Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to tackle anti-Semitism on university campuses.

As autonomous institutions, universities are responsible for tackling antisemitism on campus and should have processes in place to deal with unlawful abuse and harassment.

Universities, as well as Jewish groups and other stakeholders, have told us that the previous government’s Freedom of Speech Act prevented them from taking effective action. The department is stopping further commencement of the Act, in order to consider the options, including its repeal.

The department will continue to work closely with Jewish groups, including the Union for Jewish Students and the University Jewish Chaplaincy, to understand their concerns and what further action is needed.