Chamber and committees

The Scottish Government is committed to tackling all forms of racism, including antisemitism. We adopted the IHRA definition of antisemitism in June 2017. This is the Scottish Government position and it applies to all Ministers.

Institutions are aware of the IHRA definition of antisemitism and many are actively consulting within their communities on it. I understand that five institutions have made the decision to adopt the definition following detailed consideration. However, as autonomous bodies, adoption of the IHRA definition of antisemitism remains a matter for each institution to consider individually, with its staff and student communities.

Importantly, Universities Scotland and all 19 higher education institutions have been clear that there is absolutely no place for antisemitism nor racial or religious intolerance of any kind, in higher education.

Universities Scotland is actively engaging with the Union of Jewish Students (UJS) and the Scottish Council of Jewish Communities (SCoJeC) and has welcomed the opportunity to discuss the IHRA definition of antisemitism and current issues faced by Jewish students. It has confirmed that it is working with SCoJeC on a programme of action to share good practice across institutions and to find ways of offering more support to Jewish students across the sector, particularly where communities are very small in number.

UJS offers training to students and most recently, following a successful pilot at an English institution, to university staff on antisemitism. Universities Scotland has advised that this is something that several Scottish HEIs are interested in exploring. You may also be aware that Universities UK produced a practical guide to tackling antisemitism in collaboration with UJS in 2021.

The Scottish Government is actively engaged in consultation with Jewish students, Jewish community organisations, and stakeholders in higher education as part of our wider approach to tackling antisemitism.

On 23 February 2022, I held a round table discussion on antisemitism in higher education with Jewish students, representatives from the Jewish community, and stakeholders from the higher education sector. The event was organised in response to a letter from UJS regarding universities and the IHRA definition of antisemitism.

It was an opportunity for students to share their experiences of antisemitism and also to hear from stakeholders about the work they are doing to confront this issue in practice. The discussion was very productive, with all parties agreeing to undertake positive actions to address antisemitism on campus going forward. A summary of the meeting will be published on the Scottish Government website, and made publicly accessible, in due course.