• JUDGING from his letter (The Labour conference message to the Palestinians is clear, October 28) Richard Kuper challenges Mike Katz’s earlier assumptions (Jewish members no longer feel unwanted in the Labour Party, October 14) that the Equality and Human Rights Commission report Investigation into antisemitism in the Labour Party was stark or rigid in substance.

If (just a few) of the main EHRC findings below are not stark or substantive one does wonder what is.

EHRC’s October 2020 Investigation findings stated: “We found evidence of political interference in the handling of antisemitism complaints throughout the period of the investigation. We have concluded that this practice of political interference was unlawful. The evidence shows that staff from the Leader of the Opposition’s Office (LOTO) were able to influence decisions on complaints, especially decisions on whether to suspend someone. Sometimes these decisions were made because of likely press interest rather than any clear formal criteria…

“We found evidence of a significant number of complaints relating to antisemitism that were not investigated at all; this is especially true for complaints about social media activity where the Labour Party previously adopted a policy of not investigating mere ‘likes’ or reposts. Where matters were investigated, the guidance on appropriate sanctions was unclear and inconsistent…

“We found specific examples of harassment, discrimination and political interference in our evidence, but equally of concern was a lack of leadership within the Labour Party on these issues, which is hard to reconcile with its stated commitment to a zero-tolerance approach to antisemitism. The Labour Party must live up to this commitment and acknowledge the impact that multiple investigations and years of failing to tackle antisemitism has had on Jewish people…

“We find that the Labour Party has failed to address antisemitism within the Party in a way that demonstrates its stated commitment to zero tolerance, or that ensures all Jewish members feel welcome and can be confident that antisemitism will be dealt with effectively.”

WILLIAM MACH, NW11