Sheer chutzpah

There are a number of words which could accurately describe the High Holy Days message from Jeremy Corbyn. The politest is chutzpah.

The Labour leader writes: “As we enter the new year of 5779 it is a difficult time for many of Britain’s Jewish communities.”

It is often said of Mr Corbyn that the most marked characteristic of his four decades in politics is that there has not been a single moment of self-reflection — that he has at no point opened his mind, let alone changed it.

That a man believed to be personally antisemitic by over 85 per cent of British Jews could put his name to such a sentence confirms this ultimate irony about Mr Corbyn. For a man who parades his supposed humility as his greatest virtue, the complete inability to consider that he may be in any way responsible for this “difficult time” for British Jews is startling but telling.

He then has the gall to tell us that “Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur allow time to reflect, learn and confront those challenges”, when it is clear that Mr Corbyn is neither able to nor interested in doing any of that. It is customary at this time of year to end with an upbeat thought.

But while Mr Corbyn remains our most likely next Prime Minister, that is simply inappropriate.

Saving a life

It is incredible to think that twenty five years have passed since the Sue Harris Campaign was launched.

Its successor, the Sue Harris Trust, is a beacon of hope that emerged from a personal tragedy.

But vital as its work remains, its register needs constant updating.

This month is also Blood Cancer Awareness Month.

We urge younger readers to register at sueharristrust.org and, in doing so, possibly save a life.