Jess Phillips has spoken about how she almost quit the Labour Party after her friend Luciana Berger left.
Berger, who is Jewish, became an independent MP and then joined the Lib Dems after facing a barrage of anti-Semitic abuse.
The Labour leadership candidate admitted she had felt “quite tempted” to leave the party on a number of occasions.
As well as seeing her friend leave she explained how watching an episode of Panorama exploring the party’s handling of the crisis – and especially its treatment of staff had affected her.
“The Luciana thing shock me very, very deeply.
(Image: Reuters)
“Actually, it was the Panorama, the episode of Panorama, where I wobbled the most and felt not only was our movement intolerant of the Jewish community, but also those brave staff, Jewish or otherwise, had been bullied and harassed.
“I just thought this is unrecognisable to me as the party.”
But Ms Phillips doubts she could have made much of a difference if she had left.
(Image: PA)
She told LBC’s James O’Brien: “If I hadn’t stayed, I would have just been replaced by somebody who might not have spoken up.
“You have to focus on the outcome. You have to focus on what you want to see changed.
“Now, I could change nothing from the outside and those that walked away, incredibly courageously, it felt for those of us that stayed that it barely moved the dial.
“And so I stayed.”
