London Mayor Boris Johnson said he reacted to the rise in antisemitism in the capital this summer with “horror and condemnation”.

He made the comments in response to questions from London Assembly members at City Hall on Wednesday.

Asked by Conservative Andrew Boff about the 179 incidents recorded in London in July, Mr Johnson said: “We are looking at it very closely. The Metropolitan Police take it very seriously.”

Mr Boff said not enough was being done to tackle online hatred. Mr Johnson replied: “There is statute against hate speech and incitement and it should be enforced. It’s easy to track down users’ accounts. I would encourage that.”

He said he did not want international conflicts to “spill onto the streets of London”.

Labour Assembly Member Andrew Dismore held up a copy of the JC’s front page from last month showing almost two-thirds of British Jews had questioned their future in Britain. Mr Dismore said police were not doing enough to arrest demonstrators guilty of antisemitism at protests.

Mr Johnson said the proportion of charges following reports of antisemitic incidents had risen from 81 per cent to 94 per cent and said the issue was being taken “increasingly seriously”.