Labour delegate’s “gas chamber” remark was “gratuitous and offensive”
By Jack Mendel
A Labour delegate to the Party’s annual conference has been criticised for saying disabled people might as well “walk into the gas chamber” if the Government brings in a British Bill of Rights.
Get The Jewish News Daily Edition by email and never miss our top stories Free Sign Up
Speaking on Monday at Labour’s annual conference, Sioux Blair-Jordan, of the Colchester Labour Party, said she was sick of “being demonised” and blamed for the country’s problems, adding people who are chronically sick or disabled should be “seen as human beings”.
She also told the conference in Brighton: “We need the EU to uphold our human rights because if Cameron does his Bill of Rights we might as well walk into the gas chamber today.”
Ms Blair-Jordan also received a hug from Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn following her speech, after earlier telling delegates: “I’ve met him a few times, he gives wonderful hugs.”
A Labour party spokesperson responded by saying: “These views are not shared by the Labour Party.”
Justice Secretary Michael Gove has promised to set out this autumn the Government’s proposals to scrap the Human Rights Act – which enshrines the European Convention on Human Rights in British law – and replace it with a British Bill of Rights.
Following her address, Justice Minister Dominic Raab said it was “extraordinarily bad taste” for the Labour conference to applaud the comments. He is said to have added: “Jeremy Corbyn should apologise immediately for embracing rather than distancing himself from the delegate. It points directly to his unfitness to lead”, according to the Sun’s Westminster correspondent,
The Campaign Against Antisemitism told the Express: “Sioux Blair-Jordan’s reference to gas chambers was gratuitous and offensive.”
“Over six million Jews as well as others including the disabled were murdered during the Holocaust, many of them in gas chambers.”
“Many Jewish people in Britain have relatives who were killed in the Holocaust. The Labour Party should be condemning comparisons to the Holocaust like Blair-Jordan’s, but instead we saw Jeremy Corbyn hugging her warmly after her speech.
“Education about antisemitism and the attempted Genocide of Europe’s Jewish people is vitally important, especially as antisemitism is rising once again in many parts of Europe.”
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.
-
By Brigit Grant
-
By Laurent Vaughan - Senior Associate (Bishop & Sewell Solicitors)
-
By Laurent Vaughan - Senior Associate (Bishop & Sewell Solicitors)
-
By Laurent Vaughan - Senior Associate (Bishop & Sewell Solicitors)
-
By Laurent Vaughan - Senior Associate (Bishop & Sewell Solicitors)