Starmer blasted for ‘failing to deal with rampant extremism’ yet again

Sir Keir Starmer has been accused of failing to tackle ‘rampant Islamism’ with the Government’s ‘timid’ response to anti-Semitism.

The Prime Minister has admitted in a new report that anti-Semitism has ‘increased in recent years’ and in many cases stems from ‘hatred of Israel, the world’s only Jewish state’.

He said some people were using protests against the Israeli government’s response to the 7 October atrocities as a ‘vile excuse to threaten British Jews and foment division and hatred in our communities’.

Sir Keir admitted that many Jews had told him that antisemitism had been ‘normalised’ and that they now had to ‘hide their Jewish identity’.

In its list of actions to combat anti-Semitism and protect Jews, the report says the Government will continue to guarantee the £18 million-a-year Jewish Community Protective Security Grant, but is also providing an extra £10 million following the ‘horrendous terrorist attack on Manchester’s Heaton Park synagogue’ in which two Jewish men were killed.

The new Crime and Policing Bill will aim to ban face coverings at marches, as well as allowing police to stop protests outside places of worship.

A further £7 million has been allocated to tackling anti-Semitism in schools, colleges and universities, including a fund to tackle online misinformation.

A ‘rapid review’ has also been launched into anti-Semitism in the NHS after Jewish patients and their families ‘reported feeling unsafe or unwelcome’.

An armed police officer outside the Hebrew Congregation synagogue in October. The Prime Minister has admitted in a new report that anti-Semitism has ‘increased in recent years’ and in many cases stems from ‘hatred of Israel, the world’s only Jewish state’.

Extremists convicted of hate crimes will also be banned from serving as trustees of charities following ‘a number of shocking cases where extremists have sought to exploit charities to spread hatred and division’. But critics have pointed out that the Labor Government has failed since last year’s election to ban Iran’s Revolutionary Guard as a terrorist organisation, as hoped.

The party’s manifesto listed the group on a list of ‘threats from hostile states or state-sponsored groups’ and pledged: ‘Labour will adopt the approach used to combat non-state terrorism and adapt it to deal with state-based internal security threats.’

A spokesman for the Campaign Against Antisemitism said: ‘This is an extremely disappointing document that fails to meet the seriousness of our situation after more than a decade of inaction by successive governments. This document does not even address the issue of banning terrorist organizations operating freely in the UK; this was a manifesto promise that the Government has quietly abandoned since its election.

‘Extremism and radicalization have been allowed to become so entrenched in this country that the medicine will not be easy to swallow. Tackling problems such as rampant Islamism and two-tiered policing requires acknowledging that these problems do exist.’

Sir Keir Starmer lights a candle to celebrate Hanukkah during an event in Downing Street. The Prime Minister admitted that many Jews had told him that antisemitism had been ‘normalized’ and that they now ‘had to hide their Jewish identity’

The spokesman added: ‘This is not an abstract discussion about policy. People have died and it will take more than well-intentioned ideas like an ‘innovation fund’ to turn things around.’

Lord Walney, the government’s former independent adviser on political violence and turmoil, also told the Daily Mail: ‘This strategy is very timid at a time when Britain’s beleaguered Jewish communities are calling for bold action.

‘It is ironic that the government’s own strategy is to say ‘we must call out more forcefully the hateful ideologies that seek to divide us’, but then completely avoid mentioning the Islamist extremism on display in the Gaza marches.

‘Ministers must stop ignoring the Islamist elephant in the room.’