Bradford West MP Naz Shah has backed calls for Ken Livingstone to be expelled from the Labour Party after he repeated claims that Hitler supported Zionism in the 1930s.
Shah was herself suspended last year after an allegedly anti-semitic social media post and has since been “learning” about Judaism and Israel.
The MP has now joined more than 100 other parliamentarians in signing a Jewish Labour Movement letter in condemnation of the decision this week not to expel the pro-Palestinian Livingstone, and rather to impose a further one year suspension.
In response to a tweet from London mayor Sadiq Khan (who is also in favour of expelling Livingstone) describing the failure to expel as “deeply disappointing”, Shah wrote: “Completely agree with @mayoroflondon, we all make mistakes, leadership is about learning from them #antisemitism.”
The Jewish Labour Movement letter states:
“We are former and current Labour members and supporters, from across the Jewish community and all sides of the party. We may disagree on policy, both domestic and international, but we are united by our unwavering commitment to anti-racism.
“Last night we collectively felt a sense of disgust and frustration at the decision by the NCC to not expel Ken Livingstone from the party.
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“Livingstone’s comments betray a party that was founded on the values of equality and inclusivity. His history of inflammatory remarks against our community, be it his suggestions that our community’s ‘wealth’ determines our vote, or his recent smears of victims of the Holocaust, surely have no place in a progressive party.
“Last night’s decision to allow him to remain a member presents us with an immediate dilemma about our future in the party. Despite pledges of ‘zero tolerance’ on anti-Semitism, Labour has been found wanting when it truly mattered.
“The Jewish community has a proud history with Labour, but this decision has thrown its future into jeopardy. We are sick of the complacency shown towards the prejudice we face. Enough is enough.
“We fully support the Jewish Labour Movement’s proposal to initiate a debate at Labour Party Conference in September 2017 promoting the expulsion of Mr Livingstone from the Labour Party. We also support calls for an immediate review of the decision by the NEC.
“Lastly, we would like to thank those in the Labour Party who have offered us messages of solidarity, and would urge those who disagree with this decision to call on their representatives to speak out against it publicly.”
