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Corbyn insists no MP under threat after Luciana Berger has police escort
Labour leader seeks to reassure Jewish MPs that their safety is not at risk during the party's annual conference in Liverpool
Jeremy Corbyn has insisted that his MPs are not under any threat within Labour’s conference in Liverpool.
His comment came after prominent Jewish MP Luciana Berger was pictured flanked by police protection as she attended an event on the fringe of the annual gathering.
Ms Berger is reported to have sought protection after receiving threats via social media in the wake of her criticisms of the Labour leadership’s handling of the anti-Semitism row.
In an interview with Channel 4 News, Mr Corbyn was shown pictures of the Liverpool Wavertree MP and asked whether he felt concerned that she felt under threat attending her own party’s conference.
He replied: “There is no threat being made in this conference to anybody.
“We are a party that is open and inclusive and oppose anti-Semitism as a totally united party. I’ve opposed anti-Semitism and racism all my life and will continue to do so.”
"There is no threat being made in this conference to anybody."
Jeremy Corbyn responds to an image of Jewish MP Luciana Berger being escorted by a policeman during Labour Party conference. pic.twitter.com/zQDF4pkpYX
— Channel 4 News (@Channel4News) September 25, 2018
A Labour spokesman later pointed out that the Jewish Labour Movement rally where Ms Berger received her police escort took place in a venue outside the conference area.
The spokesman said: “We support whatever security is necessary for any of our MPs.
“We have had one fatal incident involving one of our MPs. There have been extremely serious threats made against our MPs – including Jeremy, in the case of the trial of the killer from Finsbury Park – from far-right white supremacists.
“We take these threats extremely seriously and we work with the police and security services to do whatever is necessary to protect our MPs.”
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