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Labor’s refusal to allow Diane Abbott back into the party has been branded a double standard as pressure mounts on Sir Keir Starmer to hand back the whip to the veteran MP.
Labor is likely to see a new wave of support for Mr Abbott as he welcomes his return to the party after he received racist comments from Tory donor Frank Hester. Became.
Leader Sir Keir said Mr Abbott should receive “support” over racist abuse, but insisted the suspension was an independent process and resisted calls for the whip to be returned. did.
But a local party source in Hackney, where Mr Abbott is an MP, said: I There was a “double standard” in the handling of her suspension.
Mr Abbott himself suggested the whip was being withheld because he had been critical of the Labor leadership. She accused Sir Keir of having “an agenda” against her.
Sources said there were also rumors within the party that the Labor leadership was planning to hand back the whip to Mr Abbott in exchange for his resignation after the next election.
Such an agreement would suggest that the investigation is not independent. A Labor Party spokesperson did not respond to questions about this.
The Hackney North and Stoke Newington councilor faced the whip in April last year after suggesting that Jewish, Irish and Traveler people were not subject to “lifelong” racism like people of colour. lost.
She has apologized for her comments and remains a member of the Labor Party, but is sitting as an independent while an internal investigation takes place.
Middlesbrough councilor Andy Macdonald repaired his whip this week, five months after he was suspended for using the phrase “river to sea” by a Palestinian activist. Some claim this is a call for Israel’s destruction.
The Hackney Labor member said the time taken to investigate Mr Abbott compared to other MPs such as Mr McDonald showed a “double standard”.
They said Mr Abbott’s supporters in the east London seat were “extremely frustrated and angry” with the way the process had been handled.
Mr Abbott is said to be popular among party members in his constituency. She was unanimously re-elected as the party’s candidate in 2022, but the lack of a decision from her leadership leaves her future as a Labor MP uncertain.
Hackney Labor Party Beim board member Emmanuel Akin said local party members wanted her to stand as a Labor MP, but ultimately it was a decision for senior leadership.
“I think it’s really important to have that seat represented,” he said. I. “The members she represents, her constituents, will definitely want Diane to represent them.” [them] And stand.
“Councilors feel that they hope she will continue to be a member of Hackney as an MP and represent them well.”
Echelle, 49, a prominent black activist from Hackney, uses a pseudonym to protect herself from racial abuse, but many locals say Mr Abbott has been expelled from the party because of his left-wing leanings. He said he believed there was.
Mr Abbott is a close friend of former Labor leader Jeremy Corbyn, who was also expelled from the parliamentary party.
“I just can’t believe there’s an investigation going on,” he said. “They’re trying to hold on.”
A petition launched by campaign group Momentum calling for Mr Abbott’s reinstatement gathered more than 1,000 signatures in 24 hours.
Some Labor MPs have also said they want the whip returned to Mr Abbott.
Poplar Limehouse MP Apsana Begum told the BBC. news night Mr Abbott insisted the whip should “absolutely” be reinstated.
She described Mr Abbott as a “trailblazer” and “hero of the anti-racism struggle”, adding: “She has had a great career as an MP so far and she should have her whip reinstated.”
South Nottingham MP Nadia Whittome and Wansbeck MP Ian Lavery, among others, publicly called on her to repair the whip.
Sir Keir said on Thursday that Ms Abbott’s suspension from the Parliamentary Labor Party was a “completely separate matter” from the question of the abuse she suffered. He said it was the subject of an independent process separate from him.