Joan Ryan becomes eighth Labour MP to quit, blaming ‘culture of anti-Semitism’ under Corbyn leadership by Harry York
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/politics/2019/02/19/joan-ryan-eighth-labour-mp-quit-blaming-culture-antisemitism/
An eighth Labour MP has quit the Labour Party to join a breakaway group after accusing Jeremy Corbyn of presiding over a “culture of anti-Semitism”.
Joan Ryan said under Mr Corbyn’s leadership Labour had become a party that “allows racism to flourish” alongside a “hatred of Israel” and she would be joining the Independent Group.
She said that she felt she had a “duty” to resign after seven Labour MPs quit the party on Monday including Luciana Berger, who said that under Mr Corbyn anti-Semitism had become “institutional”.
She said that Mr Corbyn, the Labour leader, had introduced anti-Semitism to the party and was a “danger”.
Ms Ryan told The Times: “It’s obviously not a delight, it’s painful. But it is a duty. I wasn’t elected as a Labour MP to watch this happen, and I have no choice but to stand up to it. For me this is a moral issue.”
She said that she found it “hard to say” that Mr Corbyn is not an anti-Semite. “I don’t want to say what’s in somebody’s heart,” she said.
“But I’ve long said if he wanted to prove he wasn’t then his actions could have done that for him, and he hasn’t done that.”
“And I’m surprised that he wonders when people think he is. But I think the bigger point is that he’s allowed the Labour Party to become institutionally anti-Semitic, and he has a direct responsibility as leader of this party.”
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