Jewish community leaders in Liverpool have condemned the language used by two city councillors comparing a railway station to Auschwitz, as their group leader confirmed they would not be suspended.
Former Lord Mayor Cllr Richard Kemp has refused to back down amid condemnation of his remarks about Sandhills station and Auschwitz. He now faces calls to be suspended alongside Liberal Democrat colleague Cllr Pat Moloney, who said the corralling zones and sterile areas proposed for staff and fans was “like something out of a horrific death camp in Nazi Germany”.
Cllr Kemp told the ECHO he stood by his assessment, while Cllr Moloney said he would apologise if he had caused offence. Members of the city’s Jewish community have urged the former Lord Mayor to think again after reacting angrily to the remarks. Cllr Carl Cashman, leader of the Liverpool Liberal Democrat group, said neither of the men would lose the whip for their comments.
Comments made during planning debate
During a debate in yesterday’s Liverpool Council planning committee, which would have led to an extension of the existing queuing area, Cllr Kemp was critical of the time it had taken for improvements to be made at Sandhills. He said: “It’s now nine years since the passenger transport authority knew there was going to be a new stadium.
“Last year you introduced something which the mayor (Steve Rotheram) announced as pens, which to me were like the greeting area for Auschwitz. Absolutely disgraceful.”
Cllr Moloney asked Merseyrail representatives: “Why didn’t you get this right the first time, because this is a major change?” He added: “The language is appalling and dehumanising; a corralling area, a sterile zone, this is human beings we’re talking about here.
“This is like something out of a horrific death camp in Nazi Germany. Really, this just amazes me.”
Jewish leaders react
The comments were condemned by Mr Rotheram and Cllr Liam Robinson, leader of the Labour group and city council. They have written to Sir Ed Davey, leader of the Liberal Democrats, calling for both councillors to be suspended pending investigation.
Jeremy Wolfson, chair of the Merseyside Jewish Representative Council, called on Cllr Kemp to think again. He said: “It’s absolutely appalling, he should absolutely apologise.
“I lost family members in the Holocaust; cousins, great-grandparents, it’s a very sensitive issue. I know he (Richard Kemp) will understand the strength of feeling but this is incomparable, it was more than a genocide.
“To compare it to that is appalling. It’s not comparable to people being taken away to be murdered.
“Using language like that, it shows an ignorance of history and an insensitivity towards those who suffered real hardship. Cllr Kemp should think carefully about using throwaway comments in the future.
“It’s not something to compare, it’s madness. I don’t know where they’re getting this from, I’m shocked.”
David Coleman, administrator of the Allerton Synagogue, said: “It’s absolutely despicable that they could use that sort of language and to not apologise shows a lack of understanding of what the Jewish community has been through and is going through now. I would have thought Richard Kemp would know better.
“I understand what they’re saying about fans being corralled on matchdays but the comparison about death camps is something totally different. I think Richard should apologise, he understands the community well and would have known he would upset people.”
Lib Dem leader confirms no suspension
Cllr Cashman confirmed to the ECHO he would not remove the whip from either of his colleagues despite calls to do so. He said: “What happened last year was Steve Rotheram introduced his fan zone for Sandhills, the people of Liverpool called it a cattle pen at the time and we echoed those concerns and in particular Evertonians.
“They’ve had eight to 10 years to sort this and they couldn’t put together a decent system to get them to and from the stadium. There’s very strong language that’s been used and I probably wouldn’t have used it myself but I understand where the emotion has come from.
“The person who has questions to answer over this is the mayor. The combined authority has put in a subpar planning application and has overseen a dangerous situation for fans with no planning or forethought for them.
“This is why Labour have become so unpopular in Liverpool, they treat people’s concerns with contempt. It’s complete false outrage by two politicians who are out of their depth.
“Labour councillors voted for the Lib Dem councillors’ motion to have a site visit because of how bad the planning application was, so Labour councillors have agreed with Lib Dems that this is so sub par and dangerous that they want to go out and visit the site themselves.”
