The run-up to the local elections delivered a depressingly familiar spectacle of the right-wing press firing on all cylinders against its chosen political enemies.

Unsurprisingly, Zack Polanski was at the centre of the storm.

The row stemmed from Polanski reposting criticism of police conduct during the arrest of a man accused of stabbing two Jewish men in Golders Green. Polanski later apologised, admitting he had shared the post in haste.

That should have arguably been the end of it. But instead, the row escalated when the Times faced accusations of fuelling antisemitic sentiment after publishing a cartoon of Zack Polanski by political cartoonist Peter Brookes.

Critics argued that the cartoon did not merely attack Polanski politically but relied on exaggerated visual features long associated with antisemitic caricatures of Jewish people.

In a statement, the Green Party described the cartoon as “deeply irresponsible.”

Many social media users agreed, with comparisons made to the visual propaganda techniques deployed in 1930s Germany under Joseph Goebbels.

What quickly followed were gloating reports about Polanski’s poll ratings being in “free fall” as the Telegraph put it.

Yet while newspapers eagerly amplified every angle of the Polanski controversy, there was notably less interest in stories involving Nigel Farage.

The relative silence around Farage’s reported £5 million backing from British cryptocurrency investor Christopher Harborne, who is based in Thailand and has donated millions to Reform UK, was striking. So too was the muted coverage of Farage posing alongside far-right activists, including a man previously convicted of assault after storming a Stand Up to Racism meeting at a church.

That double standard is the real story. Some politicians, typically on the left, are subjected to days of outrage, saturation coverage and moral grandstanding for every misstep, while others receive remarkably light scrutiny for serious associations and controversies.

The post Right-wing media watch: Cartoon backlash dominates the news cycle, while Farage evades scrutiny appeared first on Left Foot Forward: Leading the UK's progressive debate.

The Prime Minister has vowed to deal with ‘the root causes of extremism and antisemitism’ following a horrific terrorist attack on the Jewish community in north London.

Police say they are treating the stabbing of two men in Golders Green as terrorism, with the suspect described as having been hunting for anyone “visibly Jewish” to attack.

The stabbings, which happened just after 11am on Wednesday, come after a series of arson attacks on Jewish targets in London since March, including two previous incidents in Golders Green.

The victims, aged 76 and 34, are said to be in a stable condition in hospital and a 45-year-old man was arrested at the scene.

Starmer said yesterday evening that he had held an emergency COBRA meeting to look at enhanced security for the Jewish community to give the level of protection that is needed.

He also said later in the evening: “Let me start by saying what an appalling attack this is and my thoughts – all of our thoughts – are with the victims, their families, their loved ones. And, let’s be frank, this is not an isolated incident. There have been a series of antisemitic attacks, and I know first hand the anxiety that that is causing in the community, and concern.

“I was at Kenton Synagogue last week where I heard a lot about that level of anxiety. It’ll be worse after today. We’re very much in touch with the community and I’ll visit as soon as possible.”

The PM also said: “We do have to recognise the levels of anxiety and concern there are, that I know about, in terms of the Jewish community feeling very much, exposed and vulnerable, feeling they’ve got to hide their identity sometimes in the health service, sometimes at school, on the streets, where they live and it’s our job to make sure that they feel safe, secure. It’s our job, to make sure that we absolutely deal with the roots of anti-semitism and extremism. That is what we will do.”

Basit Mahmood is editor of Left Foot Forward

The post Keir Starmer vows to tackle ‘root causes of antisemitism’ after appalling Golders Green terror attack appeared first on Left Foot Forward: Leading the UK's progressive debate.

Former Labour deputy leader Harriet Harman has criticised Nigel Farage for “leading a culture war” with his response to the government banning Kanye West from coming to the UK.

Speaking on Sky News’ Electoral Dysfunction podcast, Baroness Harman said it was “deplorable” that Farage opposes the decision on free speech grounds.

The Home Office announced on Tuesday that West, who now goes by the name Ye, has been barred from coming to the UK on the basis that his presence would not be “conducive to the public good”.

The decision came after backlash that West had been booked to headline Wireless festival in July, despite a history of making comments praising Adolf Hitler and filming a Super Bowl advert directing people to a swastika T-shirt.

The London music festival has now been cancelled after West’s removal from the lineup.  

Keir Starmer said that West should “never have been invited to headline Wireless”.

He said that the government “stands firmly with the Jewish community, and we will not stop in our fight to confront and defeat the poison of antisemitism”.

However, critics have pointed to what they see as inconsistencies in Starmer’s record, including his government’s tough stance on migration, continued military and diplomatic support for Israel in its ongoing genocide in Gaza and his controversial ‘Island of Strangers’ speech last year.

Farage, on the other hand, said that the rapper should not be penalised for free speech.

“I wouldn’t buy a ticket, I wouldn’t recommend anyone buy a ticket. I think his comments are vile, really vile. The sort of rabbit hole antisemitism, stroke Nazism, that he’s gone down is vile,” the Reform UK leader said.

He added: “But I think if we start banning people from entering the country because we don’t like what they say, I worry where that ends up.

“If Keir Starmer was to ban people coming into Britain, with whose views he doesn’t like, almost everybody wouldn’t be allowed in. I think it’s a dangerous path to go down.”

Farage said he wouldn’t ban people from the UK for saying “thoroughly objectionable” things, “unless, of course, the line’s crossed and you see direct incitement of violence”.

Harman condemned Farage’s position on the Electoral Dysfunction podcast, saying: “I think it’s so deplorable that Nigel Farage is saying, you know, he’s trying to lead a culture war against this.

“I mean, what kind of society does Nigel Farage want us to be living in? Is he really happy for us to be in a society where you have to worry if your kids are going to a Jewish school, about the security around that school, that if you’re going to worship at a synagogue, you have to worry about the security of that synagogue.

“You know, these are issues for all of us, not just for the Jewish community.”

In December, the Guardian unearthed allegations that Farage had made racist and antisemitic remarks to fellow students at Dulwich College as a teenager.

One former student, the film writer and director Peter Ettedgui, recalled Farage growling “Hitler was right” or “Gas them” at him when they were at school.

Olivia Barber is a reporter at Left Foot Forward

The post Farage ‘leading culture war’ with Kanye West comments, Harriet Harman says appeared first on Left Foot Forward: Leading the UK's progressive debate.