Jonathan Arkush, the president of the Board of Deputies, has admitted that his message of congratulations to Donald Trump hours after the United States presidential election was badly timed.

But Mr Arkush rejected criticism from some communal figures who said his actions were “beneath contempt”, warning them to “watch your language”.

Speaking at today’s Board plenary meeting, Mr Arkush acknowledged his statement, issued on behalf of the Board on the morning after the November 8 election, “could have been better timed”.

He told deputies: “I will hold up my hand. If I got it a little wrong, I’m sorry.”

But he said he did not apologise for congratulating Mr Trump, noting that the victorious Republican candidate had been congratulated by most American Jewish groups.

Such a message, “was a matter of courtesy, whether you like it or not”, Mr Arkush said.

He added that his statement had contained “a strong note of reproof” for comments made by Mr Trump during his campaign.

In the statement, which had been published on the Board’s website, Mr Arkush said: “I would like to congratulate Donald Trump on his victory.

“After a divisive campaign, I hope that Mr Trump will move to build bridges and ensure that America’s standing as a beacon of progress, tolerance and free-thinking remains strong.”

The message sparked a wave of negative responses on social media, including criticism from fellow Board members.

A letter signed by more than 190 young British Jews said it was “beneath contempt to congratulate a candidate who was censured by the ADL for using antisemitic tropes, who has enabled mainstream antisemitic abuse and who has secured the endorsement of the KKK and other white supremacists.”

Mr Arkush told deputies he believed the language in the letter was excessive.

He said: “If you want to question my judgment, that’s OK. But don’t you think it’s a little over the top to say what I did was beneath contempt?”

He noted that his critics had not attacked Isaac Herzog, the leader of the Israeli Labour Party, over his message of support to Mr Trump.

Mr Arkush applauded the signatories for caring about the issue, but added, “please in future watch your language, have a sense of balance and at least be consistent”.

The Board president revealed that he had been abused on social media, with opponents calling him "a moron", "a disgrace" and "an irrelevant little man".

Mr Arkush also reported that Board leaders had met Professor Michael Arthur, the provost of University College London, to discuss the violent scenes at a pro-Israel campus meeting last month.

Students attending a talk by Hen Mazzig, a writer and former Israeli army officer, were confronted by a mob of pro-Palestinian activists and had to be escorted to safety by police.

UCL's report into the incident would be released by the end of December, deputies were told.

Mr Arkush said he hoped it would contain a series recommendations making it clear that meetings of Jewish students at UK universities would be given adequate security and that anyone seeking to intimidate or use violence on campuses would face serious sanctions, including expulsion.

He also said he intended to attend a Friends of Israel meeting at UCL next week.

Sir Ivan Lawrence, deputy for North-West Surrey Reform Synagogue and a former Conservative MP, claimed that universities were reluctant to "stand up for" Jewish students because they did not want to put funding from "Islamic communities" at risk.

Sir Ivan, a former chair of the Commons Home Affairs Select Committee, said: "We all feel, I think, that action isn't taken against what is effectively an Islamic response to anything which is pro-Israel because the authorities are frightened to upset the Islamic community.

"If there is going to be an investigation into UCL I would be heartened to see some indication that the authorities are dealing with that very touchy issue. Most of us feel the issue is too touchy for anybody to deal with, but we must deal with it.

He added: "One of the reasons why the universities are so slow to protect the Jewish community against Islamic attacks is that, looking throughout the country as a whole, we can see an enormous amount of subsidy coming to those universities from Islamic communities worldwide.

"The fear of the professors and the chancellors is that if they for stand up for the Jewish community they will cause a run on that funding. That is a very significant factor."

At the plenary session, a tribute was paid to Sir Sigmund Sternberg, the renowned interfaith activist and philanthropist, who died last month at the age of 95.

A certificate was presented to Dr Lionel Kopelowitz to mark his 90th birthday. Dr Kopelowitz, a former Board president, has been a deputy for 65 years.

In what was described as a moment of history, Rabbi Danny Rich became the first professional head of Liberal Judaism to formally address the Board.

Deputies also approved an application by the UK Lawyers for Israel organisation to join the Board.