Name: Labour panel to consider Jeremy Corbyn's suspension after 'non-apology' over anti-Semitism remarks
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Labour panel to consider Jeremy Corbyn's suspension after 'non-apology' over anti-Semitism remarks

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Jeremy Corbyn's will be considered by a panel of Labour officials on Tuesday afternoon after he rowed back on his claim that Labour's anti-Semitism problem was .&nbsp;Five members of Labour's ruling national executive committee will consider the case after receiving recommendation from the party's disciplinary unit.&nbsp;The panel will convene at 1pm, suggesting the controversy could be concluded by the end of the day.&nbsp;It comes just hours after Mr Corbyn said he had not intended to "belittle concerns" about anti-Semitism, adding that they were neither "exaggerated" or "overstated".However, in a statement that has provoked a fresh backlash, the former&nbsp;Labour leader stopped short of issuing an apology, saying: "I regret the pain this issue has caused the Jewish community and would wish to do nothing that would exacerbate or prolong it."Responding on Tuesday morning, Marie van der Zyl, the president of the Board of Deputies of British Jews, said: "The Jewish community does not accept this pathetic non-apology from Jeremy Corbyn."Keir Starmer rightly called the day of the release of the EHRC report a 'day of shame'. Jeremy Corbyn's response, by contrast, was shameless."If the party wants to show it is serious about tackling anti-Jewish racism, it will consign this statement, just like the culture which led to the EHRC's damning findings, to the dustbin of history. To do otherwise would be a failure of leadership which would risk the party slipping backwards."Her comments were echoed by Gideon Falter, the chief executive of the Campaign Against Anti-Semitism, who said:&nbsp;&nbsp;"This is a desperate attempt to have his suspension lifted and reveals that he still believes that suspensions are something that happen on the whim of the leader, as it did during his tenure, and not as a result of any due process."Reinstating Mr Corbyn now would only show that Labour is not serious about tackling anti-Semitism, or is incapable of doing so."Mr Corbyn&nbsp;&nbsp;by the party's general secretary, David Evans,&nbsp;two weeks ago for claiming that "the scale of the problem" had been " by our opponents inside and outside the party".&nbsp;Responding to into the party's handling of anti-Semitism under his leadership, Mr Corbyn also said he did not accept all of the watchdog's findings.&nbsp;However, in an apparent climbdown on Tuesday, he published a clarification in which he insisted he had not been seeking to diminish the scale of the problem.&nbsp;The follow-up statement, first sent to Labour following his suspension, said: "The publication of the EHRC report should have been a moment for the Labour Party to come together in a determination to address the shortcomings of the past and work as one to root out anti-Semitism in our own ranks and wider society.&nbsp;"We must never tolerate anti-Semitism or belittle concerns about it. And that was not my intention in anything I said this week. I regret the pain this issue has caused the Jewish community and would wish to do nothing that would exacerbate or prolong it.&nbsp;"To be clear, concerns about antisemitism are neither 'exaggerated'&nbsp;nor 'overstated'. The point I wished to make was that the vast majority of Labour Party members were and remain committed anti-racists deeply opposed to antisemitism.&nbsp;"I fully support Keir Starmer's decision to accept all the EHRC recommendations in full and, in accordance with my own lifelong convictions, will do what I can to help the party move on, united against anti-Semitism which has been responsible for so many of history's greatest crimes against humanity."Related TopicsAdvertisementRelated TopicsWe rely on advertising to help fund our award-winning journalism.We urge you to turn off your ad blocker for The Telegraph website so that you can continue to access our quality content in the future.Thank you for your support.Need help?Visit ourpage.Close

Jeremy Corbyn's will be considered by a panel of Labour officials on Tuesday afternoon after he rowed back on his claim that Labour's anti-Semitism problem was .&nbsp;Five members of Labour's ruling national executive committee will consider the case after receiving recommendation from the party's disciplinary unit.&nbsp;The panel will convene at 1pm, suggesting the controversy could be concluded by the end of the day.&nbsp;It comes just hours after Mr Corbyn said he had not intended to "belittle concerns" about anti-Semitism, adding that they were neither "exaggerated" or...

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Harry Yorke

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Labour panel to consider Jeremy Corbyn's suspension after 'non-apology' over anti-Semitism remarks

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