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The Left’s Jewish Problem: Jeremy Corbyn, Israel and Anti-Semitism

Dave Rich is the author of The Left’s Jewish Problem. A new, updated edition of an important and timely critique of Anti-Jewish sentiment on the left. There is a sickness at the heart of left-wing British politics. As a consequence, in recent years it has silently spread. Meanwhile, becoming ever more malignant.

Today, it seems hard to believe that until the 1980s, the British left was broadly pro-Israel. And while Jeremy Corbyn’s leadership may have thrown a harsher spotlight on the crisis, it is by no means a recent phenomenon. Therefore, the widening gulf between British Jews and the anti-Israel left, now allying itself with Islamist extremists. Who demand Israel’s destruction did not happen overnight or by chance: political activists made it happen. This book reveals their identity, why they chose Palestine and how they sold their cause to the left.

Based on new academic research, Dave Rich’s nuanced and thoughtful guide brings fresh insight to an increasingly fraught debate. As the question becomes more urgent than ever, this new, fully updated edition, taking in events since 2016, provides an essential guide to the left’s increasingly controversial Jewish problem.

The British Labour Party

Known as an alliance of social democrats, democratic socialists, and unionists, the Labour Party of the United Kingdom is a centre-left party.

The Labour Party has held either a majority or an opposition position in all general elections since 1922. The party originated from trade union movements and socialist parties that existed in the 19th century. After surpassing the Liberal Party, it formed two minority governments under Ramsay MacDonald in the 1920s and early 1930s, becoming the main opposition party to the Conservative Party.

The Labour Party formed the wartime coalition in 1940–1945, and from 1945 to 1951, Clement Attlee’s Labour government. And introduced the National Health Service and expanded the welfare state. From 1964 to 1970, Labour again governed, and from 1974 to 1979, it was under Harold Wilson and James Callaghan.

Under Tony Blair and his successors Gordon Brown, Labour benefited from the centre during the 1990s, when it was under New Labour. Following the 2019 general election, Labour won the second most seats in Parliament, making it the Official Opposition. Mr Keir Starmer leads both the party and the opposition.

Labour is a member of the Socialist International, the Party of European Socialists, and the Progressive Alliance. The party has semi-autonomous branches in Scotland and Wales, as well as in Northern Ireland. It has an official affiliation with the Social Democratic Labour Party (SDLP). Labour is the party with the largest membership in Europe, having over 500,000 members as of February 2021.