Dame Louise Ellman accepts new role at Board of Deputies

Former Labour MP Dame Louise Ellman will take a new role at the Board of Deputies — helping to chair the regular plenary sessions.

She will rotate the responsibility with Liberal Judaism Chair Karen Newman, who has already chaired the first two plenary sessions of the new Board triennial.

In the past, plenaries were presided over by the Board’s president, but new president Phil Rosenberg, who was elected in May, pledged to introduce independent chairs — a move which he believed would make meetings more constructive and less adversarial.

The choice of the two women is also intended to improve inclusion at the Board, which for the first time in 15 years elected an all-male team of honorary officers.

Dame Louise, who represents the Labour Jewish Movement at the Board, said: “The Board of Deputies does incredibly important work representing the community. Its plenary meetings are an important opportunity to hear the views of its 300 deputies from all over the UK and right across the denominational and political spectrum.

the new format will show the Board to be the authentic, representative voice of Anglo-Jewry today in all its diversity.

“I look forward to playing my part in ensuring they run effectively and enable a broad range of voices to be heard.”

Newman, who is deputy for the Liberal Jewish Synagogue, St John’s Wood, said she would be “looking to get the right balance between allowing the debate to flow, enabling the honorary officer team to lead, and empowering deputies to be heard and have a real opportunity to influence policy.

“I will seek to chair meetings in ways that encourage mutual respect and encourage contributions from deputies whose voices that are heard less often, including women, young people, and new deputies. I believe that the new format will show the Board to be the authentic, representative voice of Anglo-Jewry today in all its diversity.”