A Labour MP has pointed the finger at the “SNP-nationalist left” after claiming Scotland has a “huge problem” with antisemitism.
East Kilbride & Strathaven MP Joani Reid also alleged that she often hears a conspiracy about “Zionist influence” tipping the 2014 Scottish independence referendum towards the ‘No’ side.
Scots voted by 55 per cent to 45 per cent to stay a part of the UK, with the SNP’s recent demise reflecting what many consider a return to pre-2014 politics north of the border.
Speaking at a fringe event on the rise of antisemitism yesterday, Reid said: “Scotland has a huge problem with antisemitism, particularly on the left, the SNP-nationalist left.
A police officer as pro-Palestine protesters gather at Glasgow train stationPA“We often hear that the reason why ‘Yes’ didn’t win in 2014 was because of Zionist influence.
“Just two weeks ago, we had a horrific antisemitic headline on the front page of a national newspaper, with our colleague underneath it.
“It is rife across the left, particularly within nationalism.”
Reid, who chairs the All-Party Parliamentary Group against antisemitism, separately claimed that discrimination against Jews was at its worst within the Labour Party during Jeremy Corbyn’s stint as Leader of the Opposition.
“I’ve been involved in Labour Party politics my whole adult life,” she said. “It was definitely at its absolute worst when Corbyn was leader and I was a councillor in Lewisham.
“I went on to become Cabinet Member for Safer Communities and I felt a real heavy sense of duty that I had to stand up and say something if I was going to remain in the party, which I did. Thankfully, we are now as a party in a better place, it is now a hostile environment for antisemites.”
Joani Reid at an antisemitism event at Labour Party conference on Tuesday
GB NEWS
Sir Keir Starmer is keen to stress the Labour Party has transformed since he succeeded Jeremy Corbyn in March 2020.
After being heckled during his conference speech on Tuesday, the Prime Minister said: “This guy’s obviously got a pass for the 2019 conference. We’ve changed the party.”
Starmer ultimately stripped Corbyn of his Labour Party membership after the former Leader of the Opposition claimed a report published by the Equalities & Human Rights Commission about antisemitism under his stewardship was “dramatically overstated for political reasons”.
Reid was joined at Tuesday’s fringe event by fellow Scottish Labour MP Blair McDougall.
McDougall, who played a leading role in the unionist Better Together campaign, did not take aim at the SNP over antisemitism.
Labour made a number of gains in Scotland on July 4
PA
However, McDougall issued a stark warning about the rise of anti-Jewish hatred.
The East Renfrewshire MP, who represents a large number of Jewish and Muslim Scots, said: “There is certainly a fresh outbreak. Whether it’s an epidemic or not, it’s real … and it’s happening.
“If there are people who think this is something that is subjective, that is a matter of definitions, even in that world view the number of violent attacks, the number of desecrations of graves, [and] the number of attacks on synagogues are drastically up.”
The Community Security Trust last month revealed that between January and June 2024 there had been 1,978 recorded anti-Jewish hate incidents, up from 964 in the first half of 2023.
Some 1,037 of the recorded incidents took place in Greater London, including 411 in Barnet.
In a separate report released earlier this year, the Community Security Trust placed Scotland in the top five for hate incidents after its figures doubled compared to 2022.
One incident reportedly involved a synagogue in Glasgow being sent antisemitic literature.
GB News has approached the SNP for comment.