Angela Rayner has faced scrutiny after ignoring complaints about allegedly anti-Semitic posts made by a peer advising ministers on defining Islamophobia, The Telegraph can reveal. Baroness Gohir, appointed to the working group in February, previously claimed on social media that Israel “controls” the US. In April, the Campaign Against Anti-Semitism (CAA) alerted Ms Rayner’s department to these posts, noting that they could meet the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) definition of anti-Semitism. The tweets, dating from 2013 and 2014, were public until at least 2022 but have since been deleted.
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CAA director Stephen Silverman criticised the appointment, arguing that anyone engaging in such rhetoric is unsuitable to advise the Government. He added that ignoring anti-Jewish racism while drafting a definition of anti-Muslim hatred damages the Government’s credibility. Neither Ms Rayner nor her department responded initially to the complaint, though they later apologised for the delay, citing an administrative error.
Lady Gohir defended herself, stating that her posts were over a decade old and aimed at the Israeli government, not Jewish people. She insisted that her criticism was about human rights and not anti-Semitism, emphasising that the IHRA definition allows for criticism of Israel as with any other nation. She also accused media and “bad actors” of misrepresenting her statements to smear her character, while reaffirming her commitment to equality and opposing prejudice in all forms.
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The working group, chaired by former Tory attorney general Dominic Grieve, is tasked with advising the Government on “appropriate and sensitive language” to define Islamophobia. Its recommendations will be considered alongside public submissions and debates over free speech. Ministers appointed the five members directly, and the group is expected to report within six months. Meanwhile, Deputy Prime Minister Rayner faces continued pressure to respond to both the CAA’s concerns and wider public debate over defining Islamophobia.
