Richard Weider from Edgware to Modiin

My worries about the British Government's worsening support for Israel

2012-01-18T01:23:00.000+02:00

I am worried about what appears to be a weakening of support for Israel by the British Government. As the JC reports due to the visit of Palestinian Leader Mahmoud Abbas, the British Government seems to be increasingly critical of Israel and the building of homes in the West Bank, with the Deputy Prime Minister calling these buildings 'vandalism'.

Settlements are of course an issue in any peace agreement between Israel and the Palestinians, but definitely

not the crucial issue as previous negotiations which the Palestinians have rejected has shown before.

I certainly hope the negotiations which restarted a couple of weeks ago are eventually able to succeed.

The British Government should remember even current Government in Israel led by Benjamin Netanyahu

which was supported (and probably is still supported) by more than a majority of the population, froze

settlement building for more than 10 months, but still the Palestinians refused to negotiate..

The Israeli Government is only continuing the established policy of the past 40 years where the settlements (or

as I prefer to call them towns where ordinary people live) need to have further development as any town

across the world requires.

This majority supported position in Israel a democratic decision (isn't that what the world is calling for across

the Middle East) continues to support people living in and building their homes in existing towns, until the

Palestinians agree to stop trying to kill Jewish people and recognise our State as the Jewish homeland. When

that is achieved than peace will be possible. So the British Government should stop condemning house

building and pressure the Palestinians to recognise that Israel is a Jewish State which they should accept and

negotiate with.

Benjamin Netanyahu begins his election campaign

2011-11-02T12:52:00.000+02:00

After more than two years attempting to be an internationalist Prime Minister and attempting to negotiate with the Palestinian Leadership Benjamin Netanyahu has clearly released that there is no hope of achieving peace with the existing Palestinian leadership and has instead decided to embark on ensuring he wins the next election.

After basking in high popularity following the release of Gilad Shalit the Government appears to be again attempting to appeal to it's right wing supporters. The election results of the past decade have shown that the centre-right are the dominant force in Israel and with Israeli elections only about 1 year away. The Prime Minister has quite rightly therefore come to the conclusion that now is the time for him to again show that he will protect the security of Israel by starting to finalise plans to defend Israel against Iran by attacking Iran's nuclear bomb reactors.

Equally importantly after realising that there is no hope of peace negotiations succeeding, as the Palestinians have continued its international battle again Israel, and so again supported Jewish growth in all of Jerusalem and the West Bank territory of Israel.

These two moves clearly show that Benjamin Netanyahu is preparing to win another term as Prime Minister with a stronger Likud Party by beating Avigdor Lieberman and Israel Beiteinu as the largest right wing part. Therefore expect to see more policies to support and protect Israel over the next months

Why are the Palestinians again firing rockets at Israel?

2011-10-29T22:40:00.000+02:00

I have just posted an excellent article about how the release of Gilad Shalit has brought about a rediscovered goodness in Israel showing that most Israeli's are united together for a successful and peaceful future led by Jewish thought - even for the less religious.

However, while Israel has been relieved at a peaceful outcome and the return of one it's young soldiers kidnapped for over five years, the Palestinian's have been declaring victory and celebrating the return from open prisons of their mass murdering terrorists.

While it is sad enough that the Palestinian's are celebrating the freedom of mass terrorists, it is even more frightening that they are again firing rockets into Israel. These rockets which have caused injuries and mental illness in addition to death's must be stopped. Let us hope now that international community have got their victory in Libya can turn their attention to stopping the Palestinian terrorists and tell them that if they want a successful future the only way to succeed is through peace negotiations. For now though I think sadly we will be seeing an upsurge in terrorism.

Gilad Shalit and Benjamin Netenyahu help Israel to rediscover its Goodness

2011-10-29T22:25:00.000+02:00

Daniel Gordis is my favourite writer when I try to understand what is going on in Israel, and he again has written an excellent piece in the Jerusalem Post which can be found here but to make it easier I have reproduced in full.

Guest columnist: A rediscovered abundance of goodness

10/28/2011 21:13 By DANIEL GORDIS

A letter to the Prime Minister regarding Schalit's release.

Photo by: REUTERS

Mr. Prime Minister, Before the Schalit deal fades entirely from view, many of us are hoping that you have noticed what you unwittingly unleashed. I don’t mean the next wave of terror or the terrible decisions that Israel must make before the next kidnapping. We knew about those even before last week. But last Tuesday, all of us – those opposed as well as those in favor (and there were persuasive arguments on both sides) – rediscovered something magnificent about this country.

It would be tragic if we returned to business as usual without pausing to take note.

In addition to Gilad Schalit, we received one more thing that few of us could have expected; we got a reminder of the abundant goodness that still resides at the very core of this society. It could be seen everywhere.

Compare the speeches on our side, celebrating life and freedom, to the bloodthirsty Palestinian harangues calling for renewed terror and additional kidnappings.

Compare the respectful restraint of our press to newscaster Shahira Amin’s immoral and abusive interview in Egypt. But more than anything, we saw this reservoir of goodness in the streets – in the people so moved that they could hide neither the tears in their eyes nor the lumps in their throats. We saw it in the throngs in the streets, people who wanted Schalit to know that they, too, celebrated his long overdue freedom. And we saw it in the hundreds of people in his hometown of Mitzpe Hila who continued dancing long after he’d entered his house and closed the door.

We all felt it. It was innocent, pure and thoroughly decent. We were witness that day to an entire country believing in something again. Those young people outside the Schalit home were singing not only about Schalit, but about this land, this people and about a future in which they still believe. Did you see them? Women and men, religious and secular dancing with abandon in celebration of freedom? Did you hear them singing “Anahnu Ma’aminim Bnei Ma’aminim…” “We are believers, the children of believers, and we have no one on whom to depend other than our Father in heaven”? You didn’t miss it, did you? Hundreds of people from all walks of Israeli life, proclaiming without hesitation their belief in something bigger than themselves? The reason that the prisoner trade was so wildly popular, Mr. Prime Minister, wasn’t ultimately about Gilad Schalit. It was about Israel. About a country desperate to transcend the cynicism, that still wants to believe that it’s worth believing. Shouldn’t we – and you – therefore ask ourselves what can we do next to justify people’s belief in this place? What will it take to make this a country that its citizens can love even when we’re not freeing a captive?

How about if we start by eradicating evil? Take but one example and deal with it.

There’s a small but vicious group of kids living over the Green Line who bring inestimable shame on the Jewish people. They burn mosques, tear down olive trees and sow fear everywhere – all with the implicit support of their rabbis. And they make many young Israelis deeply ashamed of this entire enterprise. Last week you showed us that you know how to take decisive action. So do it again. Rein them in. Arrest them. Cut off funding to their yeshivot. If you show this generation of Israelis that your government stands for goodness even when that means making tough domestic decisions, you’ll unleash a wave of Zionist passion like we haven’t felt here for a generation. It wouldn’t be any harder to do than what you just did, and it would do even more good for Israel than getting one soldier back.

And beyond goodness, there’s also Jewishness. No, we shouldn’t make too much of that“Anahnu Ma’aminim Bnei Ma’aminim” song, but admit – it’s not what you expect to see lots of secular people singing. Yet they did. Because this is a strange and wondrous country; not so deep down, even “non-religious” people aren’t “non-religious.” Just like their observant counterparts, they’re searching, struggling, yearning – and at moments like that, they know that the well from which they hope to draw their nourishment is a Jewish well.

That’s why it was wonderful that you quoted from Isaiah in your speech. It was your suggestion, I hope, that at its core, this society must be decent, but it must also be Jewish. You know what the main problem with the summer’s social justice protests was? It wasn’t the naïve embrace of high school socialism or the utter incoherence of the demands. It was the fact that there was simply nothing Jewish about their vision for Israel. Daphni Leef and her comrades could have given the same vacuous speeches at Occupy Wall Street. Or in Sweden, for that matter. Those inane speeches were testimony to the failure of our educational system and of Israel’s religious leadership. The Yoram Kaniuk affair and the court’s willingness to let him declare himself “without religion” is a reflection not on him, but on the appallingly uninteresting variety of Judaism that the state has come to represent. Can you – or anyone else – name even one single powerful idea that’s come from any of Israel’s chief rabbis in the past decade or two? Me neither.

But lo and behold, it turns out that Israel’s young people still want to believe in something. We haven’t given them the tools to articulate it, but they still intuit that whatever we become, it’s got to be Jewish. So ride that wave, too, Mr. Prime Minister. What would it take to shape a country where the profundity at the core of Jewish tradition became once again the subject of discourse in our public square? Does Judaism in the 21st century suddenly have to become dull and backward, or can we restore the intellectual and moral excellence that once characterized it? Can you take this on, too? Appoint the right people? Build the right schools? Can you help make this a country that encourages those young people now searching for Jewish moral moorings? For or against the swap, hardly a single one of us is not thrilled that Gilad Schalit is home. He deserved his life back. But so, too, does this country. Schalit, hopefully, will now get better and stronger with each passing day. Israel must do the same. It needs to get better – we need to be honest about the evils lurking in our midst and we must exorcise them. And we must become stronger, which we can do only by engaging with the roots that brought us back home in the first place.

Can you do this? Many of us hope so. Because if this fails, it will in the long run have made no difference that Gilad Schalit came home. But if it succeeds, we might just come to see his liberation as the turning point in our collective return to believing in ourselves.

The writer is president of the Shalem Foundation and senior fellow at the Shalem Center in Jerusalem. His latest book, Saving Israel: How the Jewish People Can Win a War that May Never End (Wiley), won the 2009 National Jewish Book Award. He is now writing a book on the defense of Israel and the nation-state, and blogs at http://danielgordis.org

September’s United Nations vote on a Palestinian State How can Israel win?

2011-08-17T10:27:00.000+03:00

I remember coming home from school one afternoon almost twenty years ago and watching the signing of the peace agreement outside of the White House by Yitzchak Rabin and Yasser Arafat. I also recall how continually through the 1990s despite the continued terrorist attacks, negotiations continued with the hope of achieving peace. Then even in the past decade with the intifada, and the Lebanese and Gaza wars, the international community together with the Israeli public hoped, even if not believing that a peace agreement could be achieved. Where the Arab world would recognise Israel as the Jewish State, which through direct negotiations would also see a new Palestinian State coming into being.

However, for the past couple of years Israeli’s have come to realise that the peace process with the Palestinian people is over, as Mahmoud Abbas has refused to negotiate a peace deal with Israel, and instead has set it’s sights on a unilateral declaration of a Palestinian State. The end of the peace negotiations is only now coming to the forefront of international attention, in what could again spark a huge rise in anti-Israel hatred and anti-Semitic attacks throughout the diaspora.

This is because in September – just one month’s time – the United Nations General Assembly will debate the proposal by the Palestinian Authority for unilateral statehood and full United Nations membership for the Palestinians. This initiative goes against all previous agreements over the past twenty years which have called for peace to be achieved through direct negotiations between Israel and the Palestinians.

Israeli’s in the past two years have come to the realisation that a peace treaty with the Palestinians is not conceivable in the near future. However, under the premiership of Benjamin Netanyahu, Israelis (and Palestinians) have enjoyed living in relative peace and security, while also benefiting from a period of strong economic growth. Despite the recent protests over the cost of living in Israel, Israeli’s seem to be broadly happy with the current Government’s philosophy and are benefitting from Benjamin Netanyahu’s maintenance of the status quo, while not chasing grand gestures being called for the opposition leader and international leaders.

So the United Nations General Assembly which opens on 13 September, and will begin hearing on 20 September from world leaders, could be a dramatic moment in changing the status quo in Israel and have dramatic affects both for Israel and its supporters around the world.

