Jeremy Corbyn ally apologises and agrees to training after 'some Jews are Trump fanatics' rant
3 min read
An ally of Jeremy Corbyn has been forced to apologise after being recorded claiming some members of the Jewish community complaining about anti-Semitism in the Labour party were "Trump fanatics".
Peter Willsman has also agreed to undertake "equalities training" over his comments - but has ignored calls for him to stand down as a member of Labour's ruling national executive committee.
Mr Willsman, who also sits on the party's disciplinary panel, was secretly recorded making his remarks at the last NEC meeting.
He said those behind the latest anti-Semitism claims engulfing Labour "can falsify social media very easily".
He added: "Some of these people in the Jewish community support Trump - they're Trump fanatics and all the rest of it. So I am not going to be lectured to by Trump fanatics making up daft information without any evidence at all.
"So I think we should ask the 70 rabbis 'where is your evidence of severe and widespread anti-Semitism in this party?'."
Labour deputy leader Tom Watson led the criticism of Mr Willsman on Twitter.
In a statement, Mr Willsman said: "I am sorry for my behaviour in the last meeting of Labour’s NEC, which I deeply regret.
“Having sat on the NEC for many years, I am of course aware of appalling instances of anti-Semitism within our party, and am wholly determined to rooting it out of our movement.
“I do not believe anti-Semitism is ‘widespread’ in the Labour party, and that was what my comments were trying to refer to, but we do have a problem which needs stamping out. One anti-Semite is one too many.
“I recognise the offensive nature of my comments and that in diminishing the experiences of those who face anti-Semitism in our party and society, I showed a lack of the sensitivity required for discussions around racism.
“I will be referring myself to receive equalities training so I can better understand how to approach discussions of such issues in a respectful way."
Labour has been mired in a fresh anti-Semitism row since its NEC upheld a decision not to fully endorse the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance's definition of the problem, alongwith its list of illustrative examples.
That led to Labour MP Margaret Hodge calling Jeremy Corbyn "an anti-Semitic racist", while fellow backbencher Ian Austin had an altercation with party chairman Ian Lavery.
Both MPs are now the subject of disciplinary investigations.
Two Labour councillors have also been suspended in the past week over allegendly anti-Semitic social media posts.
And PoliticsHome revealed how another councillor was being investigated after sharing an image on Facebook comparing Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu to Adolf Hitler.
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