Veteran Labour activist recorded attacking Jewish ‘Trump fanatics’ is expelled
Pete Willsman had been suspended since 2019, after blaming antisemitism allegations against Jeremy Corbyn on Israel
Lee Harpin is the Jewish News's political editor
The veteran Labour activist Pete Willsman has been expelled from the party having been suspended since 2019 for accusing Israel of being behind antisemitism attacks on Jeremy Corbyn.
Labour sources confirmed that former Labour national executive committee (NEC) member Willsman had been ousted from the party after allegations against him were considered.
Willsman – a central member of the Bennite Campaign for Labour Party Democracy group – had infamously been recorded saying rabbis were ‘Trump supporting fanatics’ while he was still serving as a member of the NEC.
In a leaked recording, Willsman had attacked te decision by 68 rabbis to issue a statement about Labour antisemitism.
He said on the recording: “We should ask the 70 rabbis ‘where is your evidence of severe and widespread antisemitism in this Party?’”
Willsman added:”“And some of these people in the Jewish community support Trump – they are Trump fanatics and all the rest of it.”
Former Labour MP Luciana Berger was among those who called for for the party to suspend Mr Willsman and conduct a “formal investigation”, after she heard the audio of his 2018 rant.
But after his suspension under former general secretary Jennie Formby, Willsman’s future in Labour remained unclear.
Between 1981 and 1994, Willsman was also elected onto Labour’s conference arrangements committee (CAC).
Asked to comment on Willsman’s expulsion Mike Katz, national chair of the Jewish Labour Movement, said: “Pete Willsman was a member of Labour’s ruling NEC when he attacked rabbis from across the UK Jewish community by smearing them as ‘Trump supporting fanatics’.
“It’s about time he was expelled. This antisemitic behaviour has no place in Keir Starmer’s Labour Party.”
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