A SCOTTISH Labour candidate has accused Jeremy Corbyn of having “totally failed” to tackle anti-Semitism in the party and said he does not “deserve” votes from Jews.
Carolann Davidson, who is standing in East Renfrewshire, the home of Scotland’s largest Jewish community, also said her party contained “racists and conspiracy theorists”.
Ms Davidson, a Labour councillor in Paisley, launched the attack at a hustings held by the Glasgow Jewish Representative Council.
Her remarks came as Labour suspended its candidate in Falkirk over alleged anti-Semitic remarks, and expressed “deep regret that she was selected to stand.
The party disowned Safia Ali after claims she made anti-Semitics posts on Facebook.
Scottish Labour was also urged to suspend its candidate in Dundee West by an anti-racism group.
Hope Not Hate said Jim Malone had “serious questions to answer” after it emerged one of his campaign supporters had a history of Islamophobic comments.
East Renfrewshire was a Tory gain in 2017, with Paul Masteron beating the SNP incumbent Kirsten Oswald by 4,712 votes, with Labour’s Blair McDougall a close third.
Ms Oswald, the chair of the SNP, is fighting to get the seat back on December 12.
All the candidates were at Wednesday’s fringe.
Mr Davidson told the audience: “I know for almost everyone here, that I can’t stand here and ask for your vote. I’m not going to, because we don’t deserve it.
“Labour has totally failed, from the leadership down, about anti-Semitism. So I’m not here asking for your vote, so you’ll say why are you here as a Labour candidate?
“I want to reassure you as a community that there are still people within the Labour party who are not willing to surrender the party, that was once the strongest ally of the Jewish Community, to racists and conspiracy theorists.
“I can’t defend the indefensible. What I can do is tell you who I am and what I stand for.”
Ms Davidson said she had confronted Karie Murphy, Mr Corbyn’s chief of staff, over the issue following a debate on anti-Semitism at the Scottish Labour conference earlier this year.
She said: The very fact that she kept repeating that because some Jewish groups were OK with the Labour Party, she seemed to think that was all fine.
“I will admit I was horrified, and I told her exactly what I thought.”
She added: “I know I won’t convince many of you tonight, but I can at least reassure you in this fight – I [am] on your side. The Labour Party has to just stop saying ‘it’s dealing with anti-Semitism’. It needs to actually do it.”
At the same event, Ms Oswald said that Mr Corbyn’s fence-sitting on anti-Semitism was “disgraceful”, while Mr Masterton said the Labour leader was “a threat to this community and I believe he must be stopped”.
He also mentioned his party had suspended two candidates and that all parties needed to improve.
On Wednesday, the Scottish Tories suspended Glasgow Central candidate Flora Scarabello after a complaint alleging she had used “anti-Muslim language”.
A fortnight earlier, the Scottish Tories also suspended their Aberdeen North candidate, Ryan Houghton, over alleged slamophobic, anti-Semitic and homophobic comments in 2012.
Falkirk is defended by the SNP’s John McNally, whose majority in 2017 was 4,923.
Scottish Labour general secretary Michael Sharpe said of Ms Ali’s suspension: “I deeply regret the people of the Falkirk constituency will no longer have a Labour candidate to campaign and vote for on December 12. There is no place for anti-Semitism, or any form of racism and bigotry, in our party. That is why Labour is taking robust action to root it out of our movement and wider society.
“The Party has significantly strengthened our procedures, with swift suspensions, new processes for rapid expulsions and an education programme for members. While I cannot go into details about individual cases, I can confirm that the Party has acted immediately and decisively to remove this candidate.”
Urging Labour to suspend Mr Malone in SNP-held Dundee West, SNP Equality spokesperson Angela Crawley said: “Jeremy Corbyn has repeatedly failed to take action against Labour’s candidate for Dundee West - despite his involvement in multiple anti-Semitism and racism rows within the party over a period of many months.
“With leading anti-racism group Hope Not Hate speaking out - this issue can no longer be swept under the carpet. If Jeremy Corbyn really is serious about rooting out anti-Semitism and racism in the Labour Party he must show leadership.
“The claims that have been made are deplorable - and Mr Malone should be suspended from the party while these issues are investigated fully. There can be no place for anti-Semitism or racism in Scotland.”
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