She went on to say that Starmer needed “to step up to the plate, if he wants to be taken seriously as the person who builds the Labour brand and takes us to a general election victory.”
And she added: “I know some will think he is going to give us a biased reply because his wife is Jewish, but we have to give him the benefit of the doubt.
“When you are leader of a party as big and complex as ours, then you need to show leadership, especially through difficult times.”
The JC understands that Bi was issued with a formal reminder and the Labour Party’s values and conduct policies, but will remain as a sitting Labour councillor.
After being contacted following the JC’s revelation, Councillor Bi has since offered an apology for her words.
[Missing Credit]Bushra Bi (Birmingham City Council)
“I sincerely apologise for the comments I made in this email from two years ago. At the time, I did not fully understand the impact of my words. Although I never intended to cause offence, I recognise that this doesn’t excuse my actions. I am committed to learning from this and ensuring it does not happen again”, she said in a statement.
Following the revelation another Birmingham Labour councillor, who asked to remain anonymous, told the JC: “Antisemitism remains an issue for some in the Labour Party in Birmingham. Comments like this are deeply troubling because they echo antisemitic stereotypes.
"Our politics must be grounded in respect and inclusion — not assumptions about someone’s faith or their family.”
Jewish communal organisations have also called for further action, claiming the reprimand was too lenient.
The Jewish Leadership Council said: “It is unacceptable for a sitting Labour councillor in Birmingham to suggest the prime minister may be biased towards Israel ‘because his wife is Jewish’. Such a message, sent to all Labour councillors, must be condemned by the Labour Party and subject to consequential disciplinary action.”
A spokesperson for the group continued: “Coupled with the disgraceful scenes of hate outside Villa Park last Thursday, these incidents highlight a deeply concerning theme within local Birmingham politics.”
The Labour Party declined to answer questions about whether the party knew about Bi’s comments before the JC approached them for comment or to expand on what her comments said about attitudes within the Labour group on Birmingham city council.
It comes after a similar case when, in 2016, the JC reported that a Labour councillor avoided disciplinary action despite sharing a video by American white supremacist David Duke on social media.
Zafar Iqbal, who is now the Lord Mayor of Birmingham, apologised at the time for sharing a video linking CNN, Goldman Sachs & the “Zio Matrix” with a description claiming the clip “reveals how the Zionist Matrix of Power controls Media, Politics and Banking”.
He said that he had “no recollection of sharing this video and had no idea how it was shared on my Facebook page” and apologised “to anyone who was affected by seeing this material”, but remained a Labour councillor, leading to criticism from the Board of Deputies.
In the same year, Labour councillor Waseem Zaffar MBE – whom the JC recently revealed was on the Safety Advisory Group that banned Maccabi Tel Aviv fans from attending their team’s clash with Aston Villa earlier this month – was “reminded of his responsibilities as a Labour councillor” by the party after claiming that government support for Israel fuels support for extremist groups, such as Isis.
A spokesperson for the Labour Party told the JC: "The Labour Party has zero tolerance of antisemitism. Under Keir Starmer's leadership, we have transformed our party with robust processes to deal with complaints swiftly and appropriately. We are committed to being a safe and welcoming home for the Jewish community.
"The Labour Party expects the highest standards from our members and elected representatives. All complaints are assessed thoroughly in line with our rules and procedures.”
