Labour and Jewish Voters: A Deteriorating Relationship
| Published date | 01 June 2019 |
| DOI | 10.1177/2041905819854315 |
| Author | Andrew Barclay |
| Date | 01 June 2019 |
30 POLITICAL INSIGHT • JUNE 2019
Since 2016, it has scarcely been
possible for observers of British
politics to avoid the ongoing
strained relationship between
the Labour Party and Britain’s Jewish
population. Indeed, this seemingly
unlikely scenario has become one of the
most tumultuous and emotive fault lines
in political discourse over recent years.
From what at first appeared to be isolated
behaviour amongst a small number of
activists, accusations of antisemitism have
escalated to the extent that anti-Jewish
prejudice is alleged to be endemic within
the party. It is this culture which was
cited by Luciana Berger, MP for Liverpool
Wavertree, when she resigned the Labour
whip in February 2019.
Labour and Jewish
Voters: A Deteriorating
Relationship
Accusations of antisemitism have dogged Labour in recent times. Has
the crisis changed attitudes among the party’s Jewish voters, and the
wider community? Andrew Barclay examines the evidence and finds
a worsening relationship under Jeremy Corbyn’s leadership.
The response to these controversies has
been on a scale unprecedented in the history
of Anglo-Jewry. Sixty-eight Rabbis from
across the denominational spectrum of the
faith co-signed a letter denouncing Labour
and its leader Jeremy Corbyn for ‘ignoring’ the
concerns of the Jewish community. The three
main news outlets which cater primarily for
British Jews, The Jewish Chronicle, The Jewish
Telegraph and Jewish News, took the step of
running the same front-page warning of an
‘existential threat’ posed by a future Labour
government to Jews in the United Kingdom.
Signicant protests have been held in both
London and Manchester, declaring ‘enough
© Press Association
Political Insight May 2019.indd 30 08/05/2019 10:55
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