Eddie Izzard urges Labour to eradicate "the stain of anti-Semitism"

Newly appointed Labour NEC member Eddie Izzard has urged the party to eradicate "the stain of anti-Semitism" as a row over the party’s handling of the issue rumbles on.

The comedian was drafted onto the party’s powerful ruling body after Christine Shawcroft stood down over her defence of a member accused of Holocaust denial.

Izzard said in a statement: "This is a very important time for the Labour Party and we must stamp out completely the stain of anti-Semitism from a minority of members. It has no place in our party.

"We must make amends and repair the damage with the Jewish community as Jeremy Corbyn has promised to do."

Shawcroft resigned from the National Executive Committee after it was revealed that she had defended Labour candidate, Alan Bull, who posted an article claiming the Holocaust was a hoax.

In a statement she said her continued membership of the NEC had “become a distraction for the party and an excuse for endless intrusive media harassment of myself, my family and friends”.

She added that she would continue to pledge her “full energy to securing for our country the Labour government under Jeremy Corbyn that it so desperately needs”.

Izzard will take Shawcroft’s place on the committee until the summer when there will be a fresh contest for the seat.

Meanwhile, it emerged yesterday that the Labour leader had deleted his old Facebook account following criticism of comments he posted in the past and controversial groups he was a member of.

Corbyn has come under fire for opposing the removal of an anti-Semitic mural in a Facebook post in 2012.

It also emerged last month that Labour had launched a probe into anti-Semitic messages on the Palestine Live, one of several Facebook groups the party leader was added to in the past.