Ex-attorney general condemns police ‘bizarre inaction’ over antisemitic art row

A former attorney general has criticised police for “bizarre inaction” over a controversial Margate art exhibition accused of featuring antisemitic imagery.

Sir Michael Ellis said Kent Police had serious questions to answer after officers concluded no criminal offences had been committed in relation to Drawings Against Genocide, a show by former Evening Standard art critic Matthew Collings.

“The UK’s Jewish community already feels betrayed by the criminal justice system, and the police’s bizarre inaction in this latest case will further damage what little confidence they have left,” Ellis said.

“The police have serious questions to answer over their handling of this case.”

Kent Police confirmed it had investigated complaints about the exhibition but found that “no criminal offences were identified”, adding that the artwork “does not include content that is directly abusive or insulting toward Jewish people as a group”.

Labour Against Antisemitism also criticised the police response, warning it reflected a failure to properly recognise anti-Jewish racism. Fiona Sharpe, a spokesperson for the organisation, said: “It is inexcusable that Kent Police should dismiss out of hand the alarm and distress experienced by a Jewish person after viewing the grotesque artwork of Matthew Collings.

“Their role is to take any complaint of a hate crime seriously and to investigate it. If they are not trained to recognise antisemitic images and tropes, then they should be referred to experts who can assist them.

“This is why it is vital that all police forces have training in anti-Jewish racism – so that they do not make the mistake of calling Jew hate legitimate political commentary aimed at Israel.”

The exhibition, staged at Joseph Wales Studios in Margate, features imagery said to reflect longstanding antisemitic tropes.

Critics have pointed to depictions of figures linked to Sotheby’s – owned by French-Israeli businessman Patrick Drahi – shown eating a baby, alongside repeated use of swastikas, blood imagery and conspiratorial references to influence and control.

Other works target prominent Jewish figures, including historian Sir Simon Schama and Community Security Trust representatives, while additional drawings portray Israeli leaders and soldiers in violent or grotesque forms.

In a further escalation, antisemitism campaigner David Collier said he had been personally named in the exhibition, warning that it crossed a line from political commentary into targeting individuals.

“I was explicitly named in that exhibit. That is not abstract expression – it is singling out an individual and placing a target on my back,” he said.

Collier added that the police decision showed “an inexcusable disregard for our safety” at a time of rising hostility towards British Jews.

The row has also prompted action from Thanet District Council, which removed references to the exhibition from its tourism website after complaints.

A council spokesperson said: “Visit Thanet lists many events, activities and exhibitions on its website. Once the council was contacted regarding the nature of the content, the link to this exhibition was removed.

“The council is not affiliated with the gallery or this exhibition and apologises sincerely for any distress or offence that has been caused.”

Collings has denied that the works are antisemitic, maintaining they are intended as criticism of Israel and Zionism.

However, with senior political figures now intervening and individuals directly named in the artwork speaking out, pressure is growing on Kent Police to reconsider its position.