The Home Secretary said she would do everything in her power to “ensure those responsible for antisemitic hate crimes feel the full force of the law”.
Speaking in front of four hundred guests at the Community Security Trust (CST) annual lunch on Tuesday, Yvette Cooper said she had “deep admiration and respect for the incredible contribution” that the CST makes to society.
“The rise in antisemitism the UK has seen since October 7 is abhorrent. Let there be no doubt: there is no place in this country for any form of hatred.
“What is not acceptable, and will never be acceptable, is using conflict in the Middle East as a pretext to attack communities here in Britain,” Cooper noted.
“As home secretary, I will do everything in my power to protect Jewish communities and ensure those responsible for antisemitic hate crimes feel the full force of the law. That’s why the Home Office is committed to continuing our multi-year funding for protective security, managed by CST as well as working alongside the police as part of our collective effort to ensure everyone in the UK feels safe in public.”
CST annual lunch on Tuesday (Grainge Photography)
CST manages a government grant of £18 million a year, which goes towards security guards and other protective measures for Jewish buildings across the UK and works to tackle the threat of antisemitism and extremism.
Introducing Cooper’s speech to the audience, CST deputy chair, Sir Lloyd Dorfman added, “We have built a state of the art, 24/7 web of protection across the Jewish community.”
He went on to say that CST’s work “goes much deeper” than security outside Jewish buildings, “with regular exchanges of information and insights about the latest developments in anti-Jewish extremism, whether from Islamists, far right, far left, or those anti-Israel extremists who cross the line from legitimate political protest into incitement, intimidation and support for terrorism.”
CST chief executive Mark Gardner, said that during the period after October 7, CST “gave our community the confidence and strength to continue its way of life.
“New staff were employed and guarding had to be increased, everywhere. We did it immediately and we continue to do so. It is our mission and our privilege,” the CST leader went on.
CST chief executive, Mark Gardner (Grainge Photography)
Gardner said he had seen “more people wanting to be more Jewish, and that makes me even more proud of CST, enabling Jewish life, and empowering this community in the fight for its future and that of our children.”
Guests were also addressed by assistant commissioner of the Metropolitan Police and head of UK Terrorism Police, Matt Jukes QPM, who commented: “The partnership between policing and CST will never have been more important than it is today.”
“I want you, your children, your grandchildren and friends to be able to live whatever Jewish life you have chosen freely and without fear, here in London and across the UK,” Jukes went on.
“The work to do that in the last year has felt to be the hardest that I can remember, but it’s been harder still for your community and for CST. That is why Counter Terror Policing’s partnership with the Community Security Trust is critical.”
Sir Gerald Ronson told the lunch that CST “is widely recognised as the best community security organisation anywhere in the world. Everything we have built at CST is there for a time like this.”
