Labour group in racism and sex harassment storm told to have equality training

The Labour group which controls Enfield council has been told to undergo “equality training” following allegations of racism, sexual harassment and intimidation.  

The national party made the recommendation after a four-month investigation into numerous complaints concerning factions in the Enfield Labour Group.

Sources close to the council’s cabinet claimed racism was “out of control” in the north London party. Most recently a councillor was suspended from the group after allegedly sharing an anti-Semitic tweet. 

The row is a fresh blow to Labour, which has faced months of criticism over its response to anti-Jewish abuse.

Nine MPs including Enfield North’s Joan Ryan quit the party earlier this year, many of them citing the leadership’s handling of anti-Semitism. Ms Ryan joined the Independent Group of MPs, claiming that Labour had “become infected with the scourge of anti-Jewish racism”.

Rows started in Enfield after elections last summer when it was claimed that five black councillors seeking reselection were deselected.

Several members of the Turkish and Kurdish community took up positions on the council, helping end the 10-year-rule of the previous administration. However, a number of councillors, including cabinet members, wrote to Labour’s general secretary Jennie Formby calling for an investigation into the candidate selection process, alleging “irregularities”. 

Meanwhile, Turkish-speaking councillors complained to the party about discrimination towards them. It is understood councillors have received hate mail and incidents have been referred to the police. 

A source said: “The Labour Party has just about had enough of it. It’s all come to a head. We have an issue with racism. There are all sorts of smear campaigns. It’s just appalling, really out of control.” 

The source denied the deselection claims and said there had been a smear campaign against the new young council leader, Nesil Caliskan, and her administration.

The party’s National Executive Committee has now issued 13 recommendations to help foster “good inter-community relationships” in the Enfield party. This includes equality training and developing a programme to encourage black and Asian people to stand as candidates.

It also said formal mentoring should be put in place for councillors who need support and that a representative of the Association of Labour Councillors should observe all Labour group meetings for at least six months. 

It said sexual harassment cases should be dealt with under the party’s sexual harassment procedures.  

A letter from the Labour Party’s Governance and Legal Unit said: “We received a number of allegations that will need to be referred into the disputes process and where there is evidence of a potential breach of rules individuals will be investigated by the Governance and Legal Unit.”

Tory councillor and opposition leader Joanne Laban called it a “shocking state of affairs”, adding: “The fact that the central Labour Party has recommended that the Enfield Labour Group needs to undergo equality training because of alleged discrimination is damning.”

Ms Caliskan said: “I am aware that the Labour Party have received many complaints from Enfield, including from myself, prompting the NEC to investigate. The NEC have provided a list of recommendations to ensure the highest of standards are met across Enfield.”

A spokesman for the London Labour Party said they carried out a “thorough and extensive” inquiry involving Labour councillors, the Constituency Labour Parties and local campaign forums.