London: British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak on Thursday urged university chiefs to address the rise in antisemitic abuse on campus and disruption of learning in reaction to the Israel-Hamas conflict.
Sunak and his ministers will meet with university vice-chancellors to ensure a zero-tolerance approach to antisemitic abuse is adopted on all campuses, Downing Street said.
The government said it wants to make it clear that debate and the open exchange of views in universities is essential but that this can never tip over into hate speech, harassment or incitement of violence.
“Universities should be places of rigorous debate but also bastions of tolerance and respect for every member of their community,” said Sunak.
“A vocal minority on our campuses are disrupting the lives and studies of their fellow students and, in some cases, propagating outright
harassment and antisemitic abuse. That has to stop,” he said.
The meeting is to also help to inform planned government guidance on combatting antisemitism on campus.
Meanwhile, the Office for Students (OfS) has committed to publishing the response to its consultation on a new condition of registration, which could give OfS the
power to impose sanctions where there is clear evidence that universities are failing to take sufficient
or appropriate action to tackle harassment, including antisemitic abuse.
“I have made it absolutely clear that universities must crack down on antisemitism and ensure that protests do not unduly disrupt university life,” said Education Secretary Gillian Keegan.
In the Budget last year, the government announced GBP 7 million of extra support to tackle antisemitic abuse in educational settings, and GBP 500,000 of this will be dedicated to supporting
the work of the University Jewish Chaplaincy, boosting support for Jewish students on campus.