Labour has suspended a councillor who said “Zionists' attempts to influence our political processes” were “racist” because of their “effects on the Palestinian nation”.

The JC understands that Councillor Andy Kay, a now former cabinet member of Blackburn with Darwen Council, a unitary local authority in Lancashire, has been suspended by the party pending an investigation.

Cllr Kay also said in a Facebook post in 2014 that “Jewish leaders are worse than Nazis”. The Daily Mail reported in December that this post was “liked” by Jeremy Corbyn’s private parliamentary secretary Kate Hollern.

She apologised, saying she was “sincerely sorry”.

In another post from 2018, Cllr Kay shared an article that called Labour’s antisemitism crisis a “blatant attempt to undermine Corbyn’s leadership”.

He added: “Zionists' attempts to influence our political processes is nothing short of racist in its effects on the Palestinian nation.”

In the comments section of the same post, Cllr Kay became involved in a debate over the IHRA definition of antisemitism.

When asked why he thought Jews did not have the right to self-determination, he replied: “I was taught that Judaism was/is a religion, not a nation. In fact one of the tenets of Judaism prohibits the nation state… but I suppose that also depends on which wing of the fantasy you believe.”

Three days later, Cllr Kay shared article that claimed the IHRA definition was “designed by Israeli propagandists to aid their many mass lobby attempts to stop international solidarity with the Palestinians” and said that “creating a largely-mythical anti-Semitism ‘crisis’ in the Labour Party is one of the few tools left to ailing and desperate establishment hacks wanting to smear Corbyn and maintain UK support for Israel”.

In July 2019, Cllr Kay shared another article – which he claimed was “food for thought….. real thought!” – that alleged Labour's antisemitism crisis was part of a “disgraceful environment” of “disinformation and downright lies cooked up by those with vested interests and promoted by the billionaire offshore owners of the press and fellow travellers such as Ruth Smeeth”.

A Labour spokesperson said: “The Labour Party takes all complaints of antisemitism extremely seriously and they are fully investigated in line with our rules and procedures, and any appropriate disciplinary action is taken.”

After this article was published, Blackburn with Darwen Council informed the JC that Cllr Kay has stood down from his cabinet post as executive member for finance and governance.

Denise Park, Chief Executive of Blackburn with Darwen Council, added: “The Council has its own, separate processes to follow in relation to elected member conduct. We consult with an experienced, independent professional to help inform our decisions within the legal powers we have. 

“Our vision for the borough is for a strong, cohesive and prosperous community, where everyone is treated fairly, where people’s faith and cultures are understood and respected.”

Cllr Kay did not respond to a request for comment.