PM speech at the CST annual dinner: 28 February 2024
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak makes a speech at the CST annual dinner.
Lloyd, thank you for that kind introduction.
And in fact can I start by asking everyone to join me in thanking Gerald, Mark, and everyone at CST for all you do to keep our Jewish community safe.
It is shocking, and wrong, the prejudice, the racism we have seen in recent months.
That Hamas attack of October 7th was the most abhorrent act of terrorism against Israel that any of us have ever known.
And it’s been followed by record levels of antisemitism in this country that are utterly, utterly sickening.
Don’t let anyone try and tell you this is just a reaction to the response of the Israeli government as unacceptable as that would be.
The highest weekly total of antisemitic incidents came before Israel responded…
It is hatred pure and simple.
An assault on the Jewish people – here in this country, in this century and I tell you tonight: we will fight this antisemitism with everything we’ve got.
When Jewish children are hiding their school uniforms Jewish students are facing harassment on campuses the birth certificates of Jewish children are being defaced and Jewish families feel unable to enter the centre of our capital city at the weekend the whole fabric of our nation is under threat.
When I went to Kinloss Synagogue in the immediate aftermath of October 7th I said I would stand with you today, tomorrow, and always.
And I truly meant it.
Of course, we cannot solve this problem overnight.
But as Prime Minister I will lead this government in a long-term effort to strengthen your security defend our liberal democratic values and change our culture so we tackle the root causes of this hatred.
Let me say a word about each.
One of the things I most remember about that vigil in Finchley was walking out of the synagogue at this heightened moment of grief and fear in the community and seeing CST volunteers working with the police to keep us safe.
Just as they are doing here today. Just as they do every day.
They are some of the bravest volunteers in this country and on behalf not just of the Jewish community – but the whole nation I want to say a huge and heartfelt thank you.
In October we announced an additional £3 million for CST taking our total support to £18 million for this financial year.
And I can confirm we’ll commit a further £18 million next financial year.
But that’s not enough.
For years you’ve been asked to bid for funding one year at a time as if there might not be the same threat to deal with next year.
Sadly, we know CST is going to be needed for many years to come.
So tonight, I am changing the way CST is funded to help you plan for the long-term.
I’m not just committing £18 million for next year.
I’m committing a minimum of £18 million every year for the next four years.
More than £70 million for the protection of our Jewish community.
And I tell you - that is the single biggest financial commitment that any government has ever made.
Of course, it’s not just the Jewish community that has been targeted.
It’s also those who represent you.
Members of Parliament - like Mike Freer, here tonight.
Whatever political loyalties people might have I’m sure I speak for everyone when I say how sorry we are, Mike, that you had to stand down and how grateful we are for all you’ve done to support CST.
As Prime Minister, I’m not prepared to stand by, and watch MPs forced out of public service because of fears for their safety.
Nor I am prepared to allow this pattern of increasingly violent and intimidatory behaviour seemingly intended to shout down elected representatives and hijack the democratic process through force itself.
It is as un-British as it is undemocratic.
And it cannot stand.
So today I met senior police leaders in Downing Street to discuss how they will use the powers they have to defend our democracy and our values from those that seek to hijack them.
This included agreeing today a new Defending Democracy Protocol with additional patrols on MPs’ homes and constituency offices and new guidance to make clear to officers how they should protect surgeries, fundraisers, and protests all underpinned by £30 million of new funding for protective security – with every MP, councillor and candidate having a named police contact.
We will never give in to the threats of violent extremists.
We will not be cowed into changing the way our parliamentary democracy operates.
We will do whatever it takes to defend our democratic processes just as we will do whatever it takes to keep you safe.
But it’s not enough merely to strengthen our physical security we must also be far bolder and more assertive in defending our British values.
We’ve got to end this passive tolerance of words and actions that go against what we stand for.
Yes, you can march and protest with passion; you can demand the protection of civilian life but no, you cannot call for Jihad there is no “context” in which its acceptable to beam antisemitic tropes onto Big Ben and there’s no cause you can use to justify the support of proscribed terrorist groups, like Hamas.
And yes, you can freely criticise the actions of this government, the Israeli government or indeed any government.
But no, you cannot use that as an excuse to call for the eradication of a State – or any kind of hatred or antisemitism.
These statements are fundamental to the liberal democratic values that define Britain.
They are the very essence of our identity of who we are as a country.
To belong here is to believe these things; to stand up for these things.
And it’s time we were much, much clearer about this.