As in any democracy Israeli’s have differing views about whether the United Nations supporting the creation of a Palestinian State would be good for Israel. However, while opinion polls suggest that a majority of Israeli’s would support a Palestinian State achieved through a negotiated peace deal with Israel, there is also a majority of the opinion that a United Nations mandated Palestinian State based on the pre 6 day war 1967 lines, would be just another in a long list of biased anti-Israel vote by the United Nations in favor of the Palestinians.

There are many questions over what will happen if as appears likely the United Nations General Assembly votes to accept a Palestinian State. Given that Israel is unlikely to recognise a Palestinian State based on the pre 6 day war 1967 lines as the Palestinians are demanding, what will the Palestinians do? There is a strong likelihood that there could be increased protests led by the Palestinian leadership and even an attempt to stop a new intifada. Hopefully, though with the steps that Israeli Government’s have taken since the last intifada the IDF will be able to stop these protests impacting on the general public.

Therefore, as has occurred during the conflicts over the past decade the main threat to Israel will not come from physical attack but by international protests and condemnation from the media, public and international governments. While this will been seen as criticism of Israel, Israeli’s are used to this and will not take it too personally. Rather Jewish communities are likely to be much worse affected with a rise in anti-Israel hatred and anti-Semitic attacks, as occurs whenever Israel comes under attack.

As Jewish communities around the world come under attack, they will be looking for ways to defend Israel but will also be looking to the Israeli Government to help provide arguments and publicity to defend its cause. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has already had a busy summer persuading Governments that they should not support a unilateral declaration of a Palestinian State. The Israeli Government are keen to make clear that they support a Palestinian State that is achieved through a peace settlement with Israel and that if the Palestinian’s step back from the brink that this is possible.

However, with just a few weeks until the United Nations General Assembly, I see almost no campaigning by Israel and Jewish Communities to defend Israel’s position. This is a vote which could have a hugely negative impact on the Jewish Community around the world, similar in comparison to the Zionism equals Racism vote of the 1970s and yet there are no pro-active campaigns to defend Israel’s position and to explain why a United Nations vote to accept a Palestinian State would be harmful.

Yes, the Israeli Government is working with international Governments to persuade them not to support the vote, and some Jewish communities are lobbying their Governments to adopt this position, but a lot more needs to be done.

What are communities doing to persuade their domestic newspapers and news shows to report Israel’s position in a favorable light?

What facebook, YouTube and twitter campaigns are Israel and communities setting up to promote Israel’s cause?

What are groups and individuals doing to explain to their friends and colleagues about Israel’s position?

After every crises there is a clear view that pro-active campaigns to defend Israel, and waiting for the action to occur before trying to play catch-up to defend Israel against criticism is too little too late. So ahead of this latest United Nations vote let’s find a way to help Israel come out of it in a positive way.

Canada - A true friend of Israel

2011-05-31T08:38:00.000+03:00

While President Obama of America wants Israel to return to its 1967 borders and most European leaders want to recognise Palestine as a State this coming September, Israel does have at least one good friend in Canada.

At last weekend's G8 meeting of the leading countries in the world, most of the leaders led by Barack Obama wanted to call for negotiations between Israel and the Palestinian's based on the pre 6 day war 1967 lines. However, Stephen Harper the Canadian Prime Minister allegedly refused to allow their decision to include reference to the 1967 lines, as he understood that these lines are indefensible for Israel and not workable.

Many leaders in the world say they are a friend of Israel but at the moment only the Canadian Prime Minister is the one that continually stands up for Israel in these difficult times. Mr Harper has previously said

"When Israel, the only country in the world whose very existence is under attack, is consistently and conspicuously singled out for condemnation, I believe we are morally obligated to take a stand."

So to Mr Harper and Canda, I say thank you for being a true friend of Israel.

Obama finally wrecks the peace process

2011-05-30T09:50:00.000+03:00

When President Obama stood started making his speech on the Middle East just over a week ago I am sure he believed that he was helping to advance the chances of peace between Israel and the Jewish world. Indeed Herb Keinon in the Jerusalem Post this weekend wrote an excellent piece what President Obama and Prime Minister Netanyahu were trying to achieve in their respective speeches in America this past week.

President Obama, who has already achieve the Nobel Peace Prize, was undoubtedly trying to move the peace-process forward, sadly he just doesn't get the situation.

As has been seen rather than moving the peace process forward, President Obama's speech seems to have ended once and for all any chance of an agreed peace negotiation between Israel and the Palestinians. Despite Prime Minister Netanyahu saying he wants to make peace, there is no chance of a peace agreement with a Palestinian Government that includes Hamas and does not recognise Israel as the Jewish State.

While, this weekend the Arab League have confirmed that they will request the UN recognise a Palestinian State in September.

So in September it is looking increasingly likely that the world will vote for a new Palestinian State. Hopefully, if this occurs, there will then be a chance to negotiate a peace agreement between two states with mutually agreed borders.

However, sadly we all know that in 1947, the last time the UN voted to establish a Palestinian State alongside the future Israel, the Arab nations decided the Palestinian State was not enough for them and decided to attack Israel, sadly I fear the same could happen again.

Conservative MPs insist Hamas must respect the State of Israel's right to exist, and accept Quartet Principles

2011-05-23T11:15:00.000+03:00

As well as usual supporters of Israel with the Conservative Party such as Matthew Offord MP for Hendon, Mike Freer MP for Golders Green and Lee Scott MP for Ilford, I was pleased to see that the Conservative Party in the British Parliament continues to have many supporters, as reported at ConsevativeHome.

Poor President Obama, no one in the Middle East listens to him any more

2011-05-23T08:03:00.000+03:00

President Obama yesterday spoke at the annual conference of the American Israel Political Action Committee (AIPAC) and attempted to explain his speech of last Thursday. In last week's speech President Obama had made clear that he had accepted the Palestinian position that any peace deal between Israel and the Palestinians should be based on the 1967 pre-6 day war border between Israel and Jordan. Yesterday Obama explained that this was because wanted a peace deal and this policy would be required to get the Palestinians to agree to peace.

However, Prime Minister Nentanyahu made clear last week that Israel has no intention of agreeing to peace based on 1967 borders. This agreement would be unachievable and would result in an and indefensible Israel. We can now clearly see that while Prime Minister Netanyahu will continue to work with President Obama to ensure a stable Middle East and to continue to pressure Iran to stop its nuclear programme, he has no intention of intensively striving for peace in what is now an unstable region.

Obama has also called for the Palestinian's to completely reject a negotiated peace deal with Israel. The Palestinian's also are rejecting Obama's plea in this respect by forming a united government which includes the terrorist group Hamas, who continue not to recognise Israel. Abbas also reacted to the speech this weekend by rejecting the plea by Obama not to declare a Palestinian State unilaterally, by saying that he still intends to request that the UN in September recognise the Palestinian State.

Obama's plan for peace therefore seems to be going nowhere and after 20 years of failed peace negotiations based on a negotiated two state solution, it is clear that some new ideas are required. Hopefully Netanyahu will deliver these this week.

President Obama is wrong about Israel - we need a new solution

2011-05-20T17:48:00.000+03:00

Two year's after President Obama's last big speech on the Middle East we again heard from the President of the USA about his vision for the region. During the speech while calling for the Palestinian's to recognise Israel - something Hamas still refuse to do - President Obama again said that Israel should give up all of the territories it occupied during the 6-day war of 1967.

I could understand President Obama having this idea, two years ago, when he believed he would be able to achieve a peace-treaty between Israel and the Palestinians. However, we are now two years on from this, during which time the Palestinian Leadership have refused accept Israel as a Jewish State and to even negotiate a peace deal with Israel. The Palestinians have also now formed a Government including Hamas the rulers of Gaza who continue to attack Israel with bombs and missiles, while they continue to call for the destruction of Israel. There therefore appears to be no hope of the Palestinian's agreeing to peace with Israel in the near future.

I was therefore hoping for the President to set out a new sensible solution for how Israel and the Arab world can live in peace side-by-side. This week where we saw Arab citizens from Syria, Lebanon and Gaza try to invade Israel to protest against the establishment and existence of Israel, it is clear that the Arab world is not interested in Israel just leaving the occupied territories we gained in the past battles but in destroying Israel completely. Therefore solutions need to be found so that Israel and the Arab world can live in peace side-by-side.

Following President Obama's speech yesterday, it is important that in the next few days Prime Minister Netanyahu in his meeting today with the President and his speeches next week in America, sets out a new agenda for how Israel will continue to be a peaceful and strong country here in the Middle East.

The world can not support a Palestinian leadership encouraging terrorism and condemning the assassination of Osama Bin Ladin

2011-05-07T22:25:00.000+03:00

This week's agreement between Fatah and Hamas to share the Palestinian leadership has once again shown that they prefer Arab dominance in the Middle East over peace with Israel. Not only is the Palestinian leadership rejecting peace negotiations with Israel and denying the right of Israel to exist as a Jewish State, but the Hamas leadership which continues to support war against Israel, also condemned the assassination of Osama Bin Ladin.

Therefore at a time when the West needs to continue to be aware of Arab and Islamic fundamentalism, and to support pro-democracy protests in the Arab world, it also needs to continue to support Israel as a bastion of democracy in the real world.

As we in Israel get ready to celebrate the State of Israel's 63rd birthday, and the Palestinian leadership's attempt to get the United Nations to support a Palestinian State, it is time for the world to show they support Israel a country that wants to live in peace. The world therefore needs to show that they do not support any kind of terrorist activity and say that they will they not support a Palestinian State with out a true peace deal with Israel. The world must also say that they will not deal with the Palestinian leadership while its includes Hamas, while it is embarked on a war with Israel, which it still does not exist.

Thankfully it appears the United States will continue to support Israel and not deal with the Palestinian leadership that includes terrorists such as Hamas. I hope Britain and the European Union can follow this lead.

British Prime Minister David Cameron begins to support Israel - Thank you

2011-03-05T21:14:00.000+02:00

This week David Cameron, the British Prime Minister, as reported in the Jerusalem Post, gave his most supportive of speech of Israel that I have heard him make as Prime Minister. Given that he has previously harshly criticised Israel for its defensive actions to defend us. I was pleased to see that he now acknowledges that Israel has a right to defend its citizens against rocket attacks from Gaza and also to search boats trying to enter Gaza, actions he has previously criticised.

I welcome this change and thank him for his increased support for Israel. This may because the UK now has an Ambassador in Israel, Matthew Gould, who better understands Israel. It maybe because that he is seen with the recent uprisings in the Middle East, that Israel the only real democracy in the Middle East should be Britain's most important friend in the region. Or it may be because of the growth in power of neo-cons in the British Government.

If his support is for any of these reasons, than I am thankful and hope that Israel again has a true friend in Britain and its Prime Minister.

Why is America a better friend of Israel than Britain?

2011-02-21T12:50:00.000+02:00

Last Friday saw the UN Security Council vote on a Palestinian proposal to call for Israel to stop building in towns in it's West Bank communities and to criticise Israel for its actions. While in the past I have been very critical in the past of Obama's leadership in terms of the Israel-Palestinian peace-process, I was pleasantly surprised that the USA correctly to choose it's veto and was the only country of the 15 members of the Security Council to vote against this proposal.

The USA correctly understood that as a friend of Israel that wants to achieve peace it can not put all blame for the lack of a peace agreement on one party, while letting the Palestinian's to continue to get away with refusing to accept as a Jewish State that has a right to exist. The only way to get any peace agreement is to work with the Governments and people of both Israel and the Palestinian Authority in order to achieve a negotiated peace.

And yet Britain, which continues to claim to be a friend of Israel, voted to support this Palestinian people. This not only could put any peace agreement at risk but showed how little Britain and the world cares about Israel. This is because at a time when the Arab world is in turmoil, the world and Britain continues to criticise Israel a democratic country trying to live in peace, while the UN ignores the Governments of Libya and Bahrain massacring its own people.

Egypt - What do we want for it's future?

