As statutory investigation was launched into Labour antisemitism, internal letter shows General Secretary Jennie Formby tried deflecting attention to budget cuts at the EHRC

In an e-mail rushed to all Labour MPs as the Equality and Human Rights Commission announced its statutory investigation into Labour antisemitism and seen by Campaign Against Antisemitism, the Party’s General Secretary, Jennie Formby, tried deflecting attention by briefing MPs on budget cuts to the Commission.

The briefing was rushed out minutes after the Equality and Human Rights Commission announced that it would be launching a statutory investigation into antisemitic discrimination, harassment and victimisation within the Labour Party, following a referral and legal arguments from Campaign Against Antisemitism, which is the complainant.

The e-mail told MPs that “Labour is fully committed to the support, defence and celebration of the Jewish community and is implacably opposed to antisemitism in any form”, going on to tell MPs to “reject any suggestion that the Party does not handle antisemitism complaints fairly and robustly, or that the Party has acted unlawfully”.

Bizarrely, Ms Formby tried to deflect attention onto the Commission’s budget, telling MPs that it has suffered “a 70% budget cut since 2010” and that “Labour is the party of equality and in government we will strengthen the powers and functions of the Commission.”

Ms Formby then went on to try to direct attention at “the Conservatives and other political parties”, which she said must do more to tackle racism.

She then ended by thanking Party staff “who have worked tirelessly to combat this issue”, despite the fact that they have in fact been embroiled in numerous efforts to protect antisemites.

The letter is yet further evidence that the Labour Party is not accepting responsibility for its antisemitism crisis, even now that it is under statutory investigation by the very Equality and Human Rights Commission it created in 2006. Under Jeremy Corbyn’s leadership, the once fiercely anti-racist Labour Party has become institutionally antisemitic and an existential threat to British Jews.

In recent months, eleven MPs have resigned from the Labour Party over antisemitism, along with a large number of MEPs, councillors and members.

Over 55,000 people have now signed our petition denouncing Jeremy Corbyn as an antisemite and declaring him “unfit to hold any public office.”