Emily Thornberry urges Labour to fully adopt international anti-Semitism definition
3 min read
Emily Thornberry has upped the pressure on Labour's ruling body to fully adopt an internationally-agreed definition of anti-Semitism, as she rejected claims it would stifle criticism of Israel.
The Shadow Foreign Secretary said she had read "a number of legal advices" that made it clear using the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) definition of anti-Jewish abuse would not stop legitimate criticism of the Israeli government's actions.
Labour's ruling National Executive Committee will meet this week to decide whether or not to incorporate IHRA and its examples of anti-Semitism into a new code of conduct.
The party sparked a furious backlash from Jewish community groups and a string of its own MPs over the summer by omitting some of the examples.
But Ms Thornberry told the Financial Times: "My view is that we should adopt the full definition with the examples...
"I understand why people looked at some of the examples and thought, ‘Hang on a minute, how can we implement this? Might it mean that people can’t criticise the state of Israel?’ My interpretation is that clearly, we can. I’ve read a number of legal advices that say that we can."
She added: "It’s our duty, in my view, as the Labour party, to criticise the Netanyahu government and what the Netanyahu government is doing to Israel — let alone what it’s doing to the Palestinians."
Ms Thornberry's intervention came as Labour former Prime Minister Gordon Brown urged the NEC to "unanimously, unequivocally and immediately" take on the IHRA definition to undo the "hurt" caused to the Jewish community.
"I tell you: fighting racism is not in competition with our values. It's the very foundation of our values," he told the Jewish Labour Movement's conference.
He also warned against any move to "amend it, change it, [or] delete parts", warning that a watered-down version of the definition would "destroy the unanimity that is essential to fight anti-Semitism".
Shadow Chancellor John McDonnell has hinted that a compromise on the definition is on the cards, predicting an "historic agreement" when Labour's ruling body meets this week.
"Let me put it as straightforwardly as I can - I think all sides will be satisfied with the proposals that are being discussed," he told the BBC.
But veteran MP Margaret Hodge - who faced a party probe after calling Jeremy Corbyn an "anti-semite and a racist" in a heated Commons clash - said she believed the Labour leader himself was "the problem" and warned that adopting the international definition would not be enough to restore Jewish people's faith in Labour.
"It might have been enough three months ago, it might have just enabled us all to start talking to each other and bring trust again, but I think that moment has passed," she said.
The Barking MP added: "The problem is that he is the problem. The party is bigger than Corbyn. Our party has been around for over 100 years, Corbyn has only been there for three – three damaging years."
On Sunday Mr Corbyn won the backing of a coalition of Arab members of Israel’s parliament.
The 13 members of the Knesset's Joint List told the Guardian: "We stand in solidarity with Jeremy Corbyn and we recognise him as a principled leftist leader who aspires for peace and justice and is opposed to all forms of racism, whether directed at Jews, Palestinians or any other group."
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