Asked by: Lord Wasserman (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to their announcement in the Autumn Statement to make up to £7 million available to tackle antisemitism in schools and universities, whether they intend to allocate some of those funds to the University Jewish Chaplaincy, a charity which employs professional chaplains to provide support to Jewish students.
Answered by Baroness Barran - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
Following the Autumn Statement announcement, the government is preparing to issue an invitation for interested organisations to tender for contracts to tackle antisemitism in schools, colleges and universities. The tender process will be run in accordance with the Public Contract Regulations 2015. The University Jewish Chaplaincy may wish to consider submitting a bid in response to the invitation to tender.
Asked by: Lord Taylor of Warwick (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government, following the demonstration against antisemitism which took place in London on 26 November, what steps they are taking to (1) combat hate crimes, and (2) ensure safety for minority communities.
Answered by Lord Sharpe of Epsom - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)
This Government is clear that all forms of hate crime are completely unacceptable. We have a robust legislative framework and expect the police and CPS to fully investigate these abhorrent offences and ensure perpetrators are brought to justice. We are supporting the police by providing them with the resources they need, including having recruited 20,000 additional police officers by March 2023. We expect the police to enforce the law where appropriate to protect communities and maintain public order.
In response to the spikes in antisemitic and anti-Muslim hatred across the UK as a result of the ongoing Israel-Hamas conflict, we are providing the Community Security Trust (CST) with additional funding of £3 million to provide security at Jewish schools, synagogues and other Jewish community sites, bringing total funding for CST through the Jewish Community Protective Security Grant to £18 million in 2023/24.
This level will be maintained for 2024/25. The Government is also providing £7 million over the next three years to ensure that more support is in place for schools and universities to tackle antisemitism. We have made £4.9 million available to provide additional protective security at mosques and Muslim faith schools, bringing the total funding to £29.4 million this year; this level of funding will also be maintained for 2024/25. In January 2023, the Department for Education invited headteachers of all DfE-registered Muslim faith schools to register for protective security measures: 116 Muslim faith schools have enrolled to date.
Asked by: Naz Shah (Labour - Bradford West)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, how much funding his Department has provided to tackle anti-semitism since 2010.
Answered by Lee Rowley - Minister of State (Minister for Housing)
I refer the Hon Member to my answer to Questions UIN 2961 on 29 November 2023, Question UIN 201247 on 23 October 2023 and Question UIN 117512 on 16 January 2023. As set out previously, antisemitism and anti-Muslim hatred have no place in our society and we will continue to fund programmes that help tackle all forms of religious hatred.
Asked by: Naz Shah (Labour - Bradford West)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling up, Housing and Communities, how much funding his Department has provided to tackle islamophobia since 2010.
Answered by Lee Rowley - Minister of State (Minister for Housing)
I refer the Hon Member to my answer to Questions UIN 2961 on 29 November 2023, Question UIN 201247 on 23 October 2023 and Question UIN 117512 on 16 January 2023. As set out previously, antisemitism and anti-Muslim hatred have no place in our society and we will continue to fund programmes that help tackle all forms of religious hatred.
Asked by: Matthew Offord (Conservative - Hendon)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to tackle antisemitism in higher education.
Answered by Robert Halfon
The department is deeply concerned about the increase in antisemitic incidents on campuses since the horrific 7 October 2023 terrorist attacks against Israel. This government takes antisemitism extremely seriously. That is why on 22 November, my right hon. Friend, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, announced in his Autumn 2023 Statement an additional £7 million over 3 years to tackle antisemitism in education.
My right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Education, and I wrote to all schools, colleges and universities on 11 October, urging them to respond swiftly to hate-related incidents and actively reassure Jewish students that they can study without fear of harassment or intimidation. I wrote again to Vice Chancellors on 16 November, further emphasising the use of disciplinary measures against perpetrators and the importance of police engagement, as well as the suspension of student visas where the student is a foreign national. This was one of the key actions I set out in the five-point plan for tackling antisemitism in higher education, which was published on 5 November. Details of the plan can be found here: https://educationhub.blog.gov.uk/2023/11/05/how-were-protecting-jewish-students-on-university-campuses/.
On 21 November, the Secretary of State and I attended a round table hosted by the Union of Jewish Students, at University College London, where we heard directly about the impact of antisemitism on campus.
The department continues to remind providers of their obligations under the Prevent duty, where they should be working to prevent people from being drawn into or supporting terrorism. Departmental officials have assessed evidence of antisemitism and racial hatred linked to incidents at English universities. There is an online ’Reporting Extremism’ form where members of the public can raise concerns to the department directly. Where concerns have arisen, officials have reached out to the relevant universities to understand what actions they have taken, including reporting issues to the police where appropriate.
Asked by: Dan Carden (Labour - Liverpool, Walton)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what steps he is taking to tackle (a) antisemitism and (b) Islamophobia.
Answered by Lee Rowley - Minister of State (Minister for Housing)
As set out previously, antisemitism and anti-Muslim hatred are abhorrent and have no place in our community. No one should be a victim of hatred because of who they are. Since the appalling terrorist attacks of 7 October in Israel we have seen a sharp increase in reported antisemitic incidents here in the UK. We have also seen a rise in anti-Muslim hatred and other racist and religiously motivated incidents.
