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Labour councillor who downplayed antisemitism against Luciana Berger accused of bullying women
David Cummings reduced one colleague to tears in public
March 22, 2019 13:11
David Cummings reduced one colleague to tears in public
March 22, 2019 13:11A Labour councillor who sought to play down claims of antisemitism against MP Luciana Berger is the subject of complaints that he bullied women, it has emerged.
After Ms Berger quit Labour accusing it of "institutional antisemitism", David Cummings - a councillor in her Liverpool Wavertree constituency - told the New York Times: “I have never experienced any antisemitism in regards to Luciana Berger.”
He added: “It has always been a Labour government that addressed racism.
“I’m proud of that. I’m a socialist. I’m an internationalist. When you’re a socialist you recognise everybody, you don’t judge anyone on anyone’s background.”
But it has now emerged Cllr Cummings received five formal complaints in a short period last year, from fellow Labour councillors, party members and members of the public - with accusations that his behaviour was "volatile and aggressive".
The Liverpool Echo reported that all the complaints had come from women.
Concerns over Cllr Cummings' behaviour were raised again this week after he spoke out against fellow Wavertree Labour Councillor Clare McIntyre at a Labour group meeting.
Cllr McIntyre, who has defended Jewish MP Ms Berger in the past, was left in tears after being publicly criticised for comments she made in a recent Guardian article about bullying she said was taking place within the Wavertree Constituency Labour Party.
Following on from the five complaints made last year, Cllr McIntyre has raised the issue a further three times, most recently taking it up with Labour's regional office.
That latest email, sent to Labour's north west regional director Anna Hutchinson, says: "I have been raising complaints about David Cummings since October 2017.
"During a Labour group meeting last night he verbally abused me, named me and claimed I am damaging his election chances. He reduced me to tears in a public setting."
She adds: "My self confidence and self esteem are shattered and I am really struggling with stress. He did this knowing that he has has had a formal written warning."
The Echo reported it had seen complaints and accusations levelled at Cllr Cummings going back as far as December 2017 about his "volatile and aggressive" behaviour.
The paper reported it had reached Cllr Cummings by phone and he called the allegations "absolute lies".
He told the paper: "I have had no written warning, I haven't seen anybody. It is all unfounded lies."
