Labour Chair Says Local Parties Should Not Face ‘Trial By Social Media’ After Luciana Berger Row

Blogging for HuffPost UK on Saturday, Lavery said he believed it was “unacceptable” for any MP or local party to face “trial by social media, as happens too often in the current climate”.

“I have no problem, as a Labour MP, with being held to account by the members who do the work to elect me. That is party democracy,”  he wrote.

“But there has to be tolerance and respect.  No one, including MPs, should be bullied, least of all women members of parliament, some of whom, like Diane Abbott and Luciana Berger, have been subject to horrible abuse.”

But the Wansbeck MP claimed “very little” of the abuse directed at MPs actually comes from party members.

“Those members who do not express their opinions in a way consistent with the values of our movement should expect to be dealt with under our strengthened disciplinary processes – as they are being dealt with now,” he added.

But Jewish Leadership Council chair, Jonathan Goldstein, told HuffPost the withdrawal of the votes against Berger “does not bring comfort to those who have been watching the events taking place within the Labour Party under this current leadership”.

“This whole incident is part of a backdrop of a party using mob rule to intimidate people who do not agree with them,” he said.

“For a heavily pregnant Jewish MP – re-elected in 2017 with an 80% share of the vote – to be subjected to this is not only reprehensible, but is hardly showing respect for the democratic process.”

Goldstein added that shadow chancellor John McDonnell’s appeal to Berger to publicly pledge loyalty to Labour to avoid deselection threats was “truly shameful”.