Jeremy Corbyn has given yet another indication of the simmering tensions between himself and Zarah Sultana as they try to get their fledgling left-wing party off the ground. The former Labour leader and current independent MP for Islington North has teamed up with fellow Labour exile Ms Sultana, MP for Coventry, to launch their new outfit, provisionally entitled Your Party, on July 24. However, a terse remark during an interview with Middle East Eye suggested all is not so rosy in the garden.
Mr Corbyn was pressed about Ms Sultana’s claim that under his leadership, Labour “capitulated” by adopting the definition of the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) when it came to antisemitism. This characterises it as “a certain perception of Jews, which may be expressed as hatred toward Jews,” and includes illustrative examples linking antisemitism not only to classic anti-Jewish prejudice but also, in some cases, to rhetoric about Israel.
Mr Corbyn bristled, saying: “Well I think it wasn’t really necessary for her to bring all that up in the interview, but that’s what she decided to do.
“The party did adopt the IHRA definition. Personally I was more in favour of the Jerusalem declaration, which is simply saying antisemitism is wrong. It is wrong to be antisemitic.
“And it is perfectly possible to discuss the politics and behaviour of the state of Israel without being antisemitic. People do that all the time. Indeed, many people in Israel do all the time.”
Mr Corbyn said his new party would have “a resolutely anti-racist position”, adding that he was looking to “put some kind of general declaration of respect for all communities, all ethnicities, all languages, and faiths, and no faiths.”
He stressed: “And so, it’ll be a general anti-racist position. I was under a great deal of pressure to adopt the IH. That happened, the majority of the national executive, a huge majority including people who are very close to me wanted it adopted and that was duly done.
“And then later the examples were also adopted which personally I had the greatest concerns about because I think a definition that requires examples to give it life and legs shows to me there’s something badly wrong with the definition in the first place. But now even the authors of the IHA declaration disown it so maybe it’s time to move on.”
Speaking to the New Left Review earlier this month, Ms Sultana said of Labour: “It capitulated to the IHRA definition of antisemitism, which famously equates it with anti-Zionism and which even its lead author Kenneth Stern has now publicly criticised.
“It was frightened and far too conciliatory. You cannot give these people an inch.”
“We have to build on the strengths of Corbynism … and also recognise its limitations.”
Antisemitism became the most persistent and damaging controversy of Jeremy Corbyn’s leadership of the Labour Party.
Allegations first surfaced in 2016, when a series of local scandals and remarks by party members forced Labour to suspend several figures and launch inquiries.
Critics argued that Corbyn’s long-standing support for Palestinian rights and his associations with groups hostile to Israel created an environment where antisemitic tropes and rhetoric were tolerated.
He repeatedly condemned antisemitism, but his critics maintained he failed to act decisively or quickly enough against offenders within Labour.
The issue grew throughout his tenure, dominating media coverage and overshadowing Labour’s policy platform. In 2018, Labour’s fraught adoption of the IHRA definition of antisemitism highlighted divisions, with Mr Corbyn personally uneasy about some examples which critics said conflated anti-Zionism with antisemitism.
By 2019, the controversy was a major factor in Labour’s disastrous election defeat, with Jewish community leaders and former MPs openly stating they no longer felt welcome in the party.
In 2020, the Equality and Human Rights Commission found Labour under Mr Corbyn responsible for unlawful harassment and discrimination. His claim that the problem had been “dramatically overstated” led to his suspension.
Though later readmitted as a member, he was barred from standing as a Labour MP, effectively expelling him from the parliamentary party.
Drawing on support from six independent MPs aligned in the Independent Alliance, his new party intends to hold its founding conference this autumn to formalise its leadership, platform, and broader structure – as well as choosing a name. A survey published this week suggests as many as one in for Labour voters would consider swiching alliegences.