Prime Minister accuses Labour of showing ‘true colours’ on Israel
Justin Cohen is the News Editor at the Jewish News
David Cameron signalled the start of his campaign for support from the Jewish community ahead of May’s General Election as he accused Labour of showing its “true colours” on Israel over recent months, writes Justin Cohen.
His comments came during a wide-ranging address to Conservative Friends of Israel’s annual business lunch, during which he also reflected on his emotional visit to Auschwitz last week and set out his record in government.
Addressing an audience that included 150 parliamentarians and 15 cabinet members, he said Labour had “trampled on a long-term cross-party consensus” that recognition of Palestine would only come after a two-state solution.
He said: “Yet here was the Labour leader, on a vote put down by a couple of backbenchers, a vote he could so easily have avoided or walked away from, not just breaking that consensus but actively whipping his own colleagues to support the motion.
That is the Labour leader we are now faced with and he has to be defeated.” And he sought to draw clear blue water between his party and Miliband’s on the issue of boycotts.
While Labour’s leadership has consistently spoken out against boycotts, he referred to a recent motion proposed by Labour councillors in Leicester and said: “Unlike Labour, we in this party oppose boycotts.”
A spokesperson for Miliband described the remarks as “wrong, divisive and irresponsible”. He said: “Ed and the Labour Party have zero-tolerance of those who seek to delegitimise Israel and we continue to oppose boycotts.”
Cameron told the gathering at the Park Plaza Hotel in Westminster that settlements make the aim of reaching peace “less likely” but reiterated the country’s right to defend itself against attack. He hailed the country’s tech prowess and described it as an “oasis of freedom” which was all the more “extraordinary” as it is surrounded by “terrorists hell bent on doing it harm like those last month who brutally murdered four rabbis as they prayed”.
The Tory leader also reflected on his visit to Auschwitz days earlier and how it had strengthened his resolve to ensure the memory of the Shoah lives on. “It doesn’t matter how many books you’ve read, it’s only when you stand under that sign ‘Arbeit macht frei’, when you stand alongside those train tracks that brought millions to their death, when you see the children’s clothes, the hair, the ovens, it is only then that the horrific enormity of it all actually comes home to you,” he said.
“Why must we never forget? So it never happen again. And that brings us to Israel. One of the reasons the Holocaust was able to happen is because there was no Israel. And that is one reason – one mighty big reason – why this party will always stand behind that nation, the homeland of the Jewish people.”
The speech – which brought a standing ovation – also saw Cameron hail the achievements of Yavneh College and point to the areas where he said his party and the Jewish community had similar outlooks, including that “everyone should have the opportunity to get on”.
He outlined his government’s record on the economy, business and education but insisted he needed another term to continue the job. Next May’s poll, he said, was about whether voters wanted “a country that believes in opportunity – or sinks back to envy, a country that promotes responsibility and pays its debts, or opts for debt, taxes and chaos”.
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.