2011-02-09T11:41:00.000+02:00

It has been reported in the Israeli press this morning that British Foreign Secretary William Hague has warned Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to tone down his language about his worries about the current protests in Egypt.
Mi
William Hague is right to be concerned about trying to ensure stability in the Middle East and for peace to continue or be achieved between Israel and it's Arab neighbours. I do feel though that Hague has been again leant on by his Foreign Office advisers and not fully understood the concerns that Israel has as we watch the continued protests in Egypt.

As the only fully democratic country in the Middle East we in Israel should of course want to see greater democracy in our neighbouring countries, so that the will of the people can be fully achieved. However, sadly in Arab countries this does not often seem to be the case. Just as David Cameron warned that Britain should not give into radical Islam which has been on the rise, we in Israel are concerned about radical Islam next door to us on our borders.

That is why Israelis and our Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu are concerned about seeing the current regime in Egypt be overthrown. This is because for the past 30 years Egypt has been one of the few countries that has been at peace with us. We therefore want to see fair elections occur in Egypt but we do not want a revolution with the Muslim Brotherhood taking over like in Iran 30 years ago where following the revolution led to a radical Islamic Government that now wants to destroy Israel.

New Israel Transport website launched

2011-01-02T14:47:00.000+02:00

I am pleased to announce the launch of the new Israel Transport website

The website is a one-stop-shop for information, news and comment on transport in Israel. Produced by Richard Weider a former employee of the British Department for Transport and a specialist on improving bus services and road pricing policy.

What's going on?

2010-10-26T11:14:00.000+02:00

Having a a young baby has made it harder to blog as I haven't had time to write or to compose my thoughts over the past couple of months. Over the past two months I could have written about the great hope of the negotiations restarting but I am glad I didn't because it was always obvious that they would not lead anywhere. That was the case when the Americans were putting huge pressure on Israel and the Palestinians to restart negotiations, and yet there are no huge benefits to negotiating where there are no clear solutions.

In the Jerusalem Post two weeks ago the new British Ambassador to Israel said that it was a great job to have because in international diplomacy, the Israeli-Palestinian issue is the most important issue to solve.

However, for Israel what has 18 years of negotiation achieved. When peace was closest in the 1990's and then 10 years ago at Camp David,the result was continuous suicide bombs killing hundreds of Israelis. Living on Emek Refaim in Jerusalem, I am continuously reminded of this when I walk past the memorial signs on cafe's that were blown up during these terrible times.

However, now when we are living in relative tranquility (albeit with the threat of rockets from Hamas in Gaza and a nuclear bomb from Iran) what would be helped by having proper negotiations. At the same time the Palestinian's are benefitting from huge economic growth in the West Bank (and so probably the best standard of living the region as ever had).

That is why neither Israel or the Palestinians are shouting for peace negotiations to carry on. As Israeli's we don't want the threat of a return to the intifada where it was not safe to go outside, with the potential of having the West Bank turn into a terrorist state as in Gaza. While the Palestinian's don't want to have to give up anything to Israel. They don't want to have to give up any land in the West Bank to Israel and they certainly don't want to have to accept (for all-time) Israel as a Jewish state and the Jewish homeland.

David Cameron v Shimon Peres

2010-08-04T13:43:00.003+03:00

This has been an interesting couple of weeks being a British and Israeli citizen, with the British Prime Minister David Cameron firstly commenting in Turkey that Israel had to stop making Gaza a ghetto. Shimon Peres Israel's President hit back in an interview last week that the Britain's leadership is again anti-semitic.

I have been warning for the last couple of years that it has been increasingly difficult to be a supporter of Israel in Britain, with the dominant view being that Israel is punnishing the Palestinians, while the opposite is often the case. So this spat is no surprise to me.

Since coming to power Benjamin Netenyahu the Israeli Prime Minister has continually tried to make it possible to have peace talks with the Palestinians but their leader Abbas continually comes up with new reasons to say he wont talk. He has even started saying that before making any decision he has to get the support of the Arab world. (So maybe it is time for Israel to negotiate peace with the whole Arab world rather than just the Palestinians. This may also show that Israel is the small country defending itself against the big Arab world that for the past 60 odd years has in the most part even refused to accept Israel as a country.)

Israel has even had to again come under military attack from rockets from Egypt on Monday (in addition to the constant - if reduced rocket levels from Gaza) and yesterday from Lebanon. So this shows that Israel is still in a war with its Arab neighbours when we have to continue to defend ourselves.

This may not suit the British foreign view that needs Middle Eastern business and oil, and as Shimon Peres highlighted virtually always has backed the Middle Eastern Arab's over Israel. However, I thought David Cameron was different. I thought he understood that democratic countries have to defend themselves against terrorists, this includes Hamas which is continually calling for Israel's destruction. That is why Israel needs to protect itself by controlling what goes into Gaza.

David Cameron always likes to say he is a friend of Israel. So my message is that David - when you become Prime Minister you have to make clearer decisions - so you can't just be a friend in good times but also when we need your help. If you do this, life for everyone in Israel and the Jewish people of Britain will then again become easier.

I feel disgusted

2010-06-07T09:23:00.002+03:00

Last week's incident involving the flotila of boats trying to break into Gaza is continuing to dominate the news in Israel and around the world, and I really am shocked and disgusted at how the outside world appears to be viewing these actions. Israel is a very vibrant democracy and as a people we have many different views on most issues but the support for the army's actions has been virtually unanimous and shocked at how the world has viewed these actions.

I can understand the general view of the majority activists and citizens around the world who I genuninely want to help the people of Gaza but sadly are not aware of the full picture. Are they aware though that the reason Israel and Egypt have the blockade of Gaza in place is because Hamas undemocratically overthrew the Palestinian Authority that was previously ruling in Gaza after Israel withdrew from the territory in 2005.

Israel has continuously been told that the Palestinians will agree to peace with Israel if we withdraw from their territory, but are you aware that since 2005, Hamas and their supporters have been constantly firing thousands of rockets into Israeli towns to try and kill as many Israelis as possible. There have been more rockets again this week. This is another reason why Israel is not letting in material to Gaza that Hamas can be used to make rockets.

The third reason that Israel is maintaining its blockade is because for over three years Hamas has been holding captive the Israel solider Gilad Shalit, who they kidnapped from Israeli territory. Since then no one has been allowed to meet with Gilad Shalit, not even the Red Cross.

So I can understand that if you do not know about these issues you would want to let aid into Gaza. Something which Israel is constantly doing by sending food and aid into Gaza, so the people are not starving.

Sadly though there were at least 50 people on one of the boats that were not interested in peaceful measures but wanted to attack Israel. On their journey they even recorded measures saying they wanted to die as martyrs in a fight with Israel, and told Israeli soldiers to go back to Aushwitz. These terrorist supporters were only interested in killing as many Israelis as possible which they tried to do.

The Israeli soldiers therefore had to defend themselves and that is why the world seems to be so critical. This is because unlike in previous centuries where Jews who were attacked were unable to defend themselves. The Jewish State of Israel now has an army that knows how to defend itself and that is what the world does not like.

That is why there is all this critism of Israel for defending itself, while there was no critisms of actions in Thiland, Chechnya, Sudan, the Congo and yes even by European troops in Afganistan. That is why I am disgusted because the world does not care about armies defending their citizens unless it is Israel, and I really don't know why that is.

Israel's response to the Gaza Ships

2010-06-01T11:09:00.003+03:00

Yesterday was a difficult day for all Israelis and those that care about Israel, as we all want to live in peace. Sadly though sometime when Israel's safety is put at risk, it has to take actions which are not always easy, especially when its citizens and soldiers are attacked.

As whenever Israel is forced to defend itself it comes under huge international pressure and so we have to clearly state our argument about why Israel's actions were correct, below is my attempt at this.

Yesterday was a tragic day which must be fully investigated and we must learn lessons for the future.
The events occured when activists were attempting to illegally enter Israeli borders on the way to Gaza.
Gaza is ruled by Hamas a terror organisation which calls for Israeli destroyed through violence and is illegally holding an Israeli citizen captive.
Israel does not have peaceful neighbours but neighbours which want its destruction and so needs to take actions to defend itself and Israel's citizens.
Israel has the right to ensure to check what passes its border into Gaza, as Egypt does. And Israel does allow humanitarian goods into Gaza.
The activists on the boat were told they could come to Israel and have their goods inspected before having humanitarian goods allowed into Gaza.
The activists on the boat refused to come to an Israeli or Egyptian port as requested and so Israeli soldiers were sent to six boat to persuade them to do this peacefully.
The Israeli soldiers were not armed for battle, only with pistols tucked into their backs.
On one of the six boats, the activists, many supporters of extremist-Islamist groups, were preparing for a battle, with knives and metal rods.
When the soldiers landed on the boat they were attacked and some had their guns stolen and shot at.
One soldier was even trampled on as they attempted to throw him overboard.
Therefore, the handful of soldiers were being attacked by a lynch mob of peace activists, and had to defend themselves
Only after fourty minutes of combat with this lynch mob did the soldiers have to use live-fire to defend themselves.
Luckily after hundreds of years of Jews being attacked by lynch mobs, the Jewish people now have a State and an army that is able to fight back and defend itself.

Am I now part of the British establishment?

2010-05-20T14:07:00.003+03:00

As I was watching the re-election of the Speaker in the British House of Commons on Tuesday, I was pleased to see that my three former colleagues on Barnet Council; Matthew Offord, Mike Freer and Jane Ellison had got themselves the best seats in the House, sitting right behind David Cameron. I would like to congratulate them on becoming MPs and hope they enjoy their new jobs and serve their communities well.

I would also like to congratulate Luciana Berger a new Labour MP. I have known Luciana for about 10 years since our time at the University of Birmingham, where we worked well together to represent Jewish students both locally and nationally in NUS. I may even have helped Luciana on the first step of her political career, when I was her campaign manager for her successful election to NUS West Midlands Regional Council. It may not have been her most important election it has helped her to start what I am sure will be a very successful political career. Over the past few years we may not have agreed with each other on all issues but I am sure she will be one of Labour's few good MPs and one day could become their first female leader.

So now that I know four MPs well am I part of the British establishment?

Election Results Part 2

2010-05-07T05:49:00.008+03:00

A new day has dawned in Israel, but it is not yet clear wha the new day will bring in Britain.

As the results are coming in, it is increasingly clear that the Conservatives willbethe largest party but it is still unclear if they will have a majority. I congratulate my former colleague Jane Ellison the new MP for Battersea.

What is shocking though is how so many areas couldnt allow everyone who chose to vote. Britain ismeant to be a leading democracy.

6am - what is happening in Hendon?

6:12 the lib dems have again been all talk and lots of failure

6:35 - Pleased to see Jaqui Smith has gone, possibly the worst Home Secretary ever.

6:45 - It is too early for Conservative s to celebrate but according to BBC figures of seats in
Conservatives have 210 andy the others 213 so Conservatives are just under 50% at the moments and if they keep up the results could be just about able to have a majority in Parliament.

7:50 appaently maathew offord has just arrived at the hendon count he probably wanted a good sleep

8am - Labour twitterer says they are behind both in Finchley and Hendon

Rolling Election Blog

2010-05-06T23:29:00.012+03:00

With just half an hour to go until the polls close in the UK, I will try and provide information on what is going on both for UK and Israeli readers. As its already almost midnight here in Israel not sure I will stay up for the first few hours, but I will see how I go. All times below are Israel time.

The first few interesting things I have seen is the Labour MP for Hendon desperately trying to persuade twitter followers to vote for him this evening, by saying that is supporters in Burnt Oak are flooding out to vote. If I was him I wouldnt be sure they are Labour voters anymore.

23:30 - ICM are saying that Conservatives will have 39% of the vote. With Labour and Lib Dems together. I think therefore a Conservative majority.

23:35 - The beginning of Sky new's election coverage is boring, why start an hour before anything happens?

