Starmer defends delay in suspending parliamentary candidates over Israel comments
Starmer defends delay in suspending Rochdale by-election candidate Azhar Ali over Israel remarksBBC Breakfast
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00:00 I did something that no leader of the Labour Party has ever done before,
00:05 which is to remove a candidate in a by-election where they cannot be replaced,
00:11 because I was so determined to take decisive action in relation to anti-Semitism.
00:15 Was it quick?
00:16 It's a remi... Well...
00:17 A decision is a decision. You can say it's decisive. You did it.
00:19 Was it quick enough? It was decisive.
00:21 It's never been done before. Was it done quickly enough?
00:23 Look, it was done within days.
00:26 And I think it was... To remove a candidate in a by-election
00:30 who cannot be replaced is not a small matter.
00:33 It's not the same as simply removing a whip.
00:35 It is a massive decision for any political leader to take.
00:38 I think that's an offensive comment against a candidate.
00:40 Because, in effect, we are giving up a Labour seat.
00:44 Now, it's the right thing to do, but what it shows is,
00:47 when there's tough decisions to be made, I take those decisions.
00:51 That's what I've been doing for four years,
00:52 taking tough and ruthless decisions to change this party.