British Parliament in London
British Parliament in LondonRennett Stowe

British Jewish lawmaker Luciana Berger is rejoining the Labour Party after resigning in protest at the handling of antisemitism allegations four years ago, the BBC reported.

Berger was one of several MPs to leave Labour in spring 2019, saying she was "embarrassed and ashamed" to stay.

She has now accepted an apology from Sir Keir Starmer, who said there had been a "litany of failures", according to the BBX.

The former Liverpool Wavertree MP said the party had now "turned a significant corner" under Sir Keir's leadership, adding, "I'm pleased to be returning to my political home."

Berger formed The Independent Group with several other Labour and Conservative MPs when she left her party, saying there had been a "sea of cases" of antisemitism and that complaints had been brushed under the carpet.

She later joined the Liberal Democrats and was chosen to contest the seat of Finchley and Golders Green, but failed to win the vote.

Starmer said he was "delighted" Berger had accepted his invitation to rejoin the party, writing on Twitter, "My test for change was whether those who were rightly appalled by how far we had fallen believe this is their party again.

"I know we've more to do but we're unrecognizable from the party that forced her out," he added.

The Labour Party came under fire under former leader Jeremy Corbyn, both over Corbyn’s own antisemitism as well as the rise in anti-Jewish rhetoric within the party.

Dozens of Labour members have been suspended over their antisemitic statements in recent years, while the party has been criticized for its failure to deal with the antisemitism within it.

Corbyn stepped down after the Labour Party had its poorest showing since 1935 in the elections. He was later suspended from Labour following the publication of a report which found numerous cases where the party leadership under Corbyn underplayed, belittled or ignored complaints by Jewish members, and sometimes actively interfered to support political allies.

Starmer, who became party leader after Corbyn stepped down, apologized shortly after being elected for how the Labour Party has handled antisemitism within its ranks and committed to making change.

He later committed to setting up an independent complaints process for anti-Semitism in the party, saying it is “very important to me to seek to address the disgrace of anti-Semitism in our party as soon as possible.”