British Jewish groups express ‘significant concerns’ over Israel comments by PM candidate Burnham

Britain’s Board of Deputies and Jewish Leadership Council have expressed “significant concerns” over comments regarding Israel made yesterday by the man expected to be the country’s next prime minister.

In a video posted to social media, Andy Burnham said Britain must do more to pressure Israel over its treatment of Palestinians in Gaza, and that it must bar the sale of weapons that Israel will use in the West Bank and Gaza.

“It’s completely unacceptable that innocent Palestinians, including children, continue to be killed,” he said. “That there’s still a humanitarian crisis with too little aid getting in, and that the Israeli military continues to expand the area it controls in Gaza. We’ve got to do more to put pressure on the Israeli government.”

In response, the two Jewish organizations say in a joint statement that “antisemitism cannot be confronted without addressing all its drivers.”

“In today’s Britain, this includes Islamist, far-left and far-right extremists who go beyond criticism of the Israeli government to a place of hatred directed at Jews and Israelis,” the statement says. “These voices build on distorted or one-sided portrayals of the situation in Gaza and its causes, and ceaseless attempts to single out the world’s only Jewish state.”

"In a country in which antisemitism has become more normalised, more extreme and more violent, we call on our leaders to show the utmost care in their rhetoric in relation to the conflict."

Our joint statement with the @BoardofDeputies, responding to Andy Burnham's remarks… pic.twitter.com/0MZqb1M8oh

— Jewish Leadership Council (@JLC_uk) July 10, 2026

As mayor of Greater Manchester during the Heaton Park attack, Burnham “knows first hand the links between hatred of Israel, antisemitic extremism and deadly violence against British Jews,” the statement continues. The Board of Deputies and JLC say they look forward to discussing these concerns with Burnham and his team in the near future.

Burnham, who recently reentered Parliament, is expected to be the only candidate who will run in internal Labour Party elections to replace outgoing Prime Minister Keir Starmer, who recently announced that he will step down.