Lauren Smith
The European Conservative, July 14, 2025
“… antisemitism is no longer shameful, but fashionable. Among certain sections of the progressive, pro-Palestine set in the West, it is a marker that someone is following trendy politics and parroting all the right slogans.”
There was a time, not that long ago, when the word ‘antisemite’ conjured up images of rabid conspiracy theorists and racist skinheads. Now, though, Jew hatred has found a new home—on campuses, in op-eds and at north London dinner parties.
According to a new report, backed by the UK government and set to be published tomorrow, antisemitism has become “normalised in middle-class Britain.” The co-authors of the review, government antisemitism adviser Lord Mann and former defence secretary Penny Mordaunt, wrote in the Telegraph over the weekend that Jewish people are facing discrimination “in our professions, cultural life [and] public services.” Particularly under fire were the arts sector, universities, and the NHS. The UK, they warned, has turned into a place where Jews feel “tolerated rather than… respected.”
The numbers certainly point to an increase in antisemitism across the board. According to the Community Security Trust (CST), antisemitic incidents increased by 147% in 2023, in the aftermath of the October 7th massacre. In 2024, numbers remained the second-highest in recorded history, after only 2023. Last year, CST logged over 200 cases in every month except December.
Specifically, though, antisemitism has taken a firm root among Britain’s well-educated and well-to-do. As this new report points out, it’s not just the “noisy demonstrations and how intimidating people find the current environment” that is driving the wave of anti-Jewish discrimination. Antisemitism has become deeply embedded into British institutions. Just look at the parade of disruptive pro-Palestine protests we’ve seen take over university campuses. At top institutions like Oxford and Cambridge, students set up tent encampments in ‘solidarity’ with the people of Palestine. They wailed about the supposed genocide in Gaza, pressured their schools to cut all ties with ‘apartheid’ Israel, and in some cases intimidated Jewish students who simply wanted to attend classes at the university they paid for. ….SOURCE