A document on “tolerance”, which includes making antisemitism a criminal offence across all 28 countries of the European Union, is being backed by the European Council on Tolerance and Reconciliation (ECTR).

The new pan-European legislation, which is supported by Jewish leaders and former EU heads of state, has been drafted by four international experts on constitutional law following a three-year consultation. The panel was chaired by war crimes expert Yoram Dinstein, the former president of Tel Aviv university.

They propose to criminalise antisemitism, as well as outlaw other activities considered a violation of human fundamental rights, including female genital mutilation, Holocaust denial, forced marriage and xenophobia. A new crime of “group libel” would ban the public defamation of ethnic or religious groups.

The document, entitled A European Framework National Statute for the Promotion of Tolerance, reads: “There is no need to be tolerant to the intolerant. This is especially important as far as freedom of expression is concerned: that freedom must not be abused to defame other groups.”

As well as criminalising “overt approval of a totalitarian ideology, xenophobia or antisemitism”, it proposes to introduce education in tolerance into schools, the army and the police.