Chuka Umunna: Independent MPs have 'progressive values' with 'huge resonance within the Jewish community'

Chuka Umunna has insisted the two main political parties are “utterly broken and past their sell-by dates” after telling the JC that his own new group offers “progressive values which have huge resonance within the Jewish community”.

The ex-Labour MP, who last week became spokesman of The Independent Group (TIG) of breakaway parliamentarians, said neither the Conservative Party nor his own former party had any “authority whatsoever” to lecture one another on the evils of antisemitism or Islamophobia within their ranks.

Speaking exclusively to the JC, Mr Umunna rounded on former Labour colleagues who have failed to publicly condemn Jew-hatred in Jeremy Corbyn’s party. “The reason I have been so outspoken on antisemitism is that racism is racism — and my family have been victims of it.

“What has been so disappointing is that people who I thought were good, decent, principled people have sat on their hands and adopted public silence on the issue — while privately sending messages to Jewish MPs.

“They have not been prepared to put their money where their mouths are when it comes to their so-called anti-racist principles. It is so disheartening and so disappointing.”

When asked about the failure of BAME MPs such as Diane Abbott and Dawn Butler to speak out more vocally both on antisemitism or the regular jibes directed at Mr Umunna himself suggesting he was a “coconut” or an “uncle Tom”, he said: “They are in complete denial.

"It may be Jewish people who are the target of racism by some in society — but it will be black people next, it always has been. That’s why I think the denial has been so shameful.

“If you can’t recognise this is an institutional problem you are going to be completely incapable of dealing with it and rooting it out.”

Mr Umunna said he gave “full credit” to deputy Labour leader Tom Watson for trying to organise a rebellion of MPs.

“Tom has shown good leadership on our departure and on the antisemitism issue,” he said.

But of his attempt to challenge Mr Corbyn’s leadership, he added: “By all means give it a try, but it’s been tried before and it’s failed.

"The reason being that the Labour Party we once knew has ceased to exist. The leadership, the general secretaryship… the key party figures in the machine are all of the hard left now. Even if Jeremy were to step down, the hard left own the organisation now. You are not going to get it back because it’s gone.”

But the Streatham MP — who has confirmed that TIG are preparing to become a fully-fledged party ready to field candidates at the next general election — is equally scathing of the Conservative Party’s record on racism.

He argued: “They have always been institutionally racist. They have no authority whatsoever to lecture any other party on these issues.

“They reinstated a councillor in Pendle recently so they could take control, who had been pretty racist in my view.

“But Labour can’t lecture anyone on Islamophobia so long as antisemitism is not dealt with — and the Tories can’t lecture Labour on antisemitism so long as Islamophobia is not dealt with. They are both broken. They are utterly broken and past their sell-by dates. We need something new.”

Mr Umunna was keen not to dwell on the “backward looking” Labour and Tory parties — one of which he says is “looking to the 1970s for solutions”, while the other wants to “recreate the Britain of the 1950s”.

TIG, which now has eight former Labour MPs and three ex-Tories, are ready to set out six key values they have agreed on which, he suggests, are “distinctive and different from those of the left and right-wing”.

A major campaign setting out these values will begin on Friday.

He claimed the group were “more diverse” than any other in the Commons, with a former GP, teacher, solicitor, social worker and television presenter in their ranks.

They were brought together “fighting against a Tory hard-Brexit” and discovered they shared similar values.

He said the TIG collective realised they “have so much more in common with each other than we do with the strict socialists that have taken over Labour Party and the kind of nationalistic Trumpian actors from the ERG that have taken over the Tories”.

One of these “progressive values” is that “individual freedom essentially depends upon society providing people with a platform to enjoy their freedom, through education, through a decent infrastructure, through a decent health service”.

A second value, which the MP said was “not appreciated so much on the left” is the idea of “reciprocity” — that “you can’t just take from the system, you have to contribute.”

Mr Umunna added: “The Labour perspective is often very preoccupied with either the super-rich or those who don’t have work — but doesn’t have nearly enough to say to those who do have work, on incomes that may not mean they get benefits or tax credits, but are not well off people.”

TIG values will also stress the “role played by the family and by community in society”, he said, adding: “I speak from experience. As two working parents, it’s very difficult.”

Then, said Mr Umunna, there was TIG’s “fundamental belief in parliamentary democracy — you can’t run government by the mob and whoever shouts louder on Twitter, or by direct action.”

He said: “Part of the problem with Labour… you have a leadership who don’t really care about Parliament.”

Mr Umunna stressed the “unapologetically pro-European” values of his new group.

“We are absolutely clear we will do what it takes to defend our country and to make the right decisions. We are pro-West, and we are not anti-liberal. We believe in Nato. You will not see members of our group parroting propaganda of states hostile to the UK like the leadership of Labour.”

Also at the heart of TIG’s principles is more regional power. “We do far too much centrally in Westminster,” said Mr Umunna.

“We should give the regions much more power. Personally I think we should have more of a German federal model.”

Mr Umunna was well aware of the criticisms the TIG project has already begun to face — as an SDP mark II or an attempt to revive Tony Blair’s New Labour.

“People try to compare us to the SDP in the 1980s — but that’s not appropriate. Those were establishment figures. We are a group of 11 individuals from varied backgrounds.”

Mr Blair, he said, had no idea about the TIG until they announced they were quitting Labour at a dramatic press conference on February 18.

“We are not defined by the 1990s or by other party leaders,” he added. “We are our own people now — that’s incredibly liberating.”

Bu Mr Umunna admitted he was under no illusion that some, if not all, of the group risk losing their parliamentary seats were there to be a general election.

“What we’ve done may mean we are not MPs after the next general election. It’s a big risk. But we are all prepared to lose our jobs for our values and our principles and what we think is best for Britain.”