Politics
Board urges Green Party to improve candidate vetting
The Jewish communal group said the left-wing party risked sinking into a ‘cesspit’ of racism
May 30, 2024 13:44
The Jewish communal group said the left-wing party risked sinking into a ‘cesspit’ of racism
May 30, 2024 13:44The Board of Deputies has urged the Green Party to improve its vetting procedures after several parliamentary candidates were revealed to have shared antisemitic and conspiratorial posts online.
In the past weeks, candidates for the left-wing party were exposed as having suggested Israel may have paid Hamas to commit the October 7 attack, shared a video that claimed Zionists will “drink the blood” of Palestinians, and shared a post compared Israelis to Nazis.
Speaking to The i, Green Party co-leader Carla Denyer said she was concerned about the rise of antisemitism and Islamophobia nationally but would not comment on individual cases.
“We are increasingly concerned about the Green Party’s lack of due diligence around their candidates,” a Board spokesman told The i.
"Through their social media activity, some candidates appear to sympathise with the crudest antisemitic slurs.
"If the Green Party does not start showing some principle on this, it risks its wider agenda sinking into a growing cesspit of racism.”
The demand comes a day after the JC reported that the Green Party’s candidate for the West Midlands seat of Aldridge-Brownhills, Joe Belcher, had suggested the Israeli government may have paid Hamas to commit the October 7 attack so they could build a canal through Gaza.
Writing on X/Twitter last November, Belcher wrote: "Why would Hamas commanders order Oct 7 to then have their territory destroyed and their people killed or displaced from Gaza?” he asked.
"For money? If so, who offered them this money? The Israel government?”
Belcher continued: “It's certainly convenient now that Israel can attempt to justify wiping out Palestinians from Gaza and to claim Gaza as Israel.
“Why would they do that? To claim rights over the oil and gas reserves in Gazan waters and to clear the way to create the Ben Gurion Canal through Gaza?”
The conspiracy theory posts have come to light after Naseem Talukdar, who was standing for the left-wing party in Bristol East, was forced to step down after the JC revealed that he had shared a post comparing Israelis to Nazis.
The Bristol East candidate had circulated photographs comparing Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu with Adolf Hiter.
The images were captioned, “it’s becoming REALLY hard to spot the difference” and, “the past becomes the present”.
Elizabeth Waight, who is standing for the Greens in Bethnal Green and Stepney, meanwhile posted a video on Instagram on March 27 in which a woman said: “What’s left for the Zionists [is] to eat the flesh and drink the blood of the Palestinians… I think this will happen soon.”
The party’s Chingford and Wood Green candidate Chris Brody has uploaded links to an article that suggested that the 9/11 and October 7 terror attacks were “false flag operations executed to open the path toward more slaughter and mayhem”.
Speaking to The i, Denyer said she would avoid intervening directly over antisemitism complaints after the Labour Party was criticised over such a practice by the Equality and Human Rights Commision.
“I’m very conscious of the rise in antisemitism and Islamophobia across UK society,” she said.
"It is really concerning and it has no place in politics. I’m very conscious of the level of hurt felt by some Jewish communities across the country who feel unsafe by comments that have been made.
“And I want to be clear that the Green Party takes all allegations of antisemitism and all racism very seriously. I have faith in our internal processes to investigate those.
“I’m not personally involved in those processes and I think that’s quite correct.”
A Green Party spokesperson said regarding Belcher: "The Green Party utterly condemns and is committed to confronting antisemitism.
"Allegations of antisemitism will always be carefully considered using our robust internal disciplinary procedures. It would be inappropriate for us to comment further on the examples raised."