It's time to speak up: what the Prime Minister should be saying on anti-Semitism
I speak to you today on a matter I now consider to be a national emergency.
It is said that the greatest test of a democracy is not the experience of the majority but the way in which it protects the rights and wellbeing of the minority.
In the UK today, there are under 300,000 Jews. Jewish people make up just 0.5 per cent of our population. They are a tiny group who contribute a great deal to public life and communities across the nation.
I must tell you today that Britain is failing its Jewish community.
I also tell you that I am drawing a line in the sand. The Jew-hate we are seeing in our country must end now – and as the Prime Minister I am personally going to lead the fight against anti-Semitism.
For those who would like to pretend that racial hatred of Jews is not a very serious problem in our society today, let me put you straight.
We are seeing it on the streets of Britain on a weekly basis. Just last weekend, large numbers of protestors in London chanted 'F--- your Jewish State'. Note the language here. Not opposition to the war Israel is fighting but a direct attack on Jews. An open display of racism.
The war between Israel and Hamas has divided opinion. I know that. But it should never be an excuse for the Jew-hate that is creeping its way into the fabric of our society and our national institutions.
Take schools. More than half of Jewish teachers have reported anti-Semitic abuse since the war in Gaza began. They are finding swastika graffiti in the classroom and facing chants of 'F--- the Jews'. Some teachers are even fearful of disclosing their religion at work. This is entirely unacceptable. It should shame us all.
Then there's the NHS. Jewish patients have been abused and left in fear, Jewish doctors and nurses have faced discrimination. In one case a nurse was confronted with the anti-Semitic trope of Jews 'drinking blood'. It is hard to believe this is happening in our caring professions. Institutional blindness to anti-Semitism must end now.
The question we must all ask ourselves is: how do we stop this hate in its tracks? It requires leadership, courage and conviction and I am prepared to show it.
Today I announce a National Inquiry on Anti-Semitism. It will be tasked with collecting evidence and providing recommendations for urgent national change. It will build on the excellent work led by Lord Mann and Penny Mordaunt for the Board of Deputies of British Jews. I am not prepared to wait long for this. It must report back to me directly in six months.
In the meantime, I am tasking ministers and civil servants across the land to make a difference right now. I will be asking them: what have you done this week to tackle anti-Semitism?
I will make sure that there is zero tolerance of Jew-hate in our education system, whether the perpetrators are teachers or students. Any university lecturer or schoolteacher proven to have displayed anti-Semitism should be fired. Any student or pupil should face the strongest of disciplinary processes. Holocaust education is already part of the national curriculum. I announce here that compulsory education on anti-Semitism will join it.
In our health system, I will ensure that Jewish people can feel as confident in the care they receive as every other citizen of our nation. Again, those proven to have been racist against Jews or provided an inferior service based on race should lose their jobs. They should have no place representing our nation through our public services. Wes Streeting has shown leadership by pledging decisive change in the NHS on anti-Semitism. I support his ambition and will monitor results closely.
Discrimination in the arts must end now too. The cancellation of Jewish artists and performers and the silent boycotting of their work will not be permissible. I call on local councils to withdraw the licences of any venues that discriminate against Jews. I will also ensure that any publicly-funded arts institution guilty of permitting anti-Semitism will no longer receive government money.
I want the nation to know that I am making a personal commitment to fighting Jew-hate in our society, just as I did in rooting out anti-Semitism from the Labour Party. I am not prepared for the legacy of this Government to be a failure to stamp out this poisonous racism.
It is not who we in Britain are. We are better than that. Our values are better than that. Our democracy is better than that.
The change starts now.
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