A criminal investigation has been launched into allegations of anti-Semitic hate crimes within the Labour Party. The Metropolitan Police are acting after a dossier was passed to Commissioner Cressida Dick. The Commissioner said the party itself was not under investigation and Labour said it was ready to co-operate with police. LBC Radio received an internal Labour dossier detailing 45 cases involving messages posted by party members on social media, including one which read: “We shall rid the Jews who are a cancer on us all.” The broadcaster passed the leaked material to former senior police officer Mak Chishty, who said that 17 instances should have been reported to the police for investigation, and another four were potential race hate crimes. These were the message detailed above; the sharing of a link to an allegedly anti-Semitic blog, and an entry referring to “a Zionist Extremist MP … who hates civilised people, about to get a good kicking”. The … [Read more...] about Police probe anti-Semitism allegations within Labour Party
Labour party
Criminal investigation launched into ‘antisemitic hate crimes’ within the Labour Party
Scotland Yard has begun a criminal investigation into allegations of antisemitic hate crimes within the Labour Party, police said. Specialist officers looking through a leaked internal dossier of cases are begun a inquiry into some of the allegations, the Met said in a statement. Detectives have already sought “early investigative advice” from lawyers working with the Crown Prosecution Service. The investigation is centring on a folder of paperwork compiled by Labour Party staff on cases of alleged antisemitism by Labour activists and members. It was leaked to the LBC radio station, who then gave a copy to the Met Commissioner Cressida Dick after an interview in September. The police statement said: “[It was] alleged that the documentation included evidence of antisemitic hate crimes The contents have been examined by specialist officers. “A criminal investigation has commenced into some of the allegations within the documentation.” A … [Read more...] about Criminal investigation launched into ‘antisemitic hate crimes’ within the Labour Party
Met police probe claims of anti-Semitism in the Labour Party
Scotland Yard has launched an investigation into a string of allegations of anti-Semitic hate crimes within the Labour Party. The Metropolitan Police are acting on a leaked dossier of information which has been handed to Commissioner Cressida Dick. A Scotland Yard spokesman said: "On Tuesday September 4, the Met Commissioner was handed a folder of paperwork following a radio interview with LBC Radio in Leicester Square. "The complainant alleged that the documentation included evidence of anti-Semitic hate crimes. "The contents have been examined by specialist officers. "A criminal investigation has commenced into some of the allegations within the documentation. "Early investigative advice is being sought from the Crown Prosecution Service." The party has not been contacted by the police but is ready to co-operate with the investigation, a Labour spokesman said today. "The Labour Party has a robust system for investigating complaints of alleged breaches of Labour Party rules by … [Read more...] about Met police probe claims of anti-Semitism in the Labour Party
Labour party members joint top of mayoral appointee list, despite falling support
Photo: Depositphotos.com Support for the Labour party (PvdA) may have collapsed at last year’s general election, but the party continues to dominate when it comes to new mayoral and other official appointments. So far this year, 11 Labour party supporters have been named as mayors, the same number as for the right-wing Liberal VVD and well above the number of D66 (7) and CDA (6) appointments, the Volkskrant reported on Thursday. Last year, Labour party members accounted for 18 out of 97 new mayoral roles. Mayors in the Netherlands are crown appointees, based on the advice of the local council, rather than elected. Political scientist Nelleke Vedelaar told the paper that political colours are not as important as fitting the job profile drawn up by local officials. ‘The Dutch tend to ignore their mayor’s political choice and focus more on their managerial qualities,’ Vedelaar said. The new PvdA mayors have been appointed in some of the country’s biggest … [Read more...] about Labour party members joint top of mayoral appointee list, despite falling support
ConsumerBusinessSpotlightConsumerBusinessSpotlightConsumerBusinessSpotlightConsumerBusinessSpotlightConsumerBusinessSpotlight How the “end of austerity” presents a challenge to the Labour Party
Is austerity ending? For some people, in some parts of the country. Philip Hammond used his Budget on 29 October to lavish higher-than-expected tax revenues on the National Health Service, on potholes and on Universal Credit. He also outlined two tax cuts – an increase in the tax-free personal allowance and a rise in the point people start paying the higher 40p rate – which largely benefit the top fifth of earners. Faced with this, the Labour leadership has a ready answer: while the health budget is rising, across most of the public realm, civil servants and local councillors are still preparing for spending to remain flat in real terms. In other words, austerity is here to stay. It’s a source of optimism to Jeremy Corbyn’s inner circle that Theresa May has moved the economic debate into an area where Labour feels comfortable – arguing about how much extra cash should be put into the public services. But on taxation, the opposition is less sure of its … [Read more...] about ConsumerBusinessSpotlightConsumerBusinessSpotlightConsumerBusinessSpotlightConsumerBusinessSpotlightConsumerBusinessSpotlight How the “end of austerity” presents a challenge to the Labour Party