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John Bercow: Antisemitism I have faced 'dwindles to insignificance' compared with what Jewish women face

'It dwindles into complete insignificance and nothingness in comparison with what female Jews have experienced'

November 26, 2018 15:23
Speaker of the House of Commons John Bercow speaks during a commemoration for the victims of the attack on Westminster and Parliament, at Westminster Hall inside the Palace of Westminster on March 22, 2018
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House of Commons Speaker John Bercow has said his experiences of antisemitism "dwindle into insignificance" compared to the abuse directed at Jewish female MPs.

In an impassioned address to the Sara Conference on antisemitism and misogyny, Mr Bercow said: "I've always been very open about my Jewishness and I have experienced antisemitism in my life.

But said it was "very often subtle, not explicit hatred around all sort of words used in criticism short of the word 'Jew'."

But he added: "The code could fairly easily be deciphered without too much effort."