23:40 - I am predicting a Conservative majority of about 20 seats. The polls may have been quite close in recent weeks but I believe that all the hard work that the Conservative machine has put in over the past few years to identify and persuade their supporters to have voted today will pay off and see them get more of their supporters out than the other parties. Do the Lib Dems even know where their new supporters were and did they come out to vote today? I dont think so.

23:50 - The Lib Dem candidate in Mill Hill has been recording high turnout in Mill Hill but not sure who is voting. This will be very interesting in the local Barnet election but as there have been no Labour tellers there how can Dismore even say he represented the whole constituency?

00:00 - Exit poll says Conservative larges party 19 short of a majority, with Lib Dems having less seats than in 2005

00:03 - According to the Exit poll Gordon Brown would not even have a majority with the Lib Dems in coaltion with only 314 seats. So looks like the end of Labour Government

00:15 - Nick Robinson of the BBC says that based on exit poll Gordon Brown does not have to resign as Prime Minister until Parliament returns, given that he never wanted to go to the British public for a vote, will he try and hang on?

00:20 - the first seat to announce will be interesting because we will see the change in the vote percentage from 2005, the exit poll does not show it, so the public cant make their own interpretation of todays vote.

00:55 - the first seat announces Labour is down 11.7%, Lib Dems down 0.6% and conservaties up 5.2% a swing of 8% if this is the same across the Country would be a large majority for Conservatives.

Liberal Democrat Leadership continues its attack on Israel

2010-04-20T10:16:00.003+03:00

Happy Israeli Independence day. It is great to be celebrating 62 years of Israeli independence and everything that our small country has achieved.

Sadly though, according to the UK's Jewish Chronicle, this week the Liberal Democrats are continuing to attack Israel and to even question our motives.

Remembering Israel's Heroes

2010-04-19T12:03:00.002+03:00

As we come to the end of the 62nd year of independence for the modern State of Israel, today (Rememberance Day) is a chance for us to remember the 22,682 Israeli heroes who have died fighting to create and defend this wonderful country.

I made aliyah after the age I was required to serve in the IDF and I do not know what it is like to service or to see a friend in action (and I hpe I never will). I have a huge gratitude for every soldier who has served in the Israeli armed forces working to defend our State of Israel. Sadly, this appears to be a duty which will not go away in the near future.

However, defending Israel from enemy attack is not the only action that defenders of Israel currently have to carry out. Sadly we are also living in a world in which the deligitimisation of Israel's right to exist is become an equally important duty to defend. Over the past ten years like thousands of other Jewish people and supporters of Israel around the world, I have strived to defend Israel and this is something that we have to continue to do and to not give up in what is another battle that we must not lose.

Just this week the British Advertising Standards Agency ruled that the Western Wall can not be used in Israeli tourism adverts, as they say this misleads the public about what is in Israel. This is just lunacy. Ask any person around the world about it's number one tourist site and the Western Wall will be virtually everybody's answer. However, the Advertising Standards Agency have fallen into the trap that this part of Israel is on occupied territory, and accept the Arab argument that there is no Jewish historical heritage in Jerusalem. This despite the Western Wall and the Temple which it is a part of, has been part of the Land of Israel for over two thousand years, but was occupied by Jordan for nineteen sad years from 1948 to 1967. This is just the latest fight in the battle to defend and save Israel.

However, within Israel we have also had the shocking news, this past week which shames the memory of our fallen soldiers. It was reported this week that the officials and politicians including the two former Mayors of Jerusalem have allegedly been involved a bribery scandal to approve a planning application for the Holyland development. As someone who was a politician in London who decided on planning applications for developments I understood that when I made decisions I had to make these based on what was best for local people and the local area. The public trust politicians to make the right decisions and when they receive money to support a development they should feel ashamed. I hope as the investigation continues the alleged guilty officials and politicians admit they were wrong and apologise for these disgraceful actions. Our brave soldiers have given their lives for this country and when politicians and government officials brake the law for their own gain, they should hang their heads in shame.

I hope as we enter Israel's 63rd year, we are able to experience the start of the beginning of peace, where Israel just like every country in the world is rightly accepted and that our leaders show the decency that we the public expect of them.

Why Israel is important - an answer to anonymous

2010-04-18T09:03:00.003+03:00

This Thursday Foreign Affairs will take centre stage in the British election when the Sky News Leaders Debate gives Cameron, Clegg and Brown the chance to give their views on political affairs.

I am sure in view of this an anonymous commentator asked me the following two questions.

Anonymous said...
I fail to see why "anti-semitic" and "anti-Israel" are concatenated into one criticism of Britain.And who was in Israel before the Jews? Can they have the whole land back, if they want it? (Of course not. And jolly lucky not one claims pre-ownership of England, as far as I know.)
11:53 PM
Anonymous said...
I should have made the last comment in more detail - I was, and am, angry at your question: "Who should Jewish people vote for in Hendon?". You are saying that it is most important (beyond anything else) for the election of a representative of one sovereign nation (Britain) to be purely on the basis of support for another sovereign nation (Israel).
12:12 AM

I have always said that the people of Britain should vote for the Conservative Party and Matthew Offord the Conservative candidate in Hendon because they will bring about the real positive change that Britain needs to improve the failing economy and ensure a Big improved society. However, in a seat like Hendon where there is a large Jewish community, the public should be aware of the canidates views on Israel and domestic Jewish issues, issues which are important to the Jewish community in Britain. On top of all that Israel should be an important ally to Britain in the Middle East, as the only truly democratic and peaceful country in the Middle East. For that reason in my view Israel should be an important (but for many not dissisive) issue in seats such as Hendon.

Sadly, while anti-semitism has been around for thousands of years, in recent years in Britain there has been a sharp rise in critisism of Israel, which is also being used as a new excuse for carrying out anti-semitic attacks. Sadly, these attacks seem to be mainly carried out by left wing supporters who seem to believe that they can attack Jews because they do not accept the actions and even the existence of the State of Israel.

In terms of who lived in Israel before it became a Jewish country, the Bible says it was land occupied by Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Jebusites, and Girgashites.

The election gets exciting

2010-04-17T21:04:00.002+03:00

Two weeks into the election campaign and I can see why most people get put off by elections. Having campaigned locally in all elections since 2001, this has been my first real opportunity to see how campaigns are reported on the news, and I have to say they don't make it look very interesting to the public. That is why I think change was needed with the introduction of debates, so that voters can actually here from the leaders themselves instead of boring news reports.

(I hope this change is also coming in a positive way for Spurs who I am currently watching beat Chelsea. I think my daughter Maayan may be good luck for Spurs, as they have only lost two games in the past two months.)

The debates were interested and clearly show that the British public want a change from a tired, sleazy government led by Gordon Brown who can only offer a negative campaign.
Nick Clegg did do very well making clear that he believes he can offer a difference. However, while they are now clearly doing well in the polls, as the British public look for something different. How will he do when they realise what his policies are such as entering the Euro, letting out prisoners, scrapping Britains nuclear defence and raising taxes.

The Conservatives also offer a change by giving the British public a chance to rule themselves instead of by bureaucrats through a new modern Big Society. My tip to David Cameron is that as he prepares for the next two weeks of campaigning and debates is that he gives up on preparation, he looked too much like he was trying to show he was the leader. Instead he should be more natural and show with his natural debating skills why he will bring a real positive change to Britain.

Anyway lets see what happens.

Holocaust Rememberance Day

2010-04-12T13:43:00.004+03:00

Today in Israel is Yom Hashoa, the day when we remember the victims and the heroes of the Holocaust. Last January at the London Borough of Barnet International Holocaust ceremony I was privelaged to be able to speak about my grandfather Herbert Goldsmith. I am pleased to share my speeech here.

Holocaust Day Speech -January 2009

1. Seventy years ago this month in January 1939 my grandfather Herbert Goldsmith escaped from Nazi Germany on the Kindertransport to England.
2. My grandfather was born in 1922 and was named Herbert by his parents Moritz and Wilehmine Goldschmidt.
3. They lived in Delmenhorst a small town, near Bremen in northern Germany, which had a Jewish community of about 200 people.
4. My great-grandparents owned a clothes and linen shop.
5. As a child my grandfather attended a small Jewish school in the local synagogue.
6. My grandfather and the other Jewish children were able to play and be friends with the non-Jewish children.
7. In 1933 when Hitler and the Nazi Party came to power things began to change.
8. This included a law that non-Jews were not allowed to use Jewish shops, including my great-grandparents. Nazi officers stood outside and prevented people from entering.
9. By 1936 Jews were no longer to have non-Jewish friends.
10. By this time my great-grandparents had had to close their shop and move house as their home was surrounded by members of the Nazi Party. Herbert’s mother therefore became the sole earner as a seamstress, with my great-grandfather unable to find work.
11. In 1936 my great-grandparents in 1936 decided to send Herbert to Arlhem Jewish horticultural college.
12. This was so as to make it easier for my grandfather to have a skill which he could easily adopt anywhere in the world.
13. This later came in use, when after the war he settled in Golders Green and opened a nursery.
14. By 1938 the Jews of Germany had practically been removed from all public life.
15. Then came the events of Kristalnagt (the night of Broken Glass) on 9 and 10 November 1938, when the Nazis in Germany destroyed 267 synagogues, killed 100 people and smashed 7,500 Jewish stores.
16. In addition my great-grandfather was one of nearly 30,000 Jewish men incarcerated in concentration camps. My great-grandfather was incarcerated for three weeks.
17. My great-grandparents then realised that there was no future for Jews in Germany and worked to arrange to send Herbert and his brother Charles to England.
18. My great-grandparents had a cousin who lived in Golders Green, who was amongst the Jewish Community here lobbying the Government to allow Jewish refugees into England.
19. Following Kristalnaght the British Government agreed to admit Jewish children up to the age of 17 from Germany.
20. My grandfather Herbert and his brother Charles were therefore able to escape Nazi Germany in January 1939.
21. However, my great-grandparents were not able to escape.
22. My grandfather therefore communicated with them by letter, but shortly after the war began was never able to hear from them again.
23. My grandfather Herbert, as a 16 year old was one of the oldest children of the Kindertransport.
24. In England he was fostered by a cousin of my great-grandparents, who lived on The Vale in Golders Green and had one daughter called Rosalie.
25. Herbert and Rosalie began to develop a relationship, which was to continue with the start of the war.
26. However, with the start of the war, my grandfather as a German refugee was interned to a camp on the south-coast.
27. Despite escaping the persecution of the Nazi’s, the conditions in the interment camp for my grandfather and the other refugees, many of whom were Jewish were very poor.
28. These conditions were worsened when my grandfather was among the German refugees interned in 1940 to Australia by the British on the SS Dunera
29. In 1941 Britain offered the German Jews a chance to stay in Australia or to return to Britain and join the British army.
30. Due to the relationship that he had developed with Rosalie he decided to return to England.
31. Back in England, my grandfather joined the Pioneer Corps in 1943 and later in 1944 he married my grandmother Rosalie in Bradford, where she was serving during the war.
32. Following D-Day my grandfather served in Normandy and Holland.
33. With the end of the war my grandfather served as a translator for the army in Germany, where he was posted back to his home town in northern Germany.
34. My grandfather was always proud to say that he enjoyed punishing the former Nazi commander of his home town, who he had remembered from his time in the 1930s.
35. Following the end of the war my grandparents returned to The Vale in Golders Green, where they lived with Rosalie’s parents.
36. In the year’s following the war my grandfather put much effort into achieving retribution for the Kindertransport refugees, by seeking pensions from the German Government.
37. My grandfather was rewarded for this work in 1999, shortly before he passed away, when the German Government presented my grandfather with the Cross of the German Order of Merit for outstanding contribution to Fostering British German relations and German Jewish reconciliation.
38. My grandparents were able to have three children and I am one of eight grandchildren.
39. One important lesson I learnt from my grandfather is that it is important to put in effort to help others.
40. My grandfather was lucky to escape the worst experiences of the Holocaust and to have children and grandchildren who have contributed to society.
41. However, six million Jewish people, including one million Jewish children were not able to escape the Nazi’s and were murdered solely for being Jewish.
42. Therefore, as we remember the most horrifying genocide in history, when the Nazi’s attempted to destroy an entire people, we should also consider the lost children and grandchildren who were never born.
43. The Chief Rabbi Jonathan Sack’s describes how out of this Valley of Death the Jewish people have recovered and achieved one of its greatest era’s with the rebirth of the State of Israel and many great contributions across the world.
44. However, how much greater could the achievements of the Jewish people have been, if we had not lost the six million, and the tens or even hundreds of millions of children that could not be born.
45. On this Holocaust Day, I therefore ask you to remember what caused the Holocaust, so that we can stop similar occurrences from ever happening again.
46. And to make up for what could not be achieved by both the children who were murdered but also the children who were not born…
47. I ask you to consider how we each can individually help to make our society stronger.

