Police decision following advice from Crown Prosecution Service condemned as “sending completely wrong message” by Jewish leaders
December 24, 2025 18:24
A former Attorney General has called for the creation of a dedicated Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) unit specialising in antisemitism and related offences after police dropped an investigation into a Bob Vylan performance at which “death to the IDF” was chanted onstage.
The call by Sir Michael Ellis KC comes as the decision by Avon and Somerset Police to take no further action was condemned as sending “completely the wrong” message by Jewish community leaders.
The chant at Glastonbury in June had been broadcast on the BBC and sparked widespread outrage, with claims that it was incitement to violence.
The decision comes amid growing concern that extremist rhetoric is directly fuelling terrorism against Jewish targets, including the Heaton Park and Sydney attacks and the foiled Preston plot.
Sir Michael, who served as Attorney General under the previous government, told the JC: “The Jewish community in the UK has long since lost confidence in both the police and the CPS. As a former prosecutor and Attorney General, I have found several of their decisions of the past two years open to question.
“In recent weeks I have been calling for the creation of a dedicated team within the CPS specialising in allegations of antisemitism and related offences. Establishing dedicated specialist personnel now to work with the police to assess whether the test to prosecute has been met in each future allegation may help repair lost confidence.
“The CPS already have dedicated personnel for Wildlife Crime, for example, so I see no reason in principle why a specialist antisemitism crime team couldn’t be established. This isn’t about any current or past cases, this is about trying to rebuild public confidence in the police and CPS for the future.”
Avon and Somerset Police said that the CPS had provided it with a "detailed explanation of the evidence it considered would be necessary for any person to be criminally prosecuted".
Advice was also sought from the National Police Chiefs’ Council hate crime leads and an independent barrister. The force said: "Consistently the advice we have received has highlighted fundamental evidential difficulties that cannot be ignored.
"We have concluded, after reviewing all the evidence, that it does not meet the criminal threshold outlined by the CPS for any person to be prosecuted.
"No further action will be taken on the basis there is insufficient evidence for there to be a realistic prospect of conviction."
Jewish groups have voiced their concern over the decision.
The Community Service Trust told the JC: “It is incredibly disappointing that the police have decided not to charge in this case, particularly when police forces in London and Manchester are adopting a stronger approach to tackling hateful rhetoric. It sends completely the wrong message at the worst possible time.”
A spokesperson from Jewish campaign group Stop The Hate called for an immediate review of the decision, saying: "This failure to act only strengthens a culture of impunity, one that is directly contributing to violence against Jews.
"This decision raises serious questions about the willingness and determination of both the CPS and the police to confront and root out this problem.”
Alan Mendoza, founder of anti-extremism thinktank the Henry Jackson Society said. “This decision is deeply concerning as it shows that British institutions continue to fail to deal with hate rhetoric in a way that meets the threshold of public confidence.
"With some police forces now saying ‘globalise the intifada’ is hate speech and others claiming ‘death to the IDF’ is not, we have a recipe for chaos at the heart of British policing. The perception of two-tier justice has never seemed stronger.”
The Israeli embassy in London has also condemned the decision, posting on X: "It is deeply disappointing that vile calls for violence, repeated openly and without remorse, continue to fall on deaf ears.
"Especially in the wake of the terror attacks in Manchester and Bondi, when will such calls finally be recognised for what they are: a real and dangerous instigator of bloodshed?”
Avon and Somerset Police told the JC that the decision was made following advice from the CPS.
A CPS spokesperson told the JC: “We recognise the strength of public feeling about comments made during Bob Vylan’s set at Glastonbury Festival in June, particularly among the Jewish community.
“We provided early investigative advice to Avon and Somerset Police on what evidence might be needed to meet the legal test for charging but we have not been asked to make a charging decision in this case.
"A number of offences were considered which each have evidential requirements to prove but Avon and Somerset Police concluded there is insufficient evidence for there to be any realistic prospect of conviction and will take no further action.
“We continue to work closely with police and communities to identify, charge and prosecute antisemitic hate crimes and we will always look at ways we can do more.”
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