Chuka Umunna to tear into Jeremy Corbyn in conference speech citing EHRC probe

The Streatham MP, who quit Labour with six colleagues in February, is expected to criticise Jeremy Corbyn at the Liberal Democrat conference

Chuka Umunna speaking during the Liberal Democrats autumn conference (Credit: Jonathan Brady/PA Wire)

Liberal Democrat MP Chuka Umunna is expected to tear into Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn in a speech citing the EHRC probe into antisemitism in Labour.

The Streatham MP, who quit Labour with six other colleagues in February, will address the Liberal Democrat party conference in his role as foreign spokesman.

He is expected to tell delegates in Bournemouth: “You [Labour] cannot be  champion of liberalism if you are currently subject to a formal investigation by the Equality and Human Right Commission for institutional racism against Jewish people.

“You cannot be a champion of liberalism when your leader’s supporters think it is acceptable to abuse, vilify and deselect anyone who dares to question the leader.”

“And you cannot claim to be liberal when the political editor of the BBC needs to take a bodyguard to your conference,” he added in an apparent reference to Laura Kuenssberg who was assigned protection at Labour’s party conference in 2017.

Umunna, once heavily tipped for Labour leader, is also set to call the Islington North MP an “apologist for a hard-right Russian government.”

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