LONDON (UK) – Britain’s main opposition Labour Party leader Keir Starmer sacked a senior member of policy team on Thursday for sharing an article which included a reference to what he called an “anti-Semitic conspiracy theory”.
Starmer said it was inappropriate on the part of education policy spokeswoman Rebecca Long-Bailey to share the article.
The 57-year-old barrister has pledged to wipe out anti-Semitism in Labour after his predecessor, Jeremy Corbyn, a staunch supporter of Palestinian rights, was repeatedly criticised for failing to do so.
“The sharing of that article was wrong because the article contained anti-Semitic conspiracy theories,” he said. “I’ve made it my first priority to tackle anti-Semitism and rebuilding trust from the Jewish community is a number one priority for me.”
Long-Bailey, a Corbyn ally who came second to Starmer in the leadership race, said by sharing the article on Twitter, she was not endorsing “every part of the article” and that she had issued a clarification, which had been agreed with the party, after being made aware of people’s concerns.
“I had asked to discuss these matters with Keir before agreeing what further action to take, but sadly he had already made his decision,” she said, adding she would continue to support the party in parliament under Starmer’s leadership.
(Photos syndicated via Reuters)
This story has been edited by BH staff and is published from a syndicated field
