Chair of Education Select Committee demands inquiry into NUS over antisemitism claims

Education Select Committee chair Robert Halfon has written to the Charity Commission calling for a statutory inquiry into the National Union of Students and its trustees over allegations of antisemitism.

The Harlow MP said he was “particularly concerned about antisemitic events that have taken place within the NUS over the past several years and which comes following decades of concerning trends”.

In a dossier, submitted by Halfon alongside the Campaign against Antisemitism charity, it highlighted how “one of the most alarming recent incidents” had involved the rapper and conspiracy theorist Lowkey.

Halfom said the artist had a”track record” of making statements that are in violation of the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) definition of antisemitism but he had been invited to perform at an NUS centenary event last month.

The MP said Lowkey eventually withdrew from the event, but not before the NUS reportedly told Jewish students that they could find an “existing safe space for students who do not like loud noise” during his planned performance.

The Tory MP said this was “emblematic of a wider problem within the NUS” and that there were “serious failings that need to be addressed as a matter of urgency.”

He added: “The NUS has allowed a culture of discrimination and harassment against Jewish students to brew, to the point where they suggested Jewish students segregate themselves from an event – the very opposite of inclusion”.

Although the NUS is not a charity, Halfon named the NUS Students’ Union Charitable Services, which oversees the development of students’ unions throughout the country, in his letter.

In response, the NUS said it is “taking antisemitism allegations seriously.”

They claimed:”There is no place for antisemitism within the student movement.

“We have unreservedly apologised for the concern and worry caused in recent weeks, and are working to address any wrongdoing and rebuild trust.

“The board are meeting to instigate our robust internal procedures including considering appointing an independent external party to support with this.

“If we find that action needs to be taken we won’t hesitate to take it, as we have previously.”