The government is being urged to act after a Union of Jewish Students (UJS) report revealed shocking campus antisemitism, including the finding that one in five students would be reluctant or refuse to houseshare with Jews.
Labour MP Mark Sewards called for “greater transparency and consistency” in response, urging the Department for Education and the Office for Students (OfS) to introduce a statutory framework for investigations and disciplinary action, with clear accountability for universities.
Shadow Education Secretary Laura Trott said: “We must do more to stamp out the vile antisemitism taking place far too often on university campuses. The government must work with OfS to set clear timelines for dealing with incidents. If universities fail to crack down, funding should be removed.”
In extreme cases, institutions that fail to meet deadlines should lose their degree-awarding powers, she said in a letter sent to Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson last December.
The UJS poll 1,000 students “of all faiths and none” produced a number of shocking findings. A quarter of students polled expressed indifference as to whether Jewish students felt able to openly express their identity, while one in ten did not regard denying or minimising the Holocaust as antisemitic.
Much of the antisemitism reported on campus was worse at Russell Group universities and at those which have seen regular anti-Israel protests.
UJS set out a series of recommendations in response to the survey, including stronger oversight of student unions, clearer protest regulations and a dedicated counter-extremism strategy for campuses.
The findings have prompted swift political reaction, with figures across the main parties – with the exception of the Greens – describing the report as concerning and urging stronger protections for Jewish students.
Writing today in the JC, Leeds MP Sewards, Chair of Labour Friends of Israel, urged the Department for Education and the OfS to take a more active role, warning that “young Jews should not be isolated and abandoned” on campus.
Liberal Democrat universities spokesman Ian Sollom said the report must serve as an “urgent wake-up call for the entire higher education sector.”
Reform UK education spokeswoman, Suella Braverman, said: “Hate towards the Jewish community is being normalised and too often excused by the those in Westminster and the police. We fully support the call for coordinated action from the government, police and university leaders who have failed the Jewish community for far too long.”
A government spokesperson said: “There is no place for antisemitism on university campuses,” adding “We have strengthened how the Office for Students monitors universities' Prevent duties,” and that Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson has asked Sir David Bell to lead a review into antisemitism at schools and colleges.
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