Who should Jewish people vote for in Hendon?

2010-04-10T23:14:00.003+03:00

In what I have previously described as an increasingly anti-Semitic and anti-Israel Britain, it is important that the Jewish people and supporters of Israel have an MP that is a vocal supporter in Parliament. Therefore I believe it is vital that the next MP for the Hendon constituency - as well as other MPs - with a large Jewish community be a strong supporter of Jewish and Israeli causes.

In Hendon there are luckily three candidates that will support these causes. However, I feel the Liberal Democrat candidate has an uphill struggle given that Liberal Democrat policy is not to support Israel as a Jewish State. While, I am not a fan of the Labour MP Mr Dismore, he has been a good supporter, which under a Labour Government has been important given that most of the Labour Party seem now to be anti-Israel, especially under the leadership of Gordon Brown.

However, I would like to highlight my friend the Conservative candidate Matthew Offord, who since I have known him as proven that he is a strong supporter of both Jewish causes and of a strong and secure Israel. Both as the Deputy Leader of Barnet Council and as the Conservative Candidate to be an MP. Matthew has shown that he cares about Jewish and Israeli issues and would therefore make an excellent supporter for the Jewish community as an MP for Hendon. Below I highlight some of these issues.

Matthew Offord has visited Israel a number of times and supports a strong and secure Israel

Matthew Offord has called for the banning of the anti-semitic group Hizb ut-Tahrir, something Labour have refused

Matthew Offord has supported Benjamin Pearl's campaign for more Jewish schools in Hendon

Matthew Offord has led the fight against anti-semitism in Hendon

Matthew Offord has been a vocal supporter of the Holocaust Educational Trust and the need to remember the lessons of the Holocaust

Matthew Offord has supported JNet a local Jewish radio station

A chance for hope and change in Britain

2010-04-07T12:46:00.003+03:00

I had some mixed feelings yesterday, watching the beginning of the British election campaign. If I had still been living in London I would have been helping lead the election campaign for Matthew Offord the Conservative candidate for Hendon.

While I am pleased not to be having to take part in the hard slog of delivering leaflets across the constiuency, I am missing not canvassing and thinking what residents real views are (often very different to how the media report it). Interestingly, canvassing and political campaigning does not seem to happen in Israel outside of elections. However, I am sure Matthew Offord's Conservative team in Hendon, will be upping their canvassing on top of what I am sure will be a number of deliveries of leaflets across Edgware, Hendon, Burnt Oak, Colindale and Mill Hill.

Watching yesterday's coverage showed me why the Conservative's will definitely win the election. My first rule of elections is that positive campaign's win elections. Yesterday, it was clear that David Cameron is going to promise the Conservative's will make positive changes to Britain. In contrast the Prime Minister Labour's Gordon Brown, was only warning about the damage of Britain's future from a change. If this pattern continues it will ensurely see David Cameron become the British Prime Minister in a month's time.

On the web at the time of writing, Matthew Offord again seems to be the only candidate happy to be campaigning. In contrast the Labour MP Andrew Dismore, one of the MPs who got in trouble for his expenses, seems to have given up the goast, with his website saying that he his no longer an MP. Meanwhile the Liberal Democrats in Hendon don't even seem to have a website. So it appears that on the 2nd day of the campaign, only the Conservative's Matthew Offord is really interesting in campaigning for a better future for the Hendon Consitutency.

Happy Pesach

2010-04-01T11:59:00.002+03:00

After a two month break from here I am back. Happy Pesach to everyone reading this, I hope you are having an enjoyable and restful week (I am certainly enjoying it after all the cleaning, which I think destroyed my finger tips).

For those of you that don't know, the main reason that I have taken a break is because on 15 February, Sonia and I were pleased to have a beautiful baby girl called Maayan Hadassah. I never really realised how tiring have a baby is, but it is an amazing feeling. Maayan was born at Tel Hashomer hospital in Ramat Gan (just outside Tel Aviv) and for parents considering where to have the birth I would recommend it for the care that was received, although it is very busy.

The past two months have also seen some other memorable moments.

We have now been living in Israel for over a year . As I wrote last year at Pesach we are able to celebrate living in the land of the Jewish people something which until the past century has not been possible for thousands of years. It has been really amazing to again see the whole country get ready for Pesach, in the place where it is meant to be celebrated. I feel so proud that Maayan will be able to grow up speaking Hebrew and enjoying living an easier Jewish life in Israel.

After living in the city of Modiin for just over a year, at the end of this month we will be moving to Jerusalem (just off Emek Refaiim). Modiin has been a good place to start as we settle in Israel, it has excellent facilities for young families and feels open and green. It is also generally cheaper to buy/rent in then Jerusalem and Tel Aviv. However, Sonia and I are both used to big cities like London, and Modiin is definitely a quiet commuter town and not a city at the moment. We are therefore moving to Jerusalem to have more of a city life and breathe in a few more urban fumes. I hope this offers some advice to anyone making aliyah.

In the news front the past couple of months have also been very busy with the alleged (probable) Mossad killing of a Hamas leader and Dubai and Britain expelling and Israeli diplomat. I believe both countries were right in their actions and had to do what they had to do, something which all countries would do if the opportunity occured.

Sadly though the US President has again become an unfair critic of Israel -who does not seem to fully understand the Middle East situation - just as he was this time last year (after a few months break I hoped he had learnt from his mistakes) in what I believe is his aim to appease the Islamic world. I hope this dangereious situation is reduced and Israel and the USA can again be close allies, which most Israelis and Americans want.

Over the next couple of months I look forward to commenting on the Middle East process and of course the British election. I hope to provide an interesting analysis especially on the British election from the position of a former politician their who can understand and explain it but now from a spectators position.

Winter Rain

2010-01-28T09:23:00.002+02:00

Back in October I was asking when winter is going to come to Israel, and over the past couple of weeks it has started to feel a little bit like winter (or for an Englisman more like early autum). I have even had to start wearing a jumper and coat occasionally.

We have also had quite a lot of decent rain so that instead of what I thought were just ditches along roads, have actually become streams. The media has been saying that this will help Israel's water levels, after having five very dry winters, but we are told we need lots more rain to get to a good level.

And yet no one is quite sure how much water we now have because the staff at the water company are on strike refusing to do their work. Their reason for striking is that they have been asked to work a little harder. This extra hard work is because a few months ago the Knesset decided to increase bills by 50% this year (approximately 24% now and the remainder later in the year), so the workers have said that is too much work to determine what the new charges will be for us customers. Therefore, I am still waiting to get my more expensive water bill.

There has been quite a lot of criticism of this increase in the price of water. However, in a country where we use more water than comes down in rain we do need to find a way to manage water levels better. I would have prefered the orginal proposal to create a varying price increase depending on how much water is used, though I can live with this increase. This is because while it will mean us paying a lot more for water now, we are told this will be used to build more water desalination plants.

Therefore instead of relying on unpredictable rainfall, Israel will be able to desalinate even more water and so over the next decade be able to have enough water to easily meet the demand. If this is planned properly, in a region which suffers from droughts, Israel may even be able to export some of its water and help in the future to bring our water bills down.

In the meantime lets hope we get plenty more rain (and I get to see my physical geography lessons come to life) and that I actually get my water bill so I can see for sure how much it has increased.

The worst thing said yesterday by Gordon Brown

2010-01-07T12:29:00.002+02:00

Yesterday was not a good day for Gordon Brown, but I was further saddened by an answer he gave to a Labour MP during Prime Ministers Question Time.

Gordon Brown agreed with his Labour colleague that Israel must stop pressuring the Gaza strip by lifting the 'siege' and went on to say that Israel must work with the Palestinian State.

This is yet a further sign of the British Labour Government's lack of support for Israel. How can Gordon Brown say a siege must be lifted against a terrorist-run region, where Israel's Gilad Shalit is still being held hostage.

We also now know that the Labour Government is going againt the rest of the western world by already saying Israel must work with the Palestinian State. As far as I was aware their is still no Palestinian State, and this won't come about while the Palestinian's refuse to negotiate with Israel.

My predictions for 2010

2009-12-31T19:42:00.003+02:00

January - After the failure of Iran to negotiate with the International Community, weak sanctions are applied against it by the UN aiming to prevent it continuing nuclear weapons.

Meanwhile Hamas replies to the Israeli position in regard to its continued holding of Gilad Shalit in captivity, sadly saying he will not be released unless Israel released 1500 prisoners to the West Bank and Gaza. Israel's Government (despit the huge public wish for him to be released) correctly reject this offer, saying they can not allow terrorists to have a change to continue to threaten the people of Israel.

February - I will become a father.

After the failed Christmas bid to blow up an airplane, the US bomb Yemen.
Gordon Brown says he is tackling the terrorism threat in the UK, but meanwhile 1000s of terrorists are preparing in Britain for an attack somewhere in Europe.

March - In their Budget Alistair Darling and Gordon Brown declare that they have saved the UK economy, as the UK achieves growth of 0.3%, meanwhile inflation in the UK starts to rocket.

April - Anti-Government protests in Iran continue to increase, while the Iranian Government announces it is only a year away from having a nuclear bomb. However, the UN fail to agree stonger sanctions agains Iran.

May - The General Election is held in the UK, and the Conservative Party wins a majority of between 30 to 60 seats.

The Palestinian leadership continue to refuse to negotiate with Israel, while the European Union calls on the world to accept a Palestinian State.

Gordon Brown says he wants to carry on with being Labour leader.

June - World Cup fever hits the world and England get knocked out in the quarter finals, with Germany become world champions again.

July - Alex Ferguson says he wants to be the new England manager.

August - Israel bombs Iran.

September - A revolution in Iran overthrows the Government and Ayatollah and the new leadership announce the end of its nuclear programme.

October - Jose Murino becomes the new England manager.

November - Oil prices surge as the world goes back into recession.

December - Huge snow storms around the world, as the EU continues to claim important measures are needed to tackle climate change.

My review of 2009

2009-12-30T18:42:00.002+02:00

As is traditional at this time of year I thought I would comment on what has been a big year for me personally but which has also seen major changes in Israel and England.

Of course the biggest moment for me in 2009, was making aliyah in March. After nine months I am to say that I think that my wife and I made the right decision. Whilst life is not always easy when you move to a new country and need to find a place to live, learn a language, find a new job and settle into a new community, these challenges can be overcome and lead to a better life, which I believe we are achieving here in Israel.

Moving to a new country also gave me a new perspective on the country I left behind and the one which I have now moved to.

The year kicked off with the dramatic events of the Gaza war, when the Israeli Government finally set about stopping the daily barrarge of missiles shot by Hamas into Israel. This war was a military success for Israel so that instead of the tens of thousands of the Sderot region had to suffer every year for eight years, this year since the end of the war they have only suffered about 200 missiles, so that the residents can now almost now live normal lives.

