Sajid Javid says 'Jeremy Corbyn is not a Holocaust denier' after Twitter storm
2 min read
Sajid Javid has clarified comments that appeared to suggest Jeremy Corbyn was a Holocaust denier.
The Home Secretary made his position clear following criticism from Labour backbencher Clive Lewis.
He had come under fire after responding to a Twitter user with the words: "How can you even question the Holocaust[?] Please think carefully about what you are saying. Don’t be misled by Corbyn."
Mr Lewis replied on Thursday, writing: "Are you seriously accusing [Jeremy Corbyn] of being a Holocaust denier?
"Seriously I’d apologise, detract and wind your neck in.
"And whilst [you’re] at it launch an investigation into Islamophobia in your own sorry excuse for a party."
Fellow Labour MP Dawn Butler - the party's equalities spokesperson - also piled in, tweeting to Theresa May to demand "an explanation on the floor of the House".
She fumed: "One of your ministers seems to be deliberately peddling a lie. And he is the home secretary! This cannot be allowed to continue."
Mr Javid later wrote: "Corbyn is not a Holocaust denier. I am happy to make that clear.
"My comment referred to [the original user’s] buying into Corbyn’s position on anti-Semitism."
Labour has suffered further criticism in recent days after its National Executive Committee refused to adopt the International Holocaust Memorial Alliance’s definition of anti-Semitism.
Instead, the party has adopted its own examples of what consitutes anti-Semitism alongside the IHRA definition, while agreeing to consult with the Jewish community.
PoliticsHome Newsletters
PoliticsHome provides the most comprehensive coverage of UK politics anywhere on the web, offering high quality original reporting and analysis: Subscribe
