Caplin promises Action Not Words!

Former MP for Hove and Portslade elected Chair of The Jewish Labour Movement.

IVOR Caplin has been elected the new Chair of The Jewish Labour Movement at a key point in the history of both the movement but also The Labour Party itself. The party has recently been beset with accusations of anti-Semitism deep within its ranks, a fact Mr. Caplin did not shy away from in his acceptance speech to the movement at their AGM on June 13.

He said: “There is no place in our Party or our country for anti-Semitism. Across our country this is affecting our electoral performance and Labour’s once fine reputation as a party of fairness. There is no hiding place and we must be prepared to call out anti-Semitism whenever it occurs”.

Born in Brighton into a Jewish Family, Caplin was elected to Hove Borough Council as was in 1991. He helped secure Labour’s control of the council in 1995 and sat as its leader until Brighton and Hove merged.

Elected to the new joint council in 1996 he sat as deputy leader until his resignation in 1998. Elected to parliament in Hove and Portslade as part of the legendary Labour landslide in 1997 under the leadership of Tony Blair, Caplin remained in parliament until he stepped down in 2005 to run his own consultancy company. His time in local politics was not without controversy, he was the subject of much local ire when he refused to take receipt of an anti-war petition from the people of Hove after the invasion of Iraq.

Describing himself as a pragmatic politician and one with a strong voting record with the establishment of The Labour Party when in Government, he has voted favourably with the majority of pro-LGBT+ related legislative changes brought in by the Blair led government including the abolishment of Section 28 and reduction of the age of consent to 16 in line with heterosexual relationships.

Of his role ahead Caplin says: “The Jewish Labour Movement has to be focused on outcomes not processes and ensuring those outcomes are to the benefit of our members and the wider Party. This will make us more electable in both local and national Government”.