However, while the Gaza war was a military success, it has led to the worst anti-semitism around the world and in England since World War Two (sadly something which has been said every year for the past few years).

Israel also had an election earlier this year in February, when the right-wing parties received a majority and at the beginning of April Benjamin Netenyahu was able to form a government. Over the past eight months Netenyahu has proved to be a success and has been able to lead a strong Government (something unsual in Israel) in his work to ensure Israel has a strong economy, make sure he can achieve peace in Israel - something our neighbours - don't seem to be as supportive of, and ensured Israel has a good civil society while trying to play an importnat part in this world.

In comparison , in my last few years living in England I thought it was deteriorating but now when I view it from abroad I see it in an even worse situation. The economy is of course in a terrible mess and is a country verging on bankruptcy, according to foreign press, while being mocked as one of the few countries still to be in recession.

However, more worrying in my view is the rising levels of anti-semitism which I have written about before and yet I have been criticised for exagerating the problems but just look at the evidence.

- 609 reginstered anti-semitic attacks in the UK in the first half of the year.
- Jews attacked on the streets of Golders Green

This is also seen at official level when the Government seems not to care about Israel and to see it as more of a threat than an ally where just this month, Israel's former foreign secretary was not able to enter Britain - just like many Israeli Ministers - because the courts have agreed to their arrest warrants, something for dictators, not leaders of democratic allies.

I hope 2010 is a good year and I will be posting my predictions tomorrow.

Who should be the next leader in Barnet?

2009-12-09T14:12:00.005+02:00

Tomorrow night my former colleagues in Barnet will be deciding who will be the next leader of the Council.

I do not know if my views today have any influence, especially as I am now living here happily in Israel, but I thought I would give my views anyway. I can also confirm that I have not been asked by either candidate or their supporters to support them.

Just over three years ago I was pleased to support Mike Freer as leader of the Conservative Council, and I am glad that I did, because I believe he was an excellent leader that made Barnet a better place for its residents to live. He also came up with very important policies such as 'Future Shape' that I believe will be vital in improving public services. Barnet's loss will hopefully be Britain's gain.

The two leadership candidates will also both make very good leaders, and as we know it will be a woman, something Conservative's should be proud of, hopefully she will be as successful as Margaret Thatcher.

Though in an election you always have to choose, and my choice would be Fiona Bulmer. I believe she has been an excellent Cabinet Member in helping to ensure Barnet has some of the best schools in Britain. I also believe she led her portfolio and was able to understand and explain the issues, while also being transparent and able to lead officers.

I also believe she would be a leader that would help to ensure Conservative policies and ensure Conservatives get elected, by helping the local Consevative Parliamentary candidates, and being an excellent Conservative Council leader under a Conservative Cameron led Government.

I therefore urge my former colleagues to support Fiona Bulmer tomorrow.

Netenyahu takes steps for Peace and the EU.....

2009-12-03T10:42:00.002+02:00

Last week after months of negotiations with America, Netenyahu the Israeli Prime Minister made the historic step of announcing that Israel would stop all new building of private properties in the West Bank area of Israel.

These American - Israeli negotiations when they began earlier this year, were a promise by Obama's team that through this decision by Israel, the Palestinian and Arab neighbours of Israel would also make some compromise as a prelude to full these negotiations. However, sadly the American's have been unable to persuade the Arab world to start accepting that Israel has a right to exist as a Jewish State.

Even so, Benjamin Netenyahu has said he is a man that wants to achieve peace and so last week made the corrageous decision to halt all new developments in the West Bank. I say corrageous because in doing this he is Israel's first Prime Minister to stop Jews from being allowed to build in their homeland. In doing so he has gone against the ideology of most in his Likud Party, as well as those of other right-wing parties and so could put his Government at risk.

However, this decision was made because as Israel has always shown it is willing to compromise to make peace. Israel agreed to compromise in 1947 when it agreed to a tiny state. It then agreed in 1999, 2000 and 2008 to give back all of the West Bank to a Palestinian State.

This week just like each on many previous occassions the Palestinian's have said they do not want to accept to negotiate for peace with Israel, and have said they will not negotiate unless Israel agrees to give up all it's land and Jerusalem. I just hope that the rumors that instead of peace the Palestinians are talking about a new Intifadah war are wrong.

Meanwhile, while the American's have welcomed Netenyahu's decision as a historic step, the Eurpean Union have shown they have no wish to support Israel. Next week, the Eurpean Foreign Minister's will discuss a policy, which according to a Jerusalem Post article the British Government is supporting, to recognise Jerusalem as the capital of the Palestinian State.

How are European's able to accept Jerusalem as the capital of the Palestinian State, before it has even become a state or even been negotiated in a peace treaty with Israel. This is even more concerning in light of the fact that despite Jerusalem being the capital of Israel since the Declaration of Israel in 1948 (even before the 6 Day War); Jerusalem has never been recognised as Israel's capital by European States.

When will European Union like its Palestinian friends start to recognise that Israel does have a right to exist as a Jewish homeland, with Jerusalem as it's capial and push the Arab world to negotiate a peace with Israel?

Dismore or Dannon who is the better Member of Parliament

2009-11-25T09:35:00.002+02:00

I again have decided to compare two politicians one in England and one in Israel.

This week the MP for Hendon, Andrew Dismore has again made the news for all the wrong reasons, for claiming thousands of pounds of the public's money over the last ten years for a second home in London and travelling from Notting Hill to Hendon. He has always said that he didn't want to be a Minister because he wanted to help people. It looks more like he wasn't up to it and wanted to make as much money as possible.

Meanwhile, in Israel the Likuds MK, Danny Dannon has been speaking up for children asylum seekers. Danny Dannon - since he was elected less than a year ago - has shown that it is possible for backbench politicians to have an impact on policy. I believe that his recent support for child asylum seekers from Africa and children of immigrants, who some politicians want to force out of the country is the right moral stand to take and should be supported.

In recent weeks we have been reading in Bereshit about Abraham, the father of the Jewish people, and how he showed one of the most important traits a person can have is to welcome guests. Danny Dannon is therefore showing that the Jewish State should continue this trait should welcome guests or asylum seekers, when they most need our help. I therefore hope more people will support this cause.

92 Years since the Balfour Declaration

2009-11-03T11:09:00.002+02:00

Yesterday (2nd November) was the anniversary of the one of the major steps on the way to the recreation of the State of Israel.

On 2 November 1917, Britain's than Foreign Secretary of Britain, Arthur James Balfour declared that the British Cabinet

"viewed with favour the establishment in Palestine of a national home for the Jewish people,and will use their best endeavours to facilitate the achievement of this object, it being clearly understood that nothing shall be done which may prejudice the civil and religious rights of existing non-Jewish communities in Palestine, or the rights and political status enjoyed by Jews in any other country".

Just thirty-one years later the Jewish people were able to declare their national home.

However, despite intense efforts the Palestinian leadership are still refusing to negotiate with Israel and to recognise Israel as the Jewish home.

This past week we also read the Torah portion of Lech-Lecha when Abraham was commanded to move to the Land of Israel. However, during the reading we also read of G-d's promise to Abraham that his descendents would receive the Land of Israel as his inheritance. This is the reason why Israel should be the Jewish homeland. However, it can also be seen as the source of the Israeli-Arab conflict.

This source, Chapter 17 of Bereshit (Genesis) sees a covenant between G-d and Abraham in which G-d makes the commandment of circumcision and in return promises the Land of Israel to Abraham's descendents. As Abraham only had one son at the time Ishmael (who I believe Muslems see as their patriarch), many people would have thought that this promise would be to him and his descendents. Indeed even Abraham at first thinks this as described in verse 18. However, G-d than makes clear in verse 19 that Abraham will have another son (Isaac) a patriach of the Jewish people, who will receive the covenant of the Land of Israel.

The Torah thus makes clear that Israel should be the Jewish homeland, which 92 years ago was supported by the Balfour Declaration. However, while a dispute continues to exist, maybe one day we will receive an answer like in Sam Bourne's novel 'The Last Testament'.

It's meant to get colder in October

2009-10-18T14:50:00.002+02:00

When we made aliyah I knew I had to get used to the heat, but I did not expect it to rise to 100 degrees fareignheight in October. It should be getting colder, shouldn't it?

It's summed up well here http://aliyahbyaccident.blogspot.com/2009/10/im-moving.html

In the beginning

2009-10-18T13:47:00.002+02:00

On Friday, the UN's Human Rights Council continued its long history of condeming Israel for defending its citizens from eight years of rockets and bombings from Hamas in the Gaza Strip. This continues a long history of the UN attacking the rights of Israel to be a Jewish State and defending itself against attacks from Arab states and terrorists.

However, this criticism of the rights of the Jewish People in regard to Israel is not new. Yesterday, we read the first sedra of the year, Bereshit, about the creation of the world. Writing approximately a thousand years ago, Rashi who is still today the most important of the commentators on the Torah and Talmud; asked why the Torah begins with Bereshit (Genesis) and does not start with Shemot (Exodus) with the start of the laws given to the Jewish people.

His answer is that throughout history, the Jewish people's right to Israel will be questioned. However, through the story of creation the Jewish people will be able to show to all people (or at least people that believe in G-d) that the world was created by G-d, and G-d chose that the land of Israel should be for the Jewish people, therefore we can point-out to our critics that the creator of the world supports the rights of the Jewish people to have a soverign State of Israel.

Lets hope, a thousand years after Rashi, wrote this idea, people that question the right of the State of Israel to exist will think again, allowing the Jews to live without fear, so that we no longer have to defend ourselves against our enemies.

Why is anti-semitism rising in Britain?

2009-10-05T12:23:00.002+02:00

Since the Labour came to power in 1997, anti-semitism has been on the rise in Britain, which has markedly risen in the past couple of years, particularly in the Hendon Constituency where I used to live. This has not been helped by the lack of support that the Labour Government has shown for tackling anti-semitism and possibly even encouraged, such as during the 2005 General election with their anti semitic campaign posters.

However, last week the Labour Party led by the Foreign Secretary, David Miliband and the Director of Labour Friends of Israel, Luciana Berger, tried to accuse the Conservative Party of joining-up with anti-semitic parties in the European Parliament. This is obviously one of their last efforts to try and win the election in Hendon and Golders Green. However, the allies are not anti-semitic but are just trying to reduce the EU'S domination of national sovereignty, supported by the majority of the public in Britain.

Instead of trying to make false accusations of anti-semitism, maybe Luciana Berger should be supporting Israel by attacking the two Labour Cabinet Ministers who are anti-zionist and arguably anti-semitic.

Ben Bradshaw, Secretary of State for Culture, earlier this year was clearly anti-semitic when he accused Israel of having a "long reputation of bullying the BBC". While John Denham, Secretary of State for Communities, according to the Jewish Cronicle has a long history of being hostile to Israel and has often supported Islamic extremists such as the Muslim Council of Britain.

So Luciana, maybe instead of creating false accusations, you should start critising Cabinet Minsters in your own party who make anti-semitic comments because of their hatred of Israel.

A great reason to make aliyah from Britain

2009-10-01T13:46:00.005+02:00

Two Prime Ministers gave major speeches this week, who would you sooner be your leader?

Benjamin Netenyahu

or

Gordon Brown

Yom Kippur - what to think about this year?

2009-09-27T11:27:00.003+02:00

Ask anyone around the world that knows anything about Judaism, what the holiest day of the year for Jew is and you will almost always get the correct answer Yom Kippur, and in Israel we will really experience it.

In Britain and I presume much of the western world things slow down on Christmas Day, with virtually all shops shut and people spend time with their families. However, in Israel things go even further on Yom Kippur, not only does all public transport shutdown (as it does every Shabbat) but Ben Gurion International Airport also shuts down, and it is illegal to drive. While even more shocking today in the western world, the television companies stop broadcasting for a whole day.

