Sir Keir Starmer has said his party will never take its “foot off the pedal” in the fight against antisemitism, but is is toughening up his calls for Israel’s Rafah offensive to stop.
During a visit on Monday to Chipping Barnet – a swing constituency, where Jews make up 10 per cent of the electorate – Starmer backed shadow foreign secretary David Lammy over his controversial support for the International Criminal Court (ICC) case against Benjamin Netanyahu, Yoav Gallant and Hamas chiefs.
However, the Labour leader, who is odds-on to be the next prime minister, strongly rejected any claim of equivalence between the Israelis and the Hamas, saying: “You’re dealing with terrorists in Hamas and with Israel a state that has got a right to self-defence.”
In his first London constituency visit since the general election was called, Starmer also made a point of criticising ICC prosecutor Karim Khan’s comparison of Hamas and the IRA.
“I don’t think comparisons like that are very helpful at all,” Starmer said.
However, he called on Israel to halt its offensive in Rafah following an airstrike said to have killed 45 civilians.
In apparent recognition of the security challenges face by the UK’s Jewish community, he also pledged to honour the current government’s pledge to grant more than £70 million to the Community Security Trust over the next four years.
“I don’t think things like antisemitism should be dealt with on a party-political basis,” he said. “I think there is a genuine consensus across the parties and I would try to perpetuate this, to say, ‘this is not a political football, this is something we can stand on together’.”
Speaking in the battleground constituency, where Labour needs a 5 per cent swing to win, Starmer explained his position on the ICC case by saying Britain had “signed up” to the international court. “I support the independence of the court… it will be up to the court to make a decision,” he said.
Starmer also rejected the comparison made by Khan last weekend in an interview with the Sunday Times in which the prosecutor drew attention to the fact that Britain had never mounted airstrikes against IRA strongholds such as Belfast’s Falls Road which, like Israel’s strikes on Gaza, would have led to civilian deaths.
“The circumstances are very different, but in the end it will be for the court to look at the material put before it and decide whether it does or does not issue warrants,” said Starmer.
Starmer recalled that he had pledged to eradicate antisemitism in the Labour Party the day he was elected leader, saying his commitment to defeating it there and in society at large remained as strong as ever.
“The fight against antisemitism is never over,” he said. “We’ve been ruthless in the past four years over rooting out antisemitism and changing the Labour Party, but it will never be ‘job done’. We will be as ruthless in government as we have been in opposition, because we will never take our foot off the pedal on antisemitism.”
He pointed out that last year, both he and the then-home secretary Suella Braverman had made speeches at the CST’s annual dinner. That night, he said, many people present told him how important and encouraging it was to have senior figures from both main political parties present.
Asked about the policing of the anti-Israel protests that have taken place across the country since the October 7 massacre, Starmer said it was crucial that those who expressed hatred for Jews or support for terrorism should be arrested and charged:
“I acknowledge that this is really difficult for the police on the ground. On the one hand they need to allow the protests to take place. But on the other, they have to come down very hard, very tough, on the elements that are extremist, that are clearly breaking the law, and are antisemitic.”
But although it might appear that nothing was being done, Starmer said that often arrests were made after an event, officers reviewed video footage and took action later, “so I give them my support as they go about what is a very difficult job.”
He said he was deeply concerned that relations between Britain’s Jewish and Muslim communities had become strained since the October 7 massacre, and that interfaith work which he had supported “didn’t have the strength to withstand the pressures of the last seven months – relationships that I thought were stronger, understanding that I though was deeper, was not as strong or deep as I thought it was”.
But, he went on, “that means we’ve got to redouble our efforts, and I think it’s vital to do so”.
Starmer said that Labour was no longer committed to recognising a Palestinian state immediately on taking office. Nevertheless, he said, “I do think there is a political and moral obligation on an incoming Labour government to play its part in resolving the conflict in the Middle East.
“I personally think that in the last decade or so, political leaders have tended to look away, and that in the past, they have put more political capital into resolving the issues. Over a decade ago there were initiatives being put forward, but these have been lost – and that’s what I mean by turning a page, being prepared to through a sense of duty to play our full part.
“I think for the military the offensive in Rafah has just got to stop, given the circumstances where you you’ve got people who can’t move anywhere, who are now trying to survive safe in places that are designated as safe – that’s exactly why this can’t go ahead, and so my message is, ‘stop’.” Asked whether the consequence might be Hamas staying in power, Starmer said: “What happened overnight was shocking, this was a safe area, and Israel says it was a mistake, but in a sense it was an inevitable consequence of trying to carry out that sort of operation in that kind of space, and therefore I do think the world has to say ‘stop’.”
Meeting Jewish voters before the interview, Starmer’s efforts to fight antisemitism in his party drew praise. Among those he spoke to was Edwin Shuker, who was about to step down as vice president of the Board of Deputies.
He told the JC that Starmer had performed a “miracle”, adding that the members of his synagogue and his colleagues on the Board believed “we’ve got a friend. So long as he’s around, we feel safe”.
