Jewish Labour Movement: Statement on Labour's EHRC Action Plan

 

The Labour Party has finally published the long awaited action plan to eradicate antisemitism, it's enablers and deniers from their ranks. Sir Keir Starmer and Angela Rayner made it quite clear in their introduction that:

The Equality and Human Rights Commission report on antisemitism in the Labour Party is incredibly difficult reading for everyone who loves our Party and wants it to be a force for good. But its findings were clear and stark: the Labour Party breached the Equality Act 2010 in terms of unlawful harassment and indirect discrimination towards our Jewish members. 

We failed the Jewish community, our members, our supporters and the country. That is why we must act to drive antisemitism out of our Party and change the processes, structures and the culture of the Party to ensure Jewish people feel safe to return to their political home. 

That requires more than just words. It requires action. The Action Plan for Driving out Antisemitism from the Labour Party published today sets out concrete steps and a timetable to do this.

The Jewish Labour Movement response:

Today the Labour Party has published their Action Plan based on the EHRC's report into antisemitism in the Party. This significant document that lays out how the Labour Party is going to implement the EHRC's recommendations. It includes an independent complaints process for antisemitism and discrimination based on all protected characteristics, education and training and monitoring the progress the Party. You can read the full Action Plan here. 

Formal Statement:

Jewish Labour members want to see Keir Starmer and Angela Rayner continue to set out clear and decisive actions in tackling anti-Jewish racism within our Party.

Many of the steps set out in this Action Plan are those that JLM has been asking the Party to implement for years. We are disappointed that it took the intervention of the EHRC to secure them, but pleased that we now have a new leadership committed to act.

As the centenary year of our affiliation to the Labour Party draws to an end, we will continue to play our part in being a loyal but critical friend to the Labour Party in resolving these challenges. Our expectations will be however, as they always have been, for strong actions to follow positive words.

Whilst we welcome the reform of processes, by itself it is not enough. Recent events have shown a toxic culture persists in many parts of the Party. Solving this is as essential as introducing an independent disciplinary process.

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Further information: jewishlabour.uk