Home
Politics

Why Frank Field has resigned the Labour whip

Veteran MP criticises Jeremy Corbyn as anti-Semitism row engulfs party

Newsletter sign up Newsletter

Frank Field has been a Labour MP for almost 40 years

(Image credit: Getty Images)

published 31 August 2018

Labour MP Frank Field has resigned from the party’s group in Parliament, warning that the party is becoming a “force for anti-Semitism”.

Does Labour have an anti-Semitism problem?

Field, who has held the seat of Birkenhead since 1979, said in a letter of resignation to chief Labour whip Nick Brown that he was quitting “for two principal reasons”.

“The first centres on the latest example of Labour’s leadership becoming a force for anti-Semitism in British politics,” the veteran MP wrote, citing what he claims were “a series of attempts by Jeremy [Corbyn] to deny that past statements and actions by him were anti-Semitic”.

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE

https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516.jpg

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

“Britain fought the Second World War to banish these views from our politics, but that superhuman effort and success is now under huge and sustained internal attack,” Field added.

He cited as his second reason “a culture of intolerance, nastiness and intimidation now reigns in too many parts of the Party nationally”.

Field, who remains a member of the Labour Party, will now sit as an “Independent Labour Member” for Birkenhead, becoming the third Labour MP to quit the party whip this year.

Labour sources in Parliament say the resignation could trigger a “full-scale existential crisis of the Labour Party”, amid reports of a “potential parliamentary breakaway by MPs furious at the party leadership’s handling of anti-Semitism”, according to The Independent.

Labour’s deputy leader, Tom Watson, said Field’s move was a “serious loss” to the party that “reflects both the deep divisions in the party and the sense of drift engulfing us.

“It is a major wake-up call. We cannot afford to lose people of such weight and stature,” Watson warned in a statement.

Explore More

Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox

A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com

Contact me with news and offers from other Future brandsReceive email from us on behalf of our trusted partners or sponsors

By submitting your information you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over.

The Week Staff

Social Links Navigation

Latest

Why India's medical schools are running low on bodies
Under The Radar A shortage of cadavers to train on is forcing institutions to go digital

By Chas Newkey-Burden, The Week UK Published 15 November 24
Magazine solutions - November 22, 2024
Puzzles and Quizzes Issue - November 22, 2024

By The Week US Published 14 November 24
Magazine printables - November 22, 2024
Puzzles and Quizzes Issue - November 22, 2024

By The Week US Published 14 November 24