Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask Her Majesty’s Government, in the light of the report by the Community Security Trust <i>Antisemitic Incidents</i> which reported an increase in antisemitic incidents in 2016, what action they are taking (1) to protect the UK Jewish community, and (2) to promote a culture of tolerance and inclusion.

The Government takes the security of the Jewish community in the United Kingdom very seriously and recently announced a £13.4 million contribution for 2017/18 to the Community Security Trust. The Trust provides security guards and protection to independent and state Jewish schools, nurseries, synagogues and community sites.

Our cross-government working group to tackle anti-Semitism ensures that we are alive to any new issues and concerns the Jewish community might have and that we can respond quickly and effectively. In December 2016, the United Kingdom became the first European Union country to formally adopt the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance working definition of anti-Semitism. We recently published a progress report on our efforts to tackle anti-Semitism (attached) which can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/anti-semitism-update The Government’s Hate Crime Action Plan and integration programme set out our actions to prevent hate crime and promote cohesion more broadly.