Starmer sparks furious backlash as he refuses to restore Labour whip to Corbyn
Sir Keir Starmer has sparked a furious backlash from supporters of Jeremy Corbyn as he blocked him from sitting as a Labour MP despite his readmission as a party member.
The Labour leader said his predecessor had "undermined" work to restore trust and confidence in the party's ability to tackle anti-Semitism as he declined to restore the whip.
Mr Corbyn was reinstated as a Labour member by the National Executive Committee on Tuesday, three weeks after he was suspended over his response to a damning Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) report.
But Sir Keir said on Wednesday morning that he would not restore the whip, meaning Mr Corbyn will continue to sit as an independent MP and will not be part of the Parliamentary Labour Party.
The Labour leader said in a statement: "Jeremy Corbyn's actions in response to the EHRC report undermined and set back our work in restoring trust and confidence in the Labour Party's ability to tackle anti-Semitism.
"In those circumstances, I have taken the decision not to restore the whip to Jeremy Corbyn. I will keep this situation under review."
Sir Keir's decision was welcomed by those who hoped to draw a line under the Corbyn era, but prompted an angry response from members who remain loyal to the former leader.
Former shadow chancellor John McDonnell said the action was "just plain wrong" and would cause "more division and disunity in the party".
Diane Abbott, who served as shadow home secretary under Mr Corbyn, said removing the whip "raises serious questions of due process".
Labour MPs lose the whip if suspended from the party automatically. De facto you can't be a Labour MP if you're not actually in the Labour Party. But removing the whip from @jeremycorbyn now raises serious questions of due process. #IstandwithJeremyCorbyn
— Diane Abbott MP (@HackneyAbbott) November 18, 2020
Fellow former shadow cabinet minister Richard Burgon said: "Jeremy should immediately have the whip restored. At a time of national crisis, division in the Labour party serves nobody but the Tory Gov't."
Andrew Scattergood, chairman of the Corbyn-supporting grassroots activist movement Momentum, accused Sir Keir of "making it up as he goes along", describing the decision as a "blatant political attack on the left".
Momentum founder Jon Lansman said the move not to restore the whip had "driven a coach and horses through the party's disciplinary process, making it subservient to the parliamentary party and embedding "political interference".
Those on social media were quick to condemn the move.
A disciplinary panel found @jeremycorbyn had not broken any rule, so now @Keir_Starmer is making it up as he goes along. This is not only farcical and incompetent, it's a blatant political attack on the left at a time when Labour should be united in taking on the Tories. https://t.co/ls92qrEdV9
— Andrew Scattergood (@AJScattergood) November 18, 2020
Abysmal. That's it for me. Resigning my Party membership today after 45 years. Anyone who now expects any serious progressive change from this Labour Party is deluding themselves: 'Keir Starmer denies Jeremy Corbyn Labour whip despite end of suspension' https://t.co/vKtTLkfNJj
— scott newton (@1956historian) November 18, 2020
This is the most farcical thing I've ever seen. He bends in the wind worse than a wind sock. Starmer is making Theresa May seem charismatic & a strategic genius. Corbyn should just sue the incompetent fool & form a new party! https://t.co/7CeNpk6I1u
— Andrew Feinstein (@andrewfeinstein) November 18, 2020
I joined the Labour Party with my Jewish husband & son under JC. We left under starmer. There are many Jewish families who stand with JC & can see the truth.
— Jassie 💛 #WeareCorbyn (@JassieD) November 18, 2020
Corbyn offered Starmer an out yesterday. One he didn't deserve and that I still don't agree with.
But Starmer has even snapped that olive branch and thrown it back in our faces.
Anyone still backing this shithouse of a leader is a lost cause.— Kerry-Anne Mendoza 🏳️🌈🏴 (@TheMendozaWoman) November 18, 2020
