John McDonnell urges regulator to rethink decision to clear Campaign Against Antisemitism

Former Shadow Chancellor John McDonnell MP has criticised the UK’s Charity Commission for closing a probe into the Campaign Against Antisemitism (CAA), a charity that described the government’s decision to restore funding for the UN's agency for Palestinian refugees as “obscene”.

According to the UK's charity law, an organisation cannot be a charity "if its purposes are political". The CAA has been accused of political partisanship.

In April 2020, Jewish Voice for Labour (JVL) filed a complaint with the Charity Commission against the CAA, accusing it of acting as a "highly politically partisan organisation which does not deserve charitable status".

JVL alleged that the CAA had persistently conflated antisemitism with criticism of Israel and accused Labour Party activists of antisemitism with "minimal" supporting evidence.

The CAA, which was founded in 2015 and says it is "dedicated to exposing and countering antisemitism", played a leading role in antisemitism allegations against the Labour Party under Jeremy Corbyn’s leadership and has since pursued complaints against Labour MPs.

John McDonnell protest winter fuel allowance — Independent MP John McDonnell speaks at a protest outside parliament against the cut to the winter fuel allowance, in central London on 7 October 2024 (AFP)