With the prevalence of anti-semitism I took the opportunity to speak in a debate on the conservation of Jewish cultural heritage at the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe. It is of course right to undertake this preservation and counteract the destruction of Jewish graves, for example, as part of the rise of antisemitism. Howver this should not be done as if Jewish culture is dead. It is a living part of our own culture of which we should be proud.
John said: As a trustee of the Holocaust Memorial Day Trust I was able to point to the Trust’s educational activities designed to help people learn, to increase empathy and to be inspired. But we also need to ensure that the Jewish community is not saddled with additional costs of protecting itself, for example at synagogues, in the light of growing antisemitism."
