THE leader of Haringey Independent Socialist councillors has said the group was right to quit Labour on the first anniversary of its establishment.

Lotte Collet said that Labour’s conduct both locally and nationally vindicated their decision to strike out independently, a move finally triggered by Keir Starmer’s support for Israel’s Gaza genocide.

She said: “At the local level, the council leadership has provoked a strike by its directly employed building workers and has pursued a programme of cuts in the library service that has been roundly condemned by library user groups.

“At the international level, the local Labour MP David Lammy has been shown to be inept in not being able to call out the genocide in Gaza.

“Starmer is complicit in allowing UK-based weapons manufacturers to continue to arm Israel in its expansionist war in Gaza, the West Bank and elsewhere in the Middle East.”

The Haringey independent socialists are among more than 100 councillors who left Labour over Gaza. 

Many also signed the statement issued by former Labour leader and independent MP Jeremy Corbyn and others criticising the shortcomings in last week’s Budget.