Angela Rayner would not want her children to experience GCHQ-style security going to school, she has told the JC.
In one of her first conversations with the press since returning to the role of communities secretary, which she held under Sir Keir Starmer before resigning amid media reports regarding her personal tax affairs, Rayner responded to findings in a new report from the J7 group.
The report, which examined acts of violence against the Jewish Diaspora, found that antisemitism has risen at a faster rate year-on-year in the UK compared to the other six nations studied, which account for more than 90 per cent of the Jewish population outside Israel.
Speaking to the JC during a visit to Jewish Care in Golders Green on Wednesday, where Prime Minister Andy Burnham set out his plans to reform the social care system, Rayner said she would not want her children to go to school “worried about their safety just because of their religion, of their ethnicity.”
“We’ve seen the rise in antisemitism, and it’s absolutely abhorrent,” she went on.
“One of the things I’ve found when visiting – whether it’s a Jewish school or care home facilities – is seeing a huge amount of security.
“This is the kind of security I only see when I’m going into GCHQ [the headquarters of the UK’s signals intelligence service] and I find that really troubling.”
Last month, in one of his final acts as prime minister, Starmer pledged over £250 million across three years to strengthen security and policing for the community.
The package will fund more than 500 additional police officers in neighbourhoods which have a high number of Jews, alongside £32.4 million for protective site security and prior emergency allocations.
Rayner, who took over Steve Reed’s portfolio, which includes supporting the Jewish community, added: “The government has invested millions of pounds more in security for the Jewish community.
“But there’s a real conversation to be had about why that is.
“I wouldn’t want my children to go to school behind big heavy gates, worried about their safety just because of their religion, of their ethnicity. It is really about tackling antisemitism at its root cause.”
Speaking after the care plan launch, Rayner also credited Jewish Care for its work in the community.
“A lot of conditions mean that people will gradually need more support,” she said, adding that Jewish Care “gives them hybrid care and then when they need extra support that’s available as well.”
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