This year it seemed to become fashionable for prominent people around the world to call for people to try and understand what it is like for Muslims during Ramadan. So I urge my non-Jewish readers and also Jewish readers, about the biggest issue that will affect not only the Jewish people but the whole world in the coming year. On Yom Kippur, the Jewish people pray not only for a healthy and successful year for themselves, but for all the Jewish people , and the entire world.

As Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netenyahu said this week at the UN, now is the time to think about the biggest issue facing the world. Are we going to confront Iran, whose leader not only denies the Holocaust, but is now developing nuclear weapons, which under the current leadeship would use it to attack Israel and other countries. Together with Mr Netenyahu I thank Britain and the other countries that walked out of the UN General Assembly this week when the Iranian leader began his anti-semitic speach. However, I urge all right minded individuals on Yom Kippur to consider the threat that Iran now poses to the world, and over the next year to show your support for confronting this threat.

6 months and the start of a New Year

2009-09-18T17:16:00.003+03:00

I would like to wish a Shana Tova to all my readers and hope the new year is sweet and successful.

As we approach Rosh Hashana and another new year, now is a good time to look back on the 6 months since aliyah. It is hard to believe that yesterday it was 6 months since Sonia and I landed in Israel to begin a new stage in our life. These six months have not always been easy, and starting a new life in any country including Israel can be challenging but to anyone who is contemplating aliyah (or even not yet considering it) I would recommend it.

In order to absorb ourselves into Israeli life here in Modiin we have there have been a number of challenges but like the vast majority of olim we have overcome them.

We are starting to get a little better at speaking in Hebrew. I can now understand what most people ask me and get by in Hebrew. However, there is always more that can be done and so this week we began a new term of ulpan in Modiin, and it is nice to be in a class of brand-new olim and see their early excitement of life in Israel. It also helps to remind me why we came to Israel when life begins to become routine.

As I have mentioned in a previous post, I am also now working at the Jerusalem Post and am pleased to be working with nice people in a job which is helping to grow Israel's economy and spread Israel's message through the Jerusalem Post newspaper. After two months working in Israel, it also makes me feel that I have settled here and am able to learn from veteran olim and sabras about what life is like here in Israel. While the money is a lot less than I was earning in England, it is enough to ensure we are able to lead a nice life.

I have also been reading Daniel Gordis' latest book and in his words, the reason the Jewish People need Israel and should live in Israel is because, it allows the Jewish people to determine its own lives and laws and to lead freely and unthreatened, something which until 61 years ago was not possible for 2000 years. I am therefore be pleased to be entering my first full year in Israel and to be part of Israel's and the Jewish People's future. Life will not always be easy and we will face challenges both on an indiviual and national level, but we will overcome these and be able to have a successful future.

Happy new year

Lets hope Barnet can be Easy

2009-08-28T16:58:00.003+03:00

Barnet Council has made the news today, with its plans for major changes the Conservative Administration is planning to the way it is planning to run the Council. To those not from Barnet, or even England, this news might not sound that exciting, but I hope they mark a real change in the way in which beaureaucratic public services are provided in Barnet and across England.

After the last local elections in I supported Mike Freer as the Leader of the Council, as he promised to make major changes to the way the Council was run in order to save it money and so help to cut Council Tax for the public. These aims have taken a long time to come about and still appear to be a while from being implemented but at last some exciting plans seem to be emerging which will help to ensure the Council will be trying to make radical savings.

For the past seven years since being elected the Council administration has been making cost savings (I prefer 'cuts') to the Council Services but the easy options have now run out, and in Barnet as across the whole public sector, the time has come to look for really radical ways in which the publics money can be saved. This is even more urgent now, with the extoadinaly huge debts the Labour Government have got itself into, so that over the next few years, major cuts will have to be made in the public sector.

I am therefore pleased that at last Mike Freer is bringing forward these proposals to help change the way public services are offered in Barnet. It has just become too expensive for the public sector to continue with the way it has been delivering public services in Britain. I hope when the plans are announced in late September/early October they really are radical. If they show that the costs to the Council are going to be cut and more importantly Council Tax can be reduced, I look forward to giving my support to these proposals.

EU Presidency supports blood libel

2009-08-25T13:50:00.002+03:00

In an increasing anti-semitic Europe, a sad new peak was reached this week by the Swedish Government who are currently the Presidency of the European Union Council.

Last week the Aftonbladet newspaper published an article saying that Israeli solders were stealing body parts from Palestinians. I understand that newspapers can print articles criticising Israeli actions against its enemy during times of war, but when an article is printed with bocus accusations that body parts are being taken from Palestinians this should be criticised and dismissed as anti-semitic.

This accusation is not just anti-semitic but is a return to the pre-20th century anti-semitism of Europe, when Jews were attacked for stealing body parts and blood of Christian children, which were known as blood libels. Thus again showing that anti-Israel comments are often just another form of the age old anti-semitic attacks.

Correctly the Swedish Ambassador to Israel apologised for this but she was told to retract this apology by the Prime Minister and Foreign Minister of Sweden, by trying to justify freedom of speech. Thus the leaders of Europe are not against anti-semitic attacks. So until they condem this attack, there is no need for Israel to listen to an anti-semitic Europe.

The Future - Newspapers or Blogs?

2009-08-20T11:13:00.002+03:00

In my new job at the Jerusalem Post I am often asked by customers why they should buy a newspaper when they can read the same for free on the internet. I still feel there is nothing like being able to read a good newspaper while having a cup of coffee or travelling on the bus or train and so I believe there is a good reason to buy newspapers. However, as a blogger I am sure you would expect that I also like reading blogs from people of all different perspectives.

With the lack of news in England over the summer, debate has been turning as to the future of news reporting, and whether it will be through newspapers or blogs. This week there was a disagreement between The Financial Times and who I believe to be the leader of political blogging in the UK, Tim Montgomerie of Conservative Home, who here defended the future of blogs.

I am also pleased to see that in recent months two of my friends from UJS in my university campaigning days have joined the blogging community, Danny Stone and Luciana Berger. Sadly these two have not seen the light and are still supporters of left-wing causes and the Labour Party. I also think they are suffering from too much sun (or maybe rain) this summer and still don't want to see any change to a health system which is not the best in the world, despite billions being spent on it under a failing Labour Government.

In Israel, politics has also been only a little quieter over the summer, but things are starting to build up for what I think will be a very busy autumn, which will dominate not only Israeli politics but world politics.

Firstly, the Israeli Government is increasing it's pressure on Prime Minister Netenyahu not to give into American pressure on the right for Israeli's to settly in Jerusalem and its towns in the West Bank. (This is interesting in itself in that the Prime Minister is unable to dominate Israel's policy but has to reach a political consensus.)

The big question though will be Iran and if it will agree to at least negotiate with the west to stop its nuclear programme or carry on with its development of a nuclear bomb (with a lack of pressure from President Obama) so that by early 2010, according to President Shimon Peres, it will be able to cause another Holocaust.

So we will be having a busy autumn, which will be well reported in both newspapers and on the blogs.

The NHS is NOT the best in the world

2009-08-16T12:06:00.003+03:00

When I lived in England I was always a supporter of the NHS. Luckily I have rarely had to use its services, but from others I understood it was good although not perfect. However, maybe for patriotic reasons I thought it was one of the best health services in the world.

However, now I am not sure. Since moving to Israel I have seen how hospitals and doctors surgeries look much cleaner than in England and in terms of waiting to see the doctor times are much shorter.

Waiting times are hours instead of days, and days instead of weeks and months.

Given the current debate in the UK and America over health services, what I find interesting is that former Brits feel that the Israeli health system is much better than the NHS, while Americans think that the health system in America is better than in Israel. Maybe this gives some idea about where the NHS lies.

I have never been an expert on funding health systems, but I also think the Israeli system is quite a good model.

There are four health insurance providers in Israel, and everone must be a member of one of these providers. Therefore there is some competition ans these providers compete to attract users by providing better services.

Everyone has at least a basic cover, partly paid by Government and partly paid for by a national insurance contribution which comes out of your wage. Individuals are than either to get extra insurance cover from their provider or just pay extra for services which are not covered by the basic insurance.

I don't know how good a system is but overall it is definitely better than Britain's NHS which is badly in need of reform.

Update, Jobs and Greens

2009-08-05T09:56:00.003+03:00

I haven't had a chance to write a blog for a while. This is partly because I haven't known what to write about and also because I started in my first job in Israel a couple of weeks ago (well ... unless you count working on Kibbutz during my gap year. I worked as a farmer and don't think I will ever have to work as hard again).

I am working at the Jerusalem Post in the International Sales Team, so if you would like to start receiving any Jerusalem Post publication, let me know. This is a very different job to what I have been used to, given that I have only worked in the British public sector, trying to help the public, and now my ownly concern is making a profit.

So let me know if you want to get the:

-International Weekly Edition of the Jerusalem Post
- Jerusalem Report Magazine
- Christian Edition of the Jerusalem Post (a monthly magazine)
- 400 page Jerusalem Post Front Page Album

Following that advert, I would like to welcome the new olim that came on the Nefesh B'Nefesh flights yesterday and will be coming in the next few weeks. This reminded me of the excitement four months ago when we arrived in Israel. This already seems like a long-time and we are now use to sweltering in the heat and our daily lives in Modiin.

Finally, after work last night I caught the end of the Maccabi Haifa match, which they won and got through to the last qualifying round of the champions league. Haifa our my team in Israel, because during my gap year in Israel I went to their games throughout their European run 10 years ago, lets hope they can repeat their success this year, so come on the greens!

Fruit and Veg

2009-07-10T15:17:00.003+03:00

One of the things I enjoy most about living in Israel is the fresh fruit and vegetables that we can buy in the shops.

Virtually all this produce which is sold in Israel is home produced, so that the products available are seasonal. We are now enjoying melons, water melons, grapes, peaches and cherries. (However, strawberries only last until May).

I also find that the fruit and vegetables are sold at relatively low prices and so help towards a healthy diet. It also means that when you buy a felafel or shwarma, you can get free unlimited salad. It has even helped me to lost weight since getting here.

The reason I am writing about this now, is because this week Prime Minister Netanyhau decided to drop the Government's proposal to introduce VAT on fruit and vegetables. This had been an unpopular policy with the public, which would have hit many people hard in these difficult economic times. This decision by the Prime Minister, while maybe making him look weak, at least showed that the listens to the public. I think this is therefore a corrageous decision, which leaders in other countries could learn from.

Time to support JFS

2009-07-05T08:40:00.004+03:00

As a former pupil of JFS in London, I was shocked to hear this week that the Court of Appeal decided that administration policy of JFS was racist.

JFS only accepts pupils that are deemed to be Jewish by Jewish law, when a child has a Jewish mother or has converted to Judaism under an orthodox Rabbi. This has always been the way that Judasim has recognised Jews. JFS, as a voluntary aided school, are therefore quite right to use this law, as determined by its Governing Body, to accept its pupils.

However, last week the schools admission policy and therefore Jewish law was deemed to be racist by a Court of Appeal Judge. I therefore urge the whole community to get behind JFS, one of the best schools in London, as it fights this decision all the way to the House of Lords.

Believe in ourselves

2009-06-15T16:00:00.003+03:00

Last Shabbat we read the Sedra of Shelach Lecha (this coming week outside of Israel), which tells us about how the leaders of the Jewish people went to view the Land of Israel, as the Jewish people were preparing to enter the land from the desert, as G-d had promised them.

However, we read how 10 of the leaders told the Jewish people, how it was too dangerous for them to live in the Land of Israel, which the Jewish people agreed with. Our Rabbi's tell us how the Jewish people consintued to have a slave mentality , as they had only been freed from their lives as slaves just over a year preiously. They were therefore unable to believe that they could successfully defeat the incumbent residents of the land and rule themselves.