Now, we’ve already taken some important steps.
Within days of October 7th CST joined Ministers and police chiefs around the cabinet table in Downing Street to discuss the policing of protests.
And since then we’ve taken decisive measures to stop a small and aggressive minority of protestors carrying out antisemitic and intimidating actions.
Under our proposed laws:
The possession of flares and other pyrotechnics at protests – illegal.
Purposefully concealing your identity – illegal.
Climbing on our war memorials – illegal.
Treating protest as an excuse to engage in disruptive acts like criminal damage, blocking highways or ignoring police instructions – we’re ending that too.
And when Hizb ut-Tahrir celebrated that October 7th attack this government drew a line in sand and proscribed it.
But we need to go further – especially in our universities.
What is happening right now on campuses is simply not acceptable.
Jewish students are being targeted, threatened, and assaulted simply for being Jewish.
The Chaplain at the University of Leeds having to take his family into hiding after death threats because he’s an IDF reservist.
Iranian generals – let me say that again – Iranian generals - giving antisemitic speeches as people abuse the right to freedom of speech as a cover for hate speech.
This cannot go on.
Where people break the law on our campuses they will be met with the full consequences.
And where they create a culture of intimidation we will hold the university leadership to account.
University leaders must take personal responsibility for protecting Jewish students in their institutions.
I want you to know that we are calling in the Vice Chancellors of the country’s leading universities to meet in Downing Street to discuss exactly how they will do that.
And this goes to my third point.
Because we cannot just litigate our way to defeating antisemitism and extremism.
We’ve also got to change the culture in our country.
Where is the willingness to speak out and challenge hateful narratives?
Where is the ability to disagree with each other while retaining respect for one another?
None of this will change overnight.
It will take painstaking work over months and years.
But this government will lead by example and make an unprecedented effort to tackle the root causes of antisemitism across our society in a more joined up way.
We will call out hateful narratives.
We’ll invest in interfaith work to build greater community cohesion and understanding between others tackling anti-Muslim hatred as well as antisemitism, with the help of brilliant organisations like Tell Mama.
But we won’t fund those who risk undermining that effort.
So when the Inter Faith Network charity appointed a trustee from the Muslim Council of Britain whose previous leaders have taken positions that contradict our fundamental values we ended their funding.
We will continue to use all our diplomatic efforts to free the hostages through an immediate humanitarian pause.
Earlier this month I met the families of Emily Damari, Nadav Popplewell, Eli Sharabi and Oded Lifschitz.
Their harrowing ordeal is beyond heartbreaking.
We have to bring them home.
And we must work towards the long-term future we all want to see, of a safe and secure Israel with Palestinians living in dignity on a pathway to a viable Palestinian State.
But we don’t achieve anything by calling for a permanent ceasefire without those hostages being returned and Hamas being removed from Gaza.
A permanent ceasefire without those things isn’t a ceasefire at all.
It’s a victory for Hamas.
And this government won’t stand for it.
The biggest step we can take in changing our culture is education.
As so many of our extraordinary Holocaust survivors have said so much more eloquently than I ever could we’ve got to teach people not to hate.
That’s why we’re investing another £7 million to tackle antisemitism in our schools and universities.
And it’s why the Learning Centre is such an important part of the Holocaust Memorial.
Not only to educate those who visit the Memorial in London but as the cross-party Holocaust Commission first recommended to support a national educational mission to fight antisemitism and hatred in all its forms.
Britain is the most successful multi-ethnic democracy on earth.
But we won’t stay that way if we end up with some communities living parallel lives.
It is not enough to live side-by-side, we must live together united by shared values and a shared commitment to this country.
Let me finish on a personal note and I hope a positive one.
Now my own personal story is different from yours.
Despite the assertion in the Jewish Chronicle that and I quote – “Rishi Sunak is a nice Jewish boy” I’ve still not found any Jewish ancestry in my family tree.
But I do know something of what it is like to be seen as different from others and even to experience hatred directed towards your community because of who you are.
I know something of what it is like to be part of a community that is both proud of its own heritage and proud of its Britishness too.
I know something of what it is like to be part of a community that integrates with others from all backgrounds in society and that makes such an extraordinary contribution to our proud multi-faith, multi-ethnic democracy.
That’s why supporting Britain’s Jewish community feels so personal to me.
You represent who we are and what we stand for in the world.
And that’s not just something to be defended.
It’s something to be cherished and celebrated.
And that is what I will always do.
Thank you.