OPINION: What Truss must do to win the trust of the Jewish community

Liz Truss has spoken of the natural link between “Jewish and Conservative values” and has suggested that “there is no greater friend to the UK than Israel.”

Such comments won her immediate praise from certain sections of the British Jewish community.

But other statements made by Truss during her way too long leadership battle with Rishi Sunak, including a mysterious attack on  “woke civil service culture that strays into antisemitism” succeeded mainly in only raising eyebrows.

But one thing is for certain. After she was confirmed as new UK PM on Tuesday, after meeting the Queen at Balmoral, Truss still has some way to go to secure the level of support within the community that previous Tory PMs, from David Cameron right up to Boris Johnson have enjoyed.

This may quickly change of course.

For many in the community, there is a lack of familiarity with what the Leeds-born 47 year-old actually stands for.And among those who view admiration and kind words for the state of Israel as a vital factor, as Foreign Secretary Truss did not disappoint

Jewish News was present for her first speech in a packed room at the Conservative party’s annual conference in which she name-checked the Jewish state as being amongst a “network of liberty” of NATO states and other nations prepared to take on authoritarian states and “malign actors.”

She has lavished further praise on Israel as a “beacon of democracy” and been amongst the first in government to post on social media in support of the Jewish state during the frequent terrorist attacks its population is forced to endure.

And on trade, even before she became Foreign Secretary, there is a record of Truss pushing for the UK to secure a long-awaited, and still being finalised, free-trade deal with Israel.

Last October Truss signed a “memorandum of understanding” with then-foreign minister and future Israeli prime minister Yair Lapid.

This committed Britain and Israel to closer cooperation on cybersecurity, technology, defence, trade and science.

And during one hustings event, she hinted that it was the UK, rather than Israel, that was dragging its heels over further cooperation on security and defence projects.

Truss also told Jewish Conservative members at a recent leadership hustings that she would “do what it takes” to stop Iran’s nuclear aspirations if she became PM.

But there was no obvious indication of what this might entail.

Jewish News attended the two leadership events put on by the Conservative Friends of Israel group, one with Truss, and the other with Sunak, and it was apparent that neither candidate had completely won over the room.

If Truss had the edge on foreign affairs, Sunak, with his seemingly greater grasp of economic issues, and his slightly more compassionate approach to helping the poorest in society, seemed to fare better here.

Having failed to capture the support of perhaps 60 percent of Jewish Tory Party members at the CFI functions, Truss’s appeal to the wider community will only now be put to the test.

And it won’t be easy for her either.

Unlike her predecessor Johnson, Truss does not have Jeremy Corbyn scaring the life out of many in the community as Labour leader.

And nearly 13 years into successive Conservative governments there is a weariness with the long-time party of choice for many in the community, compounded by a global energy crisis and a cost of living nightmare affecting us all.

Back in May, the local election results in areas such as Barnet, and Bury in the north-west, both with sizeable Jewish communities, proved that the Tories could no longer take the Jewish vote for granted.

If the bagel belt switches, it’s worth a bet that the rest of the country will follow.

The in-coming PM will surely realise that she will have to put in the work to win back the support her party once enjoyed from the community.

The next general election could yet see another Tory victory, despite the odds being slightly against.

It is to the centre ground of British politics where the majority of voters sit and in recent decades where the majority of Jewish voters have disproportionately resided.

But as she enters Number 10 Downing Street it is questionable whether Truss does want to steer the Conservative Party back towards the centre ground and move away from the rage and culture wars.

Or does she want to spark new fights?

If she chooses to continue to government in the manner in which she has campaigned, then it is quite a gamble.

But one thing is for sure. That pledge she made to “eradicate” antisemitism, the world’s oldest hatred.

If she manages to pull that one off, as far as the community is concerned, she will be up there with the very best of them.