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Don’t fear antisemitism creeping back to Labour

June 27, 2024 08:16
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Harold Wilson (Photo by Michael Stroud/Daily Express/Hulton Archive/Getty Images)
3 min read

Despite years of Labour activism, in 2019 I felt unable to knock on a single door to encourage people to vote for the party.

In his four years at the helm, Jeremy Corbyn presided over a toxic culture of anti-Zionist antisemitism and the abandonment of Labour’s proud internationalist tradition. As the Jewish community and the British people at large recognised, Corbyn could not be trusted to protect our country and uphold its values.

Given this record, I understand why – as the Jewish Chronicle’s recent focus group in Bury found – many Jews still remain concerned about antisemitism creeping back into the party.

But I am certain that Keir Starmer can be trusted to be utterly vigilant in stamping out any last vestiges of Jew-hate. At any general election, the opposition leader’s promises largely have to be taken on trust. We do, though, have one crucial factor on which we can judge them: How they have led their parties. And Keir’s record since taking Labour’s helm four years ago is both impressive and hugely reassuring.