with cases of alleged antisemitism within the party, he added, while acknowledging that Labour’s record in recent years had been “murky”. | There had been “quite a big push” to deal with cases of alleged antisemitism within the party, he added, while acknowledging that Labour’s record in recent years had been “murky”. |
| Corbyn was not antisemitic, “even though under his leadership things should have been dealt with faster”. British Jews “do not have to fear” a Corbyn-led government, he said. | Corbyn was not antisemitic, “even though under his leadership things should have been dealt with faster”. British Jews “do not have to fear” a Corbyn-led government, he said. |
| Last month, Jonathan Romain, a senior rabbi in Maidenhead, wrote to all 823 families in his congregation suggesting that “a Corbyn-led government would pose a danger to Jewish life as we know it”. | Last month, Jonathan Romain, a senior rabbi in Maidenhead, wrote to all 823 families in his congregation suggesting that “a Corbyn-led government would pose a danger to Jewish life as we know it”. |
| Romain, the author of The Jews of England and a former chair of the Movement for Reform Judaism, added: “I am therefore suggesting we should each put aside all other considerations and vote for whichever party is most likely to defeat Labour in whatever constituency we are in – even if we would never normally vote for that party.” | Romain, the author of The Jews of England and a former chair of the Movement for Reform Judaism, added: “I am therefore suggesting we should each put aside all other considerations and vote for whichever party is most likely to defeat Labour in whatever constituency we are in – even if we would never normally vote for that party.” |
| In response to the chief rabbi’s comments, a spokesman for the Muslim Council of Britain said: “Today’s statement by the chief rabbi highlights the real fear many British Jews have, regarding the unacceptable presence of antisemitism in Britain and in politics today. | |
| “Racism, wherever it comes from – whether from the left or the right – is unacceptable and not enough is being done. We agree with the chief rabbi’s observation that ‘some politicians have shown courage but too many have sat silent’. | |
| However, he also said: “As a faith community, we commonly are threatened by Islamophobia. This is an issue that is particularly acute in the Conservative party, who have approached Islamophobia with denial, dismissal and deceit. | |
| “It is abundantly clear to many Muslims that the Conservative party tolerate Islamophobia, allow it to fester in society and fail to put in place the measures necessary to root out this type of racism. It is as if the Conservative party has a blind spot for this type of racism.” |