The article was published in the Indi, then later amended when it found one particular aspect to be untrue. I'm not upset that RLB has been asked to resign, I can't pretend I'm happy about the reason why. We now have a Labour Party running scared of criticising Israel whilst the Tories can carry on being racist, Islamophobic etc etc.
It’s not a question of doing the right thing. It’s a question of being seen to be doing the right thing. Starmer didn’t have any option really. Good for him making a decisive decision wether its merited it is a discussion for another time I think
I agree, plus RLB gave Starmer a reason to get rid of another Corbynista, and he took it with both hands.
Must admit I have no opinion on whether he was right or wrong at this stage - I havent read the offending article but it is good to see a leader prepared to actually make decisions and act on them definitely setting himself up as an alternative to a johnson waffly approach
I don't think Starmer had any option. Johnson, Cummings and the right wing media would've allowed this to turn into a narrative of Starmer not tackling the issue, and used it to deflect from their own failings. Also - Is it too much to ask of cabinet ministers and shadow cabinet ministers to read articles before sharing?!
Agree that Starmer probably had no option given the narrative that would definitely have been applied to it. But as far as I can tell it's a throwaway line about the Israeli secret service in a wide-ranging interview given by one of her constituents. Hardly holocaust denial. This is the offending section:
At least it sets a standard , or draws a line in the sand, nice to see a leader act decisively. Also do you want a shadow minister who doesn’t read things properly, especially on a touchy subject.
But linking the death of George Floyd to Israel is ridiculous. And sharing the article, without calling it out is stupid.
True. Not sure she deserves sacking for it, in comparison to Jenrick's antics this week. But as said above, it would allow for a Tory free-for-all, and let them get away with the Jenrick stuff by providing a distraction. I think she might return in a couple of years.
After Cummings and Jenrick, I dread to think what act a senior tory would have to commit that Boris Johnson would consider a sackable offence.
RBLB obviously not happy, but it looks like the Jewish community have welcomed the leaders prompt action. Labour leader sacks Rebecca Long-Bailey for sharing 'anti-Semitic article' https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-53183085
Never been a fan of Long-Bailey. BUT - this was a discussion about kneeling on prisoners necks - thought to be introduced by Israeli forces. Why why why - should this not be discussed !?!?! The topic of Israel has become so toxic that Labour cannot mention its name. Another home goal by Labour !!! We continue on the slippery slope of censorship.
I don't think he has. He consistently ties the Blonde Buffoon in knots during PMQs - as evidenced just this week. He's acted quickly and decisively - people cannot now say BUT LABOUR ARE ANTI-SEMTITIC.
The EHRC report will be due out soon. Stammer is, and rightly so trying to get as much distance as it can between his current leadership and that of Corbyn. Especially due to the data breaches involved in the releasing of Labours own internal "investigations" including the non redaction of complainants names and addresses straigh tto pro Corbyn websites and commentators This is currently under investigation by the NEC and a QC whos name escapes me. Should any of the complainants consider ( if they havent already done so) legal action regarding any potential data breaches then the Labour party might not survive the onslaught financially.
It doesn't link the death of George Floyd to Israel, it links questionable methods of arrest to a secret service - in this case a secret service that even Amnesty International has said have been drafted in to train US police officers. Even if you don't believe it, the article handily gives a denial from the source in the next sentence. I'd speculate that there's never been a secret police service in history who haven't used methods which are a bit more forceful than your average person would be comfortable with.