Parliamentary committee rejects JLC call to remove ‘conspiratorial’ petition on pro-Israel influence
Petition calls for public inquiry into 'pro-Israel influence on politics & democracy'
A demand by the Jewish Leadership Council (JLC) for parliamentary authorities to remove a petition calling for a public inquiry into “pro-Israel influence on politics and democracy” from the official Parliament website has been rejected, after it was determined that the petition’s “ask and text” complied with recent precedent.
In a letter to the Petitions Committee chair, Jamie Stone MP, JLC director of public affairs Russell Langer urged the committee to reject e-petition 752646, titled “Call a public inquiry into pro-Israel influence on politics & democracy.”
Langer argued that the petition was “defamatory, contains false or unproven statements, and draws upon conspiratorial tropes that are widely recognised as antisemitic.”
So far the petition has received more than 106,378 signatures and Parliament considers all petitions that get more than 100,000 signatures for a debate.
It was started in February by a man named Andy Kalil, and has been backed by a series of other organisations and individuals, some seeing it as a call for a probe into “the Zionist lobby.”
In his letter Langer stated that the petition alleges the existence of “Israeli state-linked” and “pro-Israel” influence campaigns shaping government decision-making, party policy, and public debate, but “provides no credible evidence to substantiate these claims.”
He added: “As drafted, it invites suspicion of covert or improper activity by unnamed organisations. Conspiratorial references to an alleged ‘pro-Israel’ influence over British institutions draw on a well-established set of beliefs about ‘Jewish power’ that are widely recognised as antisemitic. In the context of deadly attacks on Jews in the UK and abroad, the publishing of this petition on Parliament’s website is completely irresponsible.”
Langer further noted: “The standards for petitions are clear that petitions should be rejected if they are defamatory or libellous, or contain false or unproven statements. In my view, this petition clearly falls within those criteria. As such, I urge the committee to reject this petition.”
However, in a response sent on March 3, Jamie Stone MP said he had discussed the concerns with the committee, referencing earlier petitions calling for public inquiries into Russia and China, which he argued had set a precedent.
Stone wrote: “Additional time and care were taken to consider the wording of e-petition 752646 due to the sensitivity of the topic and the context of recent attacks against the Jewish community.”
He added that petitioning standards “do not prevent petitioners from expressing critical or controversial views, nor do they require petitioners to provide evidence to support their ask.”
Stone continued: “Prior to opening e-petition 752646, petitions calling for public inquiries were opened relating to Russia (744215) and China (751800).
“No assessment is made of the merits of petition asks and petitions are only rejected where there is judged to be an unequivocal contravention of the petitioning standards. It is for these reasons that it was judged that the ask and text of the petition complied with the standards and recent precedent.”
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