The Government has announced an additional £3 million for the CST to provide additional security at Jewish schools, synagogues and other sites. Tell MAMA are our key partner working to monitor and support victims of anti-Muslim hatred and we have allocated over £6 million since 2012.
Asked by: Dan Jarvis (Labour - Barnsley Central)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what recent assessment he has made of the potential merits of introducing multi-year funding for the Community Security Trust.
Answered by Tom Tugendhat - Minister of State (Home Office) (Security)
In March 2023, the Home Secretary announced the continuation of the Jewish Community Protective Security (JCPS) Grant, which provides security to Jewish schools, synagogues and other community sites. The JCPS Grant is managed on behalf of the Home Office by the Community Security Trust.
In response to the Israel/Hamas conflict and reports of increased incidents of antisemitism in the UK, the Prime Minister announced additional funding of £3 million, bringing total funding for CST in 2023/24 to £18 million. The Chancellor’s Autumn Statement confirmed that protective security funding for the Jewish community will be maintained at £18 million in 2024/25.
We continue to keep protective security funding mechanisms for faith communities under review, and any arrangements for future years will be announced in due course.
The Government is also investing up to a further £7 million over the next three years for organisations like the Holocaust Educational Trust to help tackle antisemitism. This funding will ensure support is in place for schools and universities to understand, recognise, and deal with antisemitism effectively.
Asked by: Matthew Offord (Conservative - Hendon)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps he is taking to help ensure the safety of Jewish communities.
Answered by Tom Tugendhat - Minister of State (Home Office) (Security)
In March 2023, the Home Secretary announced the continuation of the Jewish Community Protective Security Grant (JCPSG) and increased funding for 2023/24 by £1 million, to a total of £15 million. The JCPSG provides protective security measures (such as guarding, CCTV and alarm systems) at Jewish schools and other Jewish community sites. The Grant is managed on behalf of the Home Office by the Community Security Trust (CST).
In response to the conflict and reports of increased incidents of antisemitism in the UK, the Prime Minister has announced additional funding of £3 million for CST to provide additional security at Jewish schools, synagogues and other Jewish Community sites. This brings the total funding for CST in FY2023/24 to £18 million.
Earlier this year, the Home Secretary established the Jewish Community Crime, Policing and Security Taskforce. The Taskforce allows the Jewish community, represented by the Community Security Trust, to raise concerns to the Home Office, law enforcement and partners, and work together to understand and address the concerns of the Jewish community on safety and security issues.
The government is also investing up to a further £7 million over the next three years for organisations like the Holocaust Educational Trust to help tackle antisemitism. This funding will ensure support is in place for schools and universities to understand, recognise, and deal with antisemitism effectively.
Asked by: Tobias Ellwood (Conservative - Bournemouth East)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps his Department is taking to help ensure the safety of (a) Jewish and (b) Muslim communities in the UK in the context of the war in Gaza.
Answered by Chris Philp - Minister of State (Home Office)
In response to the conflict and reports of increased incidents of antisemitism in the UK, the Prime Minister has announced additional funding of £3 million for the Community Security Trust (CST) to provide additional security at Jewish schools, synagogues and other Jewish community sites, bringing total funding for CST, through the Jewish Community Protective Security Grant, to £18 million in 2023/24. The Chancellor’s Autumn Statement confirmed that protective security funding for the Jewish community will be maintained at £18 million in 2024/25.
Earlier this year, we established the Jewish Community Crime, Policing and Security Taskforce. The Taskforce, chaired by the Home Secretary, allows the Jewish community, represented by CST, to raise concerns with the Home Office, law enforcement and partners, and work together to understand and address the concerns of the Jewish community on safety and security issues. We continue to work closely with CST on how best to respond to live incidents that affect the Jewish communities in the UK.
The Prime Minister has made clear we stand with British Muslim communities. We will not tolerate anti-Muslim hatred in any form and seek to stamp it out wherever it occurs. I can now confirm that additional funding of £4.9 million will also be made available to provide additional protective security at mosques and Muslim faith schools in light of increased reports of anti-Muslim hate incidents. This brings the total funding to £29.4 million for both 2023/24 and 2024/25. We have also extended the deadline for the Protective Security for Mosques Scheme and invite UK mosques and Muslim faith community centres to register for protective security measures by the end of December.
The Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities has also allocated over £6 million to Tell MAMA since their inception in 2012 for their vital work monitoring and supporting victims of anti-Muslim hatred.
Asked by: Peter Kyle (Labour - Hove)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, with reference to the Answer of 7 November to Question 333 on Social Media: Antisemitism, if she will publish the written responses of the social media companies.
Answered by Saqib Bhatti - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The Government agreed to keep written summaries confidential. These summaries contain commercially sensitive information, as well as information about special measures put in place to tackle content related to the conflict, which could be exploited by bad actors if published.
However, the Government has been clear with platforms that they should be adequately protecting their users. The Government is in regular contact with platforms as part of the process of closely monitoring their responses. The Government also convened social media platforms and community groups to facilitate direct feedback about the impact of this content.