EXCLUSIVE JN POLLING: UK voters believe more protection needed for British Jews
Majority support antisemitism education as part of the national curriculum - but plurality of voters say the UK would neither be better or worse if Jews left due to antisemitism
More than a third of British people believe the government and law enforcement are not doing enough to protect Jews amid an unprecedented wave of violent attacks, according to exclusive new research for Jewish News.
The weighted poll of more than 2,000 people, conducted over the weekend by More in Common, also showed a clear majority – three in five – believe it is time that school pupils are be taught about Jew-hate as part of the national curriculum, with more than sixty percent support from voters of all of the main political parties. Just 15 percent expressed opposition.
Worryingly, however, a plurality of voters (40%) say that Britain would be neither better nor worse off if Jews left the country because of antisemitism. 32 per cent say Britain would be much worse off, just 4 per cent say Britain would be better off, and 24 per cent say they don’t know. The “much worse off” view is strongest among Conservatives (47%) and Reform voters (44%), and among older Britons. It is weakest among 18-24s (22%) and 25-34s (29%) – the youngest cohort is significantly less likely to see Jewish departure as a national loss.
These findings are published a day after Downing Street convened leaders from across society to develop a “whole society” approach to tackling antisemitism after a series of arson attacks against synagogues and other Jewish sites and the stabbing of two men in Golders Green.
A third of the British public (34 per cent) say the Government and police are not doing enough to protect the Jewish community in Britain, against 32 per cent who say they are doing the right amount and just 8 per cent who say they are doing too much. While worry for Jewish friends and neighbours is markedly higher in London than in elsewhere in the country (29% to 16%) – perhaps an indication of the higher likelihood of Londoners to know Jewish people, as 65 percent of people nationwide said they don’t have any Jewish friends or neighbours at all. However, the capital’s citizens are also least likely to say that the government and police are not doing enough (25% to 34%), instead being the most likely to say the response is “the right amount” (42% to 32%).
Of those who were worried for Jewish friends and neighbours, the likeliest to be worried were younger people. Conservative and Labour voters were the most likely to express worry (22% each), followed by the Liberal Democrats (20%) and then Reform UK (16%), with Greens trailing with 13%.
One in five of Londoners surveyed know Jewish people and have reached out to check on them following the recent attacks, compared to one in 10 country-wide. Nationally, reaching out is highest among 25-34s (20 per cent), Labour voters (19 per cent) and Conservatives (15 per cent) – and lowest among 45-54s (4 per cent) and Reform voters (8 per cent).
Responding to the polling, Luke Tryl, Director of More in Commons, said: “The attack in Golders Green has clearly registered with the public – a third of Britons think the Government and police aren’t doing enough to protect the Jewish community, and one in ten say they’ve personally reached out to Jewish friends to check in, rising to one in five Londoners.
“And while it’s tempting to read the politics of antisemitism through the lens of any one party, the data tells a more complicated story: Conservative and Labour voters are equally likely to be worried for their Jewish neighbours, and majorities of every major party’s voters – Reform included – back teaching about antisemitism in schools.”
Chris Philp, the Shadow Home Secretary, said: “This polling is deeply alarming. It shows that the many of the British public recognise the rampant antisemitism that is blighting Britain. And I am horrified that 40% of the public are indifferent as to whether Jews leave the UK or not. If Jews feel forced to leave the UK our whole society would be so much worse off and it would be a damning indictment of the state of Britain. This simply cannot be allowed to happen.”
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