British Jews ambivalent about a Miliband win

In a matter of days, the UK could have a Jewish prime minister. Yet that is less cause for rejoicing among British Jews than soul-searching and angst.

That reflects the community's difficult relationship with the Labour party leader, Ed Miliband - and what many view as his own complicated relationship with his Jewish roots.

"There are Jews and there are Jews," said Jamie Glassman, a north London actor and writer. "There are Jews who are very visible and vocal with their Jewishness and he's not one of them."

Though born Jewish - the son of refugees who fled the Nazis - Mr Miliband has long made clear that he is not a practising Jew. Socialism - not the local synagogue - was the spiritual force in the north London household where he was raised by a scholar of Marxist political theory.

As a politician, Mr Miliband has made no special effort to court the community, say Jews. Aloofness turned to estrangement last year, during the Gaza war, when his critical comments about Israel and his subsequent support for recognition of a Palestinian state led many to question his support for Israel.

A poll published last month by the Jewish Chronicle newspaper found that 69 per cent of British Jews preferred the Conservatives - led by the Church of England-worshipping prime minister David Cameron - against just 22 per cent for Labour. That is a marked shift from the Tony Blair era, when Jews tilted towards Labour.

"Nobody's going to be running up and down screaming about how wonderful it is," Stephen Pollard, the Jewish Chronicle's editor, said of the prospect of Mr Miliband entering Number 10 Downing Street.

Rebecca Qassim Birk, a rabbi at the Finchley Progressive Synagogue in north London, agreed. "I think there would be an ambiguous sense of pride," she said, adding: "There's definitely something that goes on with Ed Miliband that makes the love of - or connection with - him more ambivalent."

It is a matter of debate whether Britain has already had a Jewish prime minister. Benjamin Disraeli, who twice held the office in the 19th century, was born Jewish, but was later baptised an Anglican.

In electoral terms, Mr Miliband's flagging Jewish support is of no great concern. British Jews number fewer than 300,000. At best, they could provide the swing vote in a few closely-fought constituencies in north London.

To some extent, Mr Miliband suffers by comparison with a prime minister beloved by British Jews. Mr Cameron has been a strong supporter of Israel during his five years in office, repeatedly citing its right to defend itself. He has also been a frequent guest at Jewish events and displays an enthusiasm for Jewish life.

"When you told me we might have our first Jewish prime minister, my first reaction was: I didn't know David Cameron was Jewish?" said one Jewish community leader.

To many British Jews, a remarkable - and heartening - feature of the election campaign is how little remarked on Mr Miliband's heritage has been.

"Why isn't Miliband's Jewishness more of an issue?" Jeremy Newmark, a former chief executive of the Jewish Leadership Council - and a Labour candidate for Hertsmere Borough council - recalled being asked by Jewish leaders during a trip to Washington last month. "In many ways, it's refreshing," he said.

That silence is in tune with a British political culture that frowns on discussion of religion. As Alastair Campbell, the Labour spin-doctor famously remarked: "We don't do God."

In a campaign where immigration has been a divisive issue, Mr Miliband's family story has appeal as an example of immigrant success. His father, Ralph, a Belgian-born Jew from a Polish family fled to the UK in 1940 to escape the Nazis. Within a generation, his sons have reached the heights of British politics.

Mr Miliband's relationship with Israel is more fraught. His criticism of Israel's military action in Gaza last summer as "wrong and unjustifiable" was not outside a British mainstream that has become deeply disenchanted with the policies of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

But it offended many Jews because it was delivered so publicly at a time when Israel was under attack and was not balanced with empathy for Israeli civilians under attack from Palestinian militants. "That was catastrophic for his relations with British Jews," Mr Pollard said.

Further complicating matters for Mr Miliband, he prevailed over his brother, David, in the Labour leadership competition by courting the leftist and trade unionist wing of the party that tends to be more pro-Palestinian.

Mr Miliband has since sought to mend fences. In an interview last week with the Jewish Chronicle, he called himself "a strong friend of Israel," adding: "Friends will disagree from time to time but it doesn't in any way change my deep belief that we should seek to restart the negotiations, that we should have no tolerance with those who question the legitimacy of the state of Israel, that we should have no tolerance of proposals for boycott."

He also spoke about his deepening connection to the Jewish community and the recent experience of lighting a candle for his grandfather, whose history he researched at Yad Vashem, Israel's Holocaust memorial, and explaining the significance to his five-year-old son.

"He didn't have a traditional Jewish upbringing," Mr Newmark said. "That's not to say he's not enthused by Jewish life in this country."

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