Exclusive: Muswell Hill rabbi selected as Labour candidate in Haringey
Rabbi David Mason will stand in the Crouch End ward after party sources say he 'absolutely smashed it' at a selection meeting on Wednesday.
Lee Harpin is the Jewish News's political editor
Rabbi David Mason has been selected to stand as a Labour candidate in Haringey, north London, at the forthcoming local council elections.
Muswell Hill Synagogue’s long-serving Rabbi was picked to stand for Sir Keir Starmer’s party in the Crouch End ward in the May election at a Labour selection meeting on Wednesday evening.
One party source told Jewish News that at the meeting to finalise candidates: “David absolutely smashed it, by all accounts.”
Rabbi Mason has been a loyal member of the Hornsey and Wood Green local Labour party for several years, where he has been amongst those in the membership leading the fightback against a once strong pro-Jeremy Corbyn faction.
His selection for the 5 May election is being hailed as another sign that activists linked to former leader Jeremy Corbyn are declining in number in what was once labelled “Corbyn’s council.”
Mason, who has been rabbi at the United Synagogue shul for 18 years, has been amongst those Chief Rabbi Ephraim Mirvis has turned to for advice over green and other environmental issues.
Mason had also previously represented the late Chief Rabbi Jonathan Sacks on issues of international aid and debt.
It is understood that Mason, a trained expert in conflict resolution, had alerted the Chief Rabbi’s Office on his intention to stand as a representative of Starmer’s party in advance of Monday’s meeting.
While the United Synagogue likes to steer clear of overtly political issues, Chief Rabbi Mirvis made an unprecedented intervention ahead of the 2019 general election warning that Corbyn had allowed a “poison sanctioned from the top” to take root in Labour.
Although Mirvis also said it was not his place to tell people how to vote, he suggested British Jews were justifiably anxious about the prospect of Labour forming the next government under Corbyn.
On becoming leader Sir Keir Starmer vowed to “root out” the stain of antisemitism in his party – and sources close to the leader “welcomed” Mason’s selection as a Labour candiate.
There have been other recent examples of rabbis standing candidates at elections.
Emeritus rabbi of Borehamwood and Elstree Rabbi Alan Plancey has been the Tory Mayor of Hertsmere, although he never took a political position when he was a working rabbi.
Plancey had earlier been victorious as the Conservative council candidate in Borehamwood
In Salford last May, Rabbi Arnold Saunders stood as the Tory candidate for the local mayoral role.
Previously the late Rabbi Pinter Avrohom Pinter, of the Union of Orthodox Hebrew Congregations, represented Labour in Hackney as a councillor in the 1980s.
And more recently former Liberal Judaism Rabbi Danny Rich was elected as a Labour councillor in West Finchley.
Ahead of the 2019 general election Finchley United Synagogue apologised for “accidentally” breaching election rules after they invited Conservative Mike Freer but no other Finchley and Golders Green candidate to address teenagers.
Thank you for helping to make Jewish News the leading source of news and opinion for the UK Jewish community. Today we're asking for your invaluable help to continue putting our community first in everything we do.
For as little as £5 a month you can help sustain the vital work we do in celebrating and standing up for Jewish life in Britain.
Jewish News holds our community together and keeps us connected. Like a synagogue, it’s where people turn to feel part of something bigger. It also proudly shows the rest of Britain the vibrancy and rich culture of modern Jewish life.
You can make a quick and easy one-off or monthly contribution of £5, £10, £20 or any other sum you’re comfortable with.
100% of your donation will help us continue celebrating our community, in all its dynamic diversity...
Engaging
Being a community platform means so much more than producing a newspaper and website. One of our proudest roles is media partnering with our invaluable charities to amplify the outstanding work they do to help us all.
Celebrating
There’s no shortage of oys in the world but Jewish News takes every opportunity to celebrate the joys too, through projects like Night of Heroes, 40 Under 40 and other compelling countdowns that make the community kvell with pride.
Pioneering
In the first collaboration between media outlets from different faiths, Jewish News worked with British Muslim TV and Church Times to produce a list of young activists leading the way on interfaith understanding.
Campaigning
Royal Mail issued a stamp honouring Holocaust hero Sir Nicholas Winton after a Jewish News campaign attracted more than 100,000 backers. Jewish Newsalso produces special editions of the paper highlighting pressing issues including mental health and Holocaust remembrance.
Easy access
In an age when news is readily accessible, Jewish News provides high-quality content free online and offline, removing any financial barriers to connecting people.
Voice of our community to wider society
The Jewish News team regularly appears on TV, radio and on the pages of the national press to comment on stories about the Jewish community. Easy access to the paper on the streets of London also means Jewish News provides an invaluable window into the community for the country at large.
We hope you agree all this is worth preserving.
