9 MPs yet to sign IHRA definition of antisemitism
They include Sinn Fein's seven MPs and Labour MPs Tahir Ali and Grahame Morris
9 MPs have yet to sign an international definition of antisemitism following fresh calls to do so.
Parliament’s 650 MPs were asked to put to their names to the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) definition in the wake of last month’s general election.
The All-Party Parliamentary Group Against Antisemitism, which led the campaign, said some 641 parliamentarians answered their calls to sign the definition.
All SNPs, SDLP, Green Party, DUP and independent MPS signed the definition, previously adopted by the Government and the Labour Party.
MPs who have yet to sign include Labour MPs Tahir Ali and Grahame Morris.
Sinn Fein’s seven MPs – who do not take their seats in Westminster – also failed to sign.
The definition is thought to have gathered the largest parliamentary support for any non-parliamentary document in recent memory.
The government’s antisemitism adviser Lord John Mann urged MPs to “put in some work” to fight antisemitism.
“Now that nearly every MP has signed this declaration, we will be asking them to take it to the universities and other institutions in their area and to ensure it has wider take-up. They’ve put their names to this. Now we want them to put in some work,” he said.
Tory MP Andrew Percy, co-chair of the APPG Against Antisemitism, said: “This is a powerful sign that following concerns about antisemitism in public life, the new House of Commons is seeking to put a line in the sand about anti-Jewish hate”
Echoing Lord Mann’s words, Percy’s co-chair, Labour MP Catherine McKinnell, urged MPs to put “words into action.”
“Signing up to a definition is one thing. Now it’s about making sure this is more than words. The theme for this year’s Holocaust Memorial Day is Stand Together. We will be asking fellow MPs to stand up and fight anti-Jewish hatred and put words into action,” she said.
Danny Stone, chief executive of the Antisemitism Policy Trust, which supports the APPG Against Antisemitism, said: “The scale and cross-party nature of the support for this definition is remarkable.”
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