A FORMER Labour MP has torn through the deputy leader hopefuls and accused them of doing nothing on antisemitism.
The Jewish Labour member savaged the candidates for staying silent during the partys antisemitism crisis.
In a furious speech at the Jewish Labour Movement Deputy Leadership Hustings, she labelled some of the candidates a disgrace.
She said: Im finding it very difficult and Im looking forward to other peoples comments on what they did or did not do over the last three years.
You know that I stood up at every Parliamentary Labour meeting and called out antisemitism and asked for help. And I didn’t get any.
In fact there have been times where I was dismissed, where colleagues including some of the people standing for election shouted at me for raising those issues and shouted at me in my own office for raising those issues.
The former Stoke-on-Trent-North MP lost her seat in 2019, and has been a fierce critic of the culture created under Jeremy Corbyn.
She added: The idea that it should be Jewish women who have to lead this fight by themselves is simply a disgrace.
Im very interested to know why you were silent.
More than anything else you did nothing and you left it for people like me to lead that fight and candidly you should be ashamed.
Ms Smeeth unleashed the salvo at a hustings with candidates Richard Burgon, Angela Rayner, Rosena Allin-Khan, Dawn Butler and Ian Murray.
Ms Butler insisted: “Ruth and I have sat down and had robust debate, while Mr Burgon answered I listened during PLP meetings.
Ms Rayner apologised, while Dr Rosena revealed her own experiences of anti-Semitism.
Mr Murray is being backed by the ousted MP, and called for the conversations about the issue in shadow cabinet to be made public.
