The Universities Minister Chris Skidmore said today in a letter to Vice-Chancellors that universities must do more to stamp out antisemitism on campus.

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We are excited to announce the UJS Sabbatical Team 2019-2020!

After multiple rounds of interviews, we are so excited to have put together the team to work with your J-Socs over the next year. Everyone is looking forward to facilitate and support your activities on campus. Esther and all of the other officers can't wait to continue leading, defending and enriching Jewish life on Campus in UJS' 100th year and beyond. Keep reading to find out more about the new team!

UJS President Hannah Rose and Campaigns Organiser Daniel Kosky met with Universities Minister Chris Skidmore along with the Jewish Leadership Council, CST and the Antisemitism Policy Trust. Topics discussed included recent incidents on campus, challenges facing Jewish students and the ways in which the government can support Jewish students.

The Union of Jewish Students welcomes the University of Essex Vice-Chancellor’s condemnation of antisemitism. We commend the swift, strong and supportive action taken, including suspension of the staff member in question and a full investigation. We look forward to seeing the progress of a review into support for Jewish students and staff. Assurances of the establishment of a Jewish society regardless of the vote are most welcome.

We are deeply disappointed by the significant proportion of students who have voted against the establishment of a Jewish society at the University of Essex. Jewish societies, of which over 60 exist on UK campuses up and down the country, provide a space for Jewish students to celebrate their culture and identity. The fact that some students at the University of Essex deem it fit to vote against that is quite simply shocking.

It is very troubling that the CST 2018 report demonstrates a rise in antisemitism on UK campuses, following two years of declining reported and recorded antisemitic incidents on campus by the CST in 2017 and 2016. However, due to continued under-reporting, as with most types of hate crime, we are aware that the scale of the problem is not fully revealed.

The Union of Jewish Students welcomes the Equality and Human Rights Commission’s clarifications on Universities and Students’ Unions’ duty to protect freedom of expression, whilst similarly guarding students from harassment, intimidation and religious or racial hatred. We are proud to be influencing the conversation on freedom of speech in the HE sector, given that both this EHRC report and the Joint Committee on Human Rights’ investigation into free speech on campus mirrored our written and oral evidence. We look forward to seeing implementation of these recommendations on campuses in England and Wales, including free and informed debates on Israel-Palestine, whilst protecting Jewish students from those who would incite hatred and violence against us.

It is a sorry state of affairs that the all-student meeting at UCLSU has voted against the IHRA definition of antisemitism. 

At UJS Conference 2018, Jewish students voted to support the campaign for another referendum on Brexit