Get on with the investigation into the contents of the Report!
JVL Introduction
Skwawkbox is absolutely right:
“On legal grounds and on his own words, two-thirds of Keir Starmer’s ‘urgent’ investigation are redundant.
“He must focus all effort and resource on investigating those who, in all likelihood, prevented Labour becoming the party of government the knife-edge 2017 general election.”
On the same issue, John McDonnell in an interview with Sky News, stressed that the EHRC “should have everything, warts and all”, saying: “We’ve got to rid ourselves of this culture that prevented us a Labour government.”
McDonnell added: “People should be treated fairly overall. And, of course, the investigation will look into these matters, but just as other members, when serious charges have been made against them, have been suspended, I think this should happen. And if the investigation finds that this report is accurate, these members should be expelled.”
This article was originally published by SKWAWKBOX on Sun 19 Apr 2020. Read the original here.
Starmer’s probe into ‘commissioning’ of leaked report is a red herring. Party had duty to because of lawsuit and EHRC
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If we accept the “Unite behind Starmer to cleanse Labour’s shame” message from another article published by JVL, we may appreciate how the Labour Party is gaining from the legal experience of its new leader.
One of the earliest pragmatic lessons learned would surely have been: if you have no chance of establishing your innocence, you plead guilty in exchange for a lighter sentence; you co-operate with the officers making the charges; you refrain from confronting your accusers. Starmer has apologised, accepted the demands of the B.O.D., and defended the actions of the ‘Panorama’ whistleblowers.
By setting up a three-pronged investigation, he will increase the chances of a balanced report. Any independent investigator will most likely have prior knowledge of the issues gleaned only from the mainstream media. and may end up attributing most of what happened to ‘factionalism” – on the part of the right for the mass expulsions and undermining of Corbyn (no use crying over spilt elections); on the part of the left over commissioning, and leaking, of the orginal report.
Starmer will hope to declare a draw, get the two sides to shake hands, and move on to earning parole from the Board by displaying good behaviour.
Just on the issue that some are saying this leaked report is proof that Labour has an antisemitism ‘problem’.
It isn’t.
If by ‘problem’ we mean more than elsewhere.
There were 1201 members for whom sufficient evidence has led to allegations being actioned….that is 0.24% of members.
We know from various surveys that even Holocaust denial is found in 2-5% of the general population, and a huge 13% even believe in a global Jewish banker conspiracy.
All surveys show agreement with antisemitic tropes and hatred of Jews is lowest on the Left.
Had members of other political parties been subject to the same degree of retrospective social media trawling, we may have been able to discover whether the Labour Party had a particular ‘problem’.
So I shall continue to criticise antisemitism (and more prevalent forms of racism) everywhere I find it, but will continue also to challenge those who describe Labour as a ‘cess-pit of antisemitism’. This leaked report does not change that.
In his pitch for power, Keir Starmer has not only made play of his status and reliability as a high ranking member of the legal profession but also of his credentials as a human rights lawyer.
Throughout this protracted anti-semitism ‘crisis’ the bullies -MSM, PLP and social media ) have relied on their superior economic power to threaten legal action against their victims. .
Sir Keir Starmer and Union apologists who wish to ‘move on’ should need no reminding that the fundamental right of ‘access to justice’ (without fear or favour) enshrined in the unwritten constitution of the UK is non negotiable.