AN 860-PAGE dossier concerning anti-Semitism in the Labour Party might never reach the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC).
The internal report, seen by Sky News, uncovers in-fighting in the party, which compromised investigations into incidents of anti-Semitism. The report results from a review of the more than 300 complaints alleging anti-Semitism received between November 2016 and February 2018. It states that investigations were initiated into only 34.
There was a failure to develop “detailed or coherent guidelines for investigating complaints based on social media conduct”, the report says, and a failure to “implement the Macpherson principle of logging and investigating complaints of racism as racism. . .
“At least half” the complaints warranted action, the report states, “many of them in relation to very extreme forms of antisemitism, but were ignored.”
The Head of Disputes, Sam Matthews, is criticised in the report for inaction. But, in a statement to Sky News, he, in turn, criticised “an effort by a disgruntled faction who are floundering in their attempts to blame others in order to distract from matters that will be investigated by the EHRC and the courts. “I hope Keir Starmer will stand by his commitment to undo the damage that they and their supporters have caused.”
Mr Matthews said that he had done his “level best to tackle the poison of anti-Jewish racism which was growing under Jeremy Corbyn’s leadership” (News, 9 April).