Antisemitism in Political Parties

Alan Duncan

2016-2019: Minister of State for Europe and the Americas

1992-2019: Conservative Member of Parliament for Rutland and Melton

Incidents

On 14th October 2014, Sir Alan, who was then a backbencher, delivered a speech in which he said: “In the same way as it is wrong to correlate Israel with all Jews: so is it also wrong to conflate all Jews with Israel. 263,000 Jews are British. Jewish people don’t just play an important part in British life: they are crucial to it. All should value the UK’s Jewish community and its deep contribution to the fabric of Britain. As such they should, and do, play a full part in or politics. But our politics has rules, and one important such rule is that our political funding should not come from another country or from citizens of another country, or be unduly in hock to another country. This rule seems to apply to every country except when it comes from Israel. Jewish voters in the UK should be welcomed as supporters of, and donors to, their favoured political party. Of course, the support of any British Jew for any political party can hinge on whatever they want, including on a politician’s stance on Israel. But we should stop conflating, as we have for too long, British Jews with the Israeli lobby. They are distinct, and failing to recognise this treats the entire Jewish community as if they are homogenous, when of course they are not. We need British Jews for the Conservative, Labour, or other UK parties; not the Israeli lobby for any party. The time has come to make sure above any doubt that the funding of any party in the UK is clearly decoupled from the influence of the Israeli state.”
On 14th October 2014, it was reported that, in a BBC radio interview linked to the speech above, Sir Alan had said: “We all know that the United States is in hock to a very powerful financial lobby which dominates its politics.” He did not specify who he believed to be behind this lobby.

Analysis

Campaign Against Antisemitism’s analysis is that Sir Alan’s actions and statements amount to breaches of the International Definition of Antisemitism and qualify as antisemitic discourse according to our methodology.

By suggesting that UK party political funding might be somehow “unduly in hock to another country” — that is, Israel — via donations from British Jews, and that it was necessary “to make sure above any doubt that the funding of any party in the UK is clearly decoupled from the influence of the Israeli state” [1], he was, within the language of the definition, “accusing Jewish citizens of being more loyal to Israel, or to the alleged priorities of Jews worldwide, than to the interests of their own nations.”

By alluding to the supposed influence of Israel via an “Israeli lobby” in [1], and by asserting “We all know that the United States is in hock to a very powerful financial lobby which dominates its politics” [2], he was “making mendacious, dehumanising, demonising, or stereotypical allegations about Jews as such or the power of Jews as collective — such as, especially but not exclusively, the myth about a world Jewish conspiracy or of Jews controlling the media, economy, government or other societal institutions.

Outcome

Sir Alan was appointed as Minister of State for Europe and the Americas by the Conservative Government in July 2016.

As of 5th April 2017, it is unknown whether the Conservative Party has ever taken any disciplinary action against Sir Alan.

In September 2017, Campaign Against Antisemitism put this matter to Sir Alan, but did not receive a response.

As of 11th February 2019, his speech of 14th October 2014 [1] remained, unabridged, on his own website.

In November 2019, Campaign Against Antisemitism put this matter to Sir Alan, but did not receive a response.

On 2nd April 2021, the Daily Mail published the first instalment of Sir Alan’s political diaries. In the entry for 16th July 2016, Sir Alan reportedly complained that he had not been appointed Minister for the Middle East, denying that he had “ever so much as sided with anti-Semitic [sic] people or said anything near it”. He reportedly attributed the rebuff to opposition from the Conservative Friends of Israel group, who he accused of “just [wanting] to belittle and subjugate the Palestinians”, and to Theresa May’s special adviser Nick Timothy, who, he claimed, had “also been got at”. Mr Timothy subsequently refuted this assertion.

Rating

Campaign Against Antisemitism has rated the Party’s handling of this matter as “bad”. Our rating system is explained in our methodology. This case was last updated on 7th April 2021.

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