In remarks at the No 10 tackling antisemitism forum, published by gov.uk on 5 May 2026, the Prime Minister said recent attacks and rising incidents had left Jewish communities feeling unsafe in Britain. He cited the attack at Heaton Park last October and the attack in Golders Green the previous week as evidence that ministers were dealing with a pattern rather than isolated cases. The speech set out antisemitism as both a public protection issue and a wider institutional failure. The government line was that extra security is necessary in the short term, but that it is also necessary to act against the ideas, networks and organisational weaknesses that allow anti-Jewish hatred to spread.
On immediate protection, the Prime Minister said the government had announced an additional £25 million the previous week. According to the speech published on gov.uk, the money will fund more police patrols, stronger security at synagogues, schools and community centres, and the deployment of specialist and plain-clothes officers. In policy terms, this is a rapid-risk response. It recognises that Jewish institutions are facing security pressures now, while also implying that routine community life should not depend indefinitely on higher barriers and permanent emergency measures.
The speech then moved beyond physical protection. The Prime Minister said investigators were examining whether a foreign state had been behind some incidents and said Iran, or any other country seeking to foment violence, hatred or division, would face consequences if involvement were established. He added that legislation was being fast-tracked to tackle those threats. The same passage widened the source of risk. The Prime Minister said Islamist, far-left and far-right extremism all target Jewish communities and presented the government response as a coordinated national plan on cohesion and extremism. In practical terms, that points to a cross-department approach rather than a series of isolated announcements.
According to the No 10 remarks, ministers also plan to stop those who spread hatred from entering the country, give the Charity Commission stronger powers against organisations that enable extremism, and require technology companies to remove illegal extremist content or face serious penalties. The speech also referred to stronger powers around protests, with the stated aim of preventing intimidation on the streets. On criminal justice, the Prime Minister said the government would work to speed up sentencing for offences linked to these acts. If implemented as described, the package would tighten the route from incident to sanction and increase the regulatory consequences for institutions or platforms that fail to act.
Education and public services formed another major strand. The Prime Minister said the government has commissioned independent reviews into antisemitism in education and health services, is rolling out antisemitism training across the NHS, and will invest £7 million in schools, colleges and universities. He also said Holocaust education will be taught in all schools. This matters because the government is treating antisemitism not only as a policing problem, but as a standards issue across large public systems. Reviews, staff training and curriculum measures are slower than emergency security funding, but they are the tools ministers use when they want institutional practice to change.
Universities were given a more specific accountability test. The Prime Minister said providers are already expected to set out disciplinary consequences for antisemitism and enforce them. He then announced a higher expectation: universities will now be expected to publish the scale of the problem on campus and the steps taken to clamp down on it. That is a significant move from private complaints handling towards public reporting. If departments follow through, institutions will need reliable case data, clear processes and evidence that sanctions are being used, rather than relying on general statements of principle.
The cultural sector was addressed in similarly direct terms. The Prime Minister said the Arts Council should use its powers to suspend, withdraw and claw back funding where public money is used to promote or platform antisemitism. He also announced an independent audit of how allegations are handled, describing it as a review of where current systems are failing and where enforcement needs to be strengthened. The speech added a more practical funding change for Jewish participation in public life. Arts Council and Home Office funding will be made available for protective security costs so that Jewish artists and organisations are not pushed out by the price of staying safe. The package therefore reaches across policing, regulation, education, higher education, justice and culture, while also putting clear responsibility on sector leaders to show what action they are taking.