Poland honours Sir Roger Scruton, ex-adviser sacked over Soros comments
Prestigious state award presented by President Duda to former head of housing body, who was fired for saying Hungarian Jews were part of an "empire" run by philanthropist
Poland’s president has bestowed a prestigious state honour on a former UK Government adviser who was sacked over “unacceptable” comments made about Islamophobia.
President Andrzej Duda presented Sir Roger Scruton with the Grand Cross of the Order of Merit of the Republic of Poland.
Sir Roger was fired as head of a public housing body in April after he reportedly said that homosexuality is “not normal”, called Islamophobia a “propaganda word” and said Hungarian Jews were part of an “empire” run by billionaire George Soros.
After his comments, a Board of Deputies spokesperson said: “As soon as we saw Sir Roger Scruton’s unacceptable comments we contacted Government to make our concerns heard.
“We are satisfied that the right decision has been made to dismiss him.”
Mr Duda said Sir Roger was recognised for supporting the democratic transformation in Poland. The ceremony came as Poland celebrated the 30th anniversary of the first partly free elections in the country after decades of communist rule.
Sir Roger has also reportedly said that the Chinese government was “creating robots out of their own people” and said date rape is not a crime.
At the time of his dismissal, a UK Government spokeswoman called Sir Roger’s comments “deeply offensive and completely unacceptable” and said they were distracting from his work as a government adviser.
Labour’s Dawn Butler said he was invoking the “language of white supremacists”.
Sir Roger has said in the past that his words have been twisted and has denied being anti-Semitic or Islamophobic.
Thank you for helping to make Jewish News the leading source of news and opinion for the UK Jewish community. Today we're asking for your invaluable help to continue putting our community first in everything we do.
For as little as £5 a month you can help sustain the vital work we do in celebrating and standing up for Jewish life in Britain.
Jewish News holds our community together and keeps us connected. Like a synagogue, it’s where people turn to feel part of something bigger. It also proudly shows the rest of Britain the vibrancy and rich culture of modern Jewish life.
You can make a quick and easy one-off or monthly contribution of £5, £10, £20 or any other sum you’re comfortable with.
100% of your donation will help us continue celebrating our community, in all its dynamic diversity...
Engaging
Being a community platform means so much more than producing a newspaper and website. One of our proudest roles is media partnering with our invaluable charities to amplify the outstanding work they do to help us all.
Celebrating
There’s no shortage of oys in the world but Jewish News takes every opportunity to celebrate the joys too, through projects like Night of Heroes, 40 Under 40 and other compelling countdowns that make the community kvell with pride.
Pioneering
In the first collaboration between media outlets from different faiths, Jewish News worked with British Muslim TV and Church Times to produce a list of young activists leading the way on interfaith understanding.
Campaigning
Royal Mail issued a stamp honouring Holocaust hero Sir Nicholas Winton after a Jewish News campaign attracted more than 100,000 backers. Jewish Newsalso produces special editions of the paper highlighting pressing issues including mental health and Holocaust remembrance.
Easy access
In an age when news is readily accessible, Jewish News provides high-quality content free online and offline, removing any financial barriers to connecting people.
Voice of our community to wider society
The Jewish News team regularly appears on TV, radio and on the pages of the national press to comment on stories about the Jewish community. Easy access to the paper on the streets of London also means Jewish News provides an invaluable window into the community for the country at large.
We hope you agree all this is worth preserving.
