Top UK business groups pledge to combat rise of antisemitism

More than 40 of the UK’s leading business organisations have issued a joint statement rallying against antisemitism, stating is has reached a level that requires “specific attention”.

An open letter signed by the likes of from the British Chambers of Commerce, the CBI, and the Federation of Small Businesses calls for business leaders across the country to commit to a zero-tolerance approach towards antisemitism.

“The daily experience of antisemitism faced by Jewish people in our country is unacceptable and has reached a level that requires specific attention. No one should ever live in fear, but this has become the reality for many Jewish people in Britain,” the letter reads.

The joint statement arrives at a moment of heightened tension, following a harrowing attack in Golders Green on the British Jewish community.

Referencing the climate of fear that such incidents have cultivated, the business leaders noted that for many Jewish people in Britain, living in fear has become a daily reality.

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“For the sake of our Jewish colleagues and friends, and for the health of our society as a whole, we urge all business leaders to join us. Let’s call out antisemitism and act together to play our part in ending it,” it urges.

The collective, which includes heavyweights such as Make UK, TheCityUK, and UKHospitality, argues that addressing this hate is a “shared responsibility”.

Each of the signatories pledged to update diversity, equity, and inclusion programs to help employees recognise not just explicit abuse, but also the “coded language” and “conspiratorial narratives” that often precede physical violence.

Last week, Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer said “every part of society” has a responsibility to tackle rising hatred against the Jewish community.

He told senior figures from the police, the arts, higher education and businesses they will should lead the battle in taking on “the forces that drive this hatred”, as he referred to the attacks against British Jews as “a crisis”.

Starmer has faced criticism from some of the Jewish community in the aftermath of the Golders Green attack that the government has not sufficiently acted to keep them safe. The Prime Minister was heckled when he visited the north London suburb.