Britain: Corbyn's Bid To Be Restored As Labour MP Rejected

By Arutz-7
Posted on 01/25/22 | News Source: Arutz-7

Former British Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn’s bid to be restored as a party MP was voted down on Tuesday by Labour’s ruling body.

Left-wing members of Labour’s National Executive Committee (NEC) engineered a motion to have the parliamentary whip reinstated to the former party leader, but it was voted down, The Independent reported.

Corbyn, who has been sitting as an independent MP since October 2020, thanked his supporters as he reacted to the result.

“Today’s NEC vote and Keir Starmer’s ongoing decision to bar me from sitting as a Labour MP is disappointing,” he tweeted.

“I am grateful for and humbled by the support I've received, especially from my Islington North constituents. The struggle for peace, justice and sustainability goes on,” added Corbyn.

Corbyn was suspended from Labour following the publication of a report compiled by the Equality and Human Rights Commission which found numerous cases where the party leadership under Corbyn underplayed, belittled or ignored complaints by Jewish members, and sometimes actively interfered to support political allies.

He was reinstated to Labour after appearing to apologize for belittling the report, but his successor as Labour leader, Keir Starmer, said he would deny Corbyn the party whip even after he was reinstated as a party member.

The former Labour leader had faced ongoing accusations of anti-Semitism, both over his history of hostility towards Israel and support for anti-Israel terrorist groups, as well as the rise in anti-Jewish rhetoric within the party.

Dozens of Labour members have been suspended over their anti-Semitic statements in recent years, while the party has been criticized for its failure to deal with the anti-Semitism within it.

Starmer, who became party leader after Corbyn stepped down, apologized shortly after being elected for how the Labour Party has handled anti-Semitism within its ranks and committed to making change.

He later committed to setting up an independent complaints process for anti-Semitism in the party, saying it is “very important to me to seek to address the disgrace of anti-Semitism in our party as soon as possible.”