Golders Green Ambulance Attack

Lord Palmer of Childs Hill Excerpts

Thursday 26th March 2026 Lords Chamber

[Lord Hanson of Flint (Lab)]

The noble Lord will know that I think the attacks he has listed are vile crimes. Some are still under investigation, but they are vile crimes and there is absolutely no place in this United Kingdom for antisemitism. There is a range of other communities which regularly face attack, but I share his concern that the Jewish community is being singled out. In this Government, from the Prime Minister downwards, we will take a stand against antisemitism, we will not tolerate it, and we will take steps both to protect the Jewish community and ultimately to drive out the causes of those attacks in the first place.

[Lord Palmer of Childs Hill (LD)]

My Lords, I must first declare an interest in that Hatzola, which runs the ambulances, came to my home when my wife broke her leg, and it came to my home when I fell down and was unconscious, and took me to hospital. It is a Jewish organisation but it does not help only Jews. I have been in Golders Green, the area we are talking about, when a woman fell down in the middle of the street, and Hatzola came to deal with it. There was a man lying prone on the pavement, of who knows what religion, and Hatzola came to help him. This is a charitable organisation. I ask the Minister this question with great reluctance, because I have always said we must not conflate the things that happen in Israel, the West Bank and Gaza with what happens in the UK, but is there not a similarity between these attacks on the ambulances in Golders Green and the Hamas attacks on the peaceful settlements of kibbutzim in southern Israel? Is there not a playbook here, where Jews in Israel and the UK are being targeted? Can the Minister ask the police authorities whether Hamas is active in the UK?

[Lord Hanson of Flint (Lab)]

First of all, I share the noble Lord’s concern about the attack and about the damage that was done. In response to that damage, the Government have replaced those four ambulances that were burned and will help support that organisation in future to rebuild the types of services that the noble Lord referred to so that we can have a continuum of support in that way. I hope the House will recognise that I cannot comment on the motivation of the attack. Two individuals have been arrested and they are on bail. We do not know what their motivation was, but I say to the noble Lord that antisemitism, whether in Israel or in the United Kingdom, is a vile action. It needs to be attacked and shown up for what it is, and the Government, both at home and abroad, as my noble friend Lady Chapman mentioned earlier, will take action to ensure that we drive it out. We can of course attack the State of Israel and its policies but antisemitism is an entirely different thing, and I share the noble Lord’s concern on that matter.