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| Labour's Rebecca Long-Bailey sacked after sharing article including 'antisemitic conspiracy theory' - live | |
| (32 minutes later) | |
| Shadow education secretary told to step down from shadow cabinet after sharing article on Twitter | Shadow education secretary told to step down from shadow cabinet after sharing article on Twitter |
| These are from two of the MPs who left Labour when Jeremy Corbyn was leader in part because of his record on antisemitism. They are now both, of course, ex-MPs. | |
| From Mike Gapes | |
| From Joan Ryan | |
| And this is from John Mann, who was also strongly critical of the party’s record on antisemitism when he was an MP and Corbyn was leader. Mann now sits as an independent peer in the House of Lords. | |
| Dame Margaret Hodge, the Labour MP who frequently accused Jeremy Corbyn of being too tolerant on antisemitism, has welcomed the sacking of Rebecca Long-Bailey. | |
| This is from the Commons all-party parliamentary group on antisemitism, and its co-chairs, Labour’s Catherine McKinnell and the Conservative Andrew Percy. | |
| From the BBC’s Iain Watson | |
| These are from Jon Lansman, the founder of Momentum, the pro-Corbyn group in the Labour party, which backed Rebecca Long-Bailey for the leadership. | |
| The FT’s Jim Pickard says Rebecca Long-Bailey may have read a version of the Maxine Peake interview before it was amended by the Independent. | |
| A reader sent me a link to the original. | |
| Sir Keir Starmer said Rebecca Long-Bailey’s decision to share the Independent article undermined his attempts to rebuild relations with the Jewish community, speaking to political journalists in Scotland. | |
| During a short online press conference on Thursday afternoon, arranged to coincide to a “town hall” hustings earlier with Scottish voters, Starmer was asked whether Long-Bailey had admitted she had made a mistake retweeting the Independent interview with Maxine Peak, and had stood down willingly. | |
| Starmer said: | |
| He refused to comment when asked whether he believed his former education spokeswoman was antisemitic, quoting instead his previous statement. | |
| Asked again whether he thought Long-Bailey was antisemitic, he said it was because the Peake interview contained antisemitic conspiracy theories: | |
| Commenting on Rebecca Long-Bailey’s sacking, Jonathan Goldstein, chair of the Jewish Leadership Council, said: | Commenting on Rebecca Long-Bailey’s sacking, Jonathan Goldstein, chair of the Jewish Leadership Council, said: |
| John McDonnell, shadow chancellor when Jeremy Corbyn was Labour leader, says Rebecca Long-Bailey should not have been sacked. He says it has always been accepted that criticising the activities of Israel is not antisemitism. | John McDonnell, shadow chancellor when Jeremy Corbyn was Labour leader, says Rebecca Long-Bailey should not have been sacked. He says it has always been accepted that criticising the activities of Israel is not antisemitism. |
| Long-Bailey used to work in McDonnell’s shadow Treasury team and he was a strong supporter of her candidature for the Labour leadership. | Long-Bailey used to work in McDonnell’s shadow Treasury team and he was a strong supporter of her candidature for the Labour leadership. |
| Robert Halfon, the Tory MP and a strong supporter of “blue collar conservatism” (ie, the belief that the party has make a strong appeal to the working class), thinks that by sacking Rebecca Long-Bailey, Sir Keir Starmer has shown he is “a force to be reckoned with”. | Robert Halfon, the Tory MP and a strong supporter of “blue collar conservatism” (ie, the belief that the party has make a strong appeal to the working class), thinks that by sacking Rebecca Long-Bailey, Sir Keir Starmer has shown he is “a force to be reckoned with”. |
| Rebecca Long-Bailey has posted a thread on Twitter giving her account of the events leading up to her sacking as shadow education secretary. Here are the main points. | Rebecca Long-Bailey has posted a thread on Twitter giving her account of the events leading up to her sacking as shadow education secretary. Here are the main points. |
| Long-Bailey claims Sir Keir Starmer’s office originally approved the tweet she issued clarifying her original endorsement of the Maxine Peak interview. This is significant because it was in response to that clarification tweet that the Board of Deputies of British Jews suggested she should be sacked. | Long-Bailey claims Sir Keir Starmer’s office originally approved the tweet she issued clarifying her original endorsement of the Maxine Peak interview. This is significant because it was in response to that clarification tweet that the Board of Deputies of British Jews suggested she should be sacked. |
| She suggests that Starmer’s office subsequently changed its mind, and demanded the withdrawal of the original tweet. She said she was not willing to do that without being allowed to issue a press statement explaining the clarification. | She suggests that Starmer’s office subsequently changed its mind, and demanded the withdrawal of the original tweet. She said she was not willing to do that without being allowed to issue a press statement explaining the clarification. |
| She says Starmer refused to discuss the matter with her in person before she was dismissed. | She says Starmer refused to discuss the matter with her in person before she was dismissed. |
| She says she intends to continuing supporting the Labour party under Starmer’s leadership. | She says she intends to continuing supporting the Labour party under Starmer’s leadership. |
| Here are the tweets. | Here are the tweets. |
| And here is the full statement from the Jewish Labour Movement. | And here is the full statement from the Jewish Labour Movement. |
| The Jewish Labour Movement has welcomed Rebecca Long-Bailey’s sacking, Sky’s Aubrey Allegretti reports. | The Jewish Labour Movement has welcomed Rebecca Long-Bailey’s sacking, Sky’s Aubrey Allegretti reports. |
| This is from Matt Zarb-Cousin, who worked as a media adviser first for Jeremy Corbyn when he was Labour leader and then for Rebecca Long-Bailey when she was running for leader (effectively as the candidate of the Corbynite left). Zarb-Cousin is referring to Sir Keir Starmer’s refusal earlier to call for Robert Jenrick to be sacked. (See 11.41am.) | This is from Matt Zarb-Cousin, who worked as a media adviser first for Jeremy Corbyn when he was Labour leader and then for Rebecca Long-Bailey when she was running for leader (effectively as the candidate of the Corbynite left). Zarb-Cousin is referring to Sir Keir Starmer’s refusal earlier to call for Robert Jenrick to be sacked. (See 11.41am.) |
| From the Sunday Times’ Gabriel Pogrund | From the Sunday Times’ Gabriel Pogrund |
| This is from Marie van der Zyl, president of the Board of Deputies of British Jews, welcoming the sacking of Rebecca Long-Bailey. | This is from Marie van der Zyl, president of the Board of Deputies of British Jews, welcoming the sacking of Rebecca Long-Bailey. |
| Here is the passage in the Independent’s interview with Maxine Peake referred to in the Labour statement (see 3.11pm) referencing an “antisemitic conspiracy theory”. | Here is the passage in the Independent’s interview with Maxine Peake referred to in the Labour statement (see 3.11pm) referencing an “antisemitic conspiracy theory”. |
| As my colleague Peter Walker has reported (see 2.47pm), Rebecca Long-Bailey subsequently posted a tweet saying her tweet sharing the interview was not intended to be an endorsement of everything in it. But the president of the Board of Deputies of British Jews said it was “pathetic” that she had not withdrawn the original tweet and apologised. | As my colleague Peter Walker has reported (see 2.47pm), Rebecca Long-Bailey subsequently posted a tweet saying her tweet sharing the interview was not intended to be an endorsement of everything in it. But the president of the Board of Deputies of British Jews said it was “pathetic” that she had not withdrawn the original tweet and apologised. |