Last week I went on a tiyul (tour) in which I saw some of the sites along Road 1, where the battles took place to safeguard Jerusalem as the capital of Israel, during the War of Indepence between 1947 and 1949. I learnt of how in many of the battles, Israel's soldiers were Holocaust survivors of only three years previously. Despite this though, they were strong enough and had the belief that they could help to defend Israel, so that they were able to live in the Jewish State of Israel.

During the Tiyul, I was able to see how in modern times, our heroes who help to protect the land of Israel, have been able to overcome the difficulties that many Biblical Leaders were scared to accept, and thanks to these modern day heroes, our soldiers, we are able to safely live in the Land of Israel.

Don't let them stop people travelling

2009-06-10T19:11:00.003+03:00

The last few days have seen two international cities disrupted by groups trying to stop the public from using transport systems and I condemn both groups.

On Shabbat, so called religious Jews from Mea Shearim tried to block the opening of a car park near the Old City of Jerusalem. The City Municipality wanted to open this car park, so that many non-Jewish tourists to Jerusalem would easily be able to access the Old City on Shabbat, when other car parks are shut. This car park was free and was operated by non-Jewish workers so that Shabbat law would not be broken. And yet, the so called religious Jews decided to riot to stop visitors to Jerusalem from being able to use this car park and even attacked policeman, therefore breaking Shabbat themselves. This group should learn their lesson and make it easier for tourists to visit Jerusalem.

Today and tomorrow in London, workers on the London Underground are holding what appears to be their annual strike, despite being some of the highest paid public sector workers in London. They are therefore also disrupting people from geting to work or allowing people to travel around London for leisure purposes, thus causing further disruption to the economy when London is trying to recover from a recession. Its about time they were banned from striking.

Dear Angry Labour Supporter

2009-06-07T15:31:00.002+03:00

In my post below, an anonymous person has left a rather angry comment, who from his rant is I suspect a Labour supporter. Here is my response below.

Dear Anonymous

You sound very angry, maybe you should relax.

Let me answer your points one by one.

Although I have moved to Israel, I am still also a UK citizen and care for the future of my former home town, particularly as my family still live in Edgware. Maybe if the Labout Party felt the same, they would call a General Election straight away so that the country can rid itself of the useless Gordon Brown.

As a Councillor I was always very concerned to ensure that Edgware was as good as possible, as I wanted to live in a nice town, and I hope many people agree that the Conservative Councillors and the Administration did a good job to achieve this. I am sure Councillors Hart and Scannell also felt the same way as me, and I hope Darrel will be the same, as he is also an Edgware resident.

I resigned as a Councillor when I moved to Israel, up until that time I continued to work hard to represent Edgware's residents. Given that Burnt Oak residents often also came to me for help, I probably also did more than the Labour Burnt Oak Councillors.

Edgware and Totteridge - Excellent Conservative Results

2009-06-05T18:13:00.006+03:00

In addition to the European elections, there were two bye-elections in Barnet yesterday in Edgware and Totteridge

A few local campaigners have been arguing that the Conservative run Barnet Council was doing a bad job, and were not popular with the local public.

However, the results, with both Conservaive Candidates getting over 50% of the vote shows that the people of Barnet want to elect a Conservative Government as soon as possible but also have confidence in the Conservative Council.

It also shows that when the country get rid of Gordon Brown, Hendon will also throw out Andrew Dismore and replace him with the Conservative Candidate Matthew Offord.

I would like to congratulate Darrel Yawitch and Alison Cornelius on becoming new councillors. I hope with the current concerns about politicians in the UK they are able to live up to their principles and beliefs and help to make Barnet a better place.

I also think based on number of votes received, Darrel is the most popular Councillor in Barnet, happy to be corrected if I am wrong. I am sure as he replaces me, Edgware will continue to have another excellent Councillor alongside Helena Hart and Joan Scannell.

Obama Calls for Peace in the Middle East

2009-06-05T14:38:00.002+03:00

In years past, yesterday I would have been working hard campaigning in London on election day, instead I had the change to hear Obama's speach on his views between the West and the Middle East.

Over the past couple of weeks Obama has been making a number of difficult requirments for Israel, which I have been critical of, but yesterday I thought Obama made a good speech even though I disagreed with much of it.

What I think is clear is that Obama wants to create peace between Islam and the West and between the Arabs and Israel. These are worthy aims but I am not sure whether he can achieve them.

The West and Israel do want to live in peace with the Arab and Islamic world but I believe they will struggle to find partners for peace. Obama has already started to make concessions with his greater tolerance of Iran (the most dangerous country in the world) as they get closer to having nuclear weapons. Israel, in my view will also be willing to make concessions on its settlement of the West Bank and a Palestinian State, (as it has done time and time again) even if many Israeli's disagree with these concessions.

However, the Arab's are looking to wipe Israel off the map, and Islam as described by Bin Ladin yesterday, said they are willing to embark on a long war for Islamic domination of the world. These are enemies that are not going to accept peace. That is why even if Obama calls on them to accept the histroy of the Jewish people, including the Holocaust and its right to a homeland in Israel, not even he can persaude them to accept a peaceful outcome.

Israel is not giving into Obama

2009-06-01T21:14:00.002+03:00

President Obama's administration appears to be continuing with its statements that the future of Middle East Peace is reliant on Israel stopping all construction of settlement activity in the West Bank.

The American Government wants Israel to not allow any new house extensions or new buidlings in existing towns in the West Bank (which makes up almost 10% of Israel's population). However, in his meeting last week with the Palestinian leader Abbas, President Obama hardly requested anything of the Palestinians, despite them continually being the party that opposes peace treaties.

However, I am pleased to say that Netenyahu and his whole Government continue to support the continuation of settlements in the historic Jewish homeland, while rightly trying to stop outposts with legal planning.

This week President Obama is likely to set out his broad plans for how to achieve in the Middle East, when he visits Egypt. I hope the other Barak, Israel's Defence Minister, can talk some sense into the Americans during his vist this week, before the President makes his major speech.

United Jerusalem

2009-05-22T11:07:00.005+03:00

42 years ago today, Israel defeated Jordan and the other Arab neighbours in the Six Day War, and Jerusalem was again united as one Jewish city, which could again become the Capital City of Israel and the Jewish People, with the Old City and the Western Wall at its heart.

After 2000 years, the Jewish people again had sovereignty over our holiest site. Last night I enjoyed being part of the celebrations in our united capital of Jerusalem, as ten's of thousands of people made their way to celebrate in the old city. Prior the refunification of the city, Jews found it very difficult if not impossible to pray at the Western Wall or even enter the old city. Now, under Israel's sovereignty, every religion is able to carry out their religion freely and safely.

I believe that Israel must therefore retain full sovereignty over the old city of Jerusalem.

This week Barak Obama and Binyamin Netanyahu met to discuss how peace could be reached between Israel and its Arab neighbourhs, before Obama this weeks meet with the Palestinian leadership.

According to reports the American President wants to achieve peace in the Middle East by Israel withdrawing from the West Bank and east Jersualem (including the old city). This plan is not very different from the many peace plans that have been promoted since 1947 and which each time have been rejected by our Arab neighbours, most notably by Yasser Araft in 2000.

Israel has continually shown it is happy to agree peace with the Arab nations, and even completely withdrew from Gaza. However, this independence for Gaza saw the rise of Hamas and the continual use of rockets by Hamas as they have been fired into southern Israel.

So I say to the new American President, yes we do want peace but before we can agree to peace, we need to be sure that our Arab neigbours will actually accept Israel as a Jewish State and not continually attack it, as they have done for the past 61 years.

Are spending and tax cuts on the way in Barnet?

2009-05-19T21:23:00.002+03:00

Barnet Council are tonight approving the Mayor and Executive for the upcoming year.

Much of the local news and blog coverage has concentrated on Councillor Brian Coleman becoming Mayor and Councillor Lynne Hillan becoming the Deputy Leader and Resources Member.

What I find more interesting is that Councillors Robert Rams and Dan Thomas are joining Councillor Richard Cornelius on the Executive. These three Councillors who were part of the 2006 in-take have continually spoken about the importance of cutting spending and council tax.

I hope now that they are in the Executive they will use their power to deliver Conservative principles by cutting public spending and so Council Tax. This also means that they need to find cuts and efficiencies in their own portfolios.

Support the Young Jewish Political Network today and Keep out the BNP

2009-05-17T14:29:00.003+03:00

If you are free this afternoon, I urge you to get down to Golders Green Road this afternoon to help the YJPN campaign to keep out the BNP in the European elections on 4 June.

Just over a year ago, together with a few friends I helped to set up the Young Jewish Political Network.

I thought that an organisation was needed where young Jewish adults who wanted to make a political difference needed an organisation where they could get together to help represent Jewish and Israeli causes. We therefore set about launching the organisation and to find members which we were able to do with the help of the CST and the Jewish Leadership Council.

Following a number of networking events, I am pleased to say that this afternoon, the YJPN will holding their first campaigning event where they will be urging people to vote in the European Elections on 4th June, so as to maximise the vote and to keep out the BNP.

I wish good luck to the YJPN and hope that this is the first of many successfuly events as it develops into a vital organisation in London.

Good Luck to Darrel Yawitch

2009-05-12T17:04:00.002+03:00

Darrel Yawitch will be the Conservative Candidate in the election on 4th June, where the residents of Edgware will vote to decide who will replace me as a Councillor for Edgware.

I would like to wish good luck to Darrel Yawitch, and urge all the residents of Edgware to vote for him.

As an Edgware resident, Darrel has already worked hard for other local residents by helping to open and build the new Edgware Jewish Primary School. I am sure as a new Councillor for Edgware he would be an excellent representative for the people of Edgware.

Its the economy stupid!

2009-05-08T15:42:00.002+03:00

With just ten days to go until the Binyamin Netenyahu meets Barak Obama, it seems to be becoming increasingly clear what the new Israel Government's position will be in terms of working to negotiate a peace agreement with the Palestinians.

While not ruling out a Palestinian State, the Israeli Government appears to be moving towards a position where instead of allowing a Palestinian State to be declared as soon as possible, the Israeli Government will work with our neighbours in the Arab world and other interested participants from around the world, to help develop the economy and civil society of the Palestinian people.

I believe this is a good move.

Last week in Israel and around the world, we celebrated Yom Ha'atzmaut, Israel's Independence Day, and we celebrated how 61 years ago Israel was able to become an independent Jewish State. However, 61 years ago Israel did not majically appear, the Jewish people for fifty to eighty years previously had worked to develop a civic society and economy that could support an independent state. We see this as we celebrate the 100th birthday this year of Tel Aviv.

61 years ago, when the United Nations voted to accept Israel as an independent state, the Jewish people worked hard to create a successfull indpendent state, and it has continued to develop successfully over the past 61 years. However, at the same time the Arab world rejected Israel and so also rejected the idea of a neighbouring Palestine. This view has continued amongst the Arab world, until today so that in Camp David Arafat refused a Palestinian State, and so did Abu Mazen last year, when offered it by Prime Minister Olmert. Therefore, while Israel has continued to develop, the Palestinian people have been working to destroy Israel instead of trying to build their own society and economy.

Therefore, even if the Palestinian's were to accept their own state alongside the Jewish State of Israel, they would not now be in a position to do so effectively. Therefore, firstly the world needs to work with a Palestinian Authority Government (that recognises that they will have to live side-by-side with Israel) to help develop their economy and society and then this will help create a more stable environment which would allow for an independent state to be created.

It is not for nothing that a successful economy is vital for a successful government.

I was told that late 1970s were bad

2009-04-23T06:11:00.002+03:00

I think I made a good decision coming to Israel....

Britain has another 15 months of a disastrous government

Yom Hashoa and the UN's View

2009-04-20T15:01:00.003+03:00

Tonight and tomorrow is Yom Hashoa where in Israel and for Jews around the world, we will be remembering the martyrs of the Holocaust (this date was chosen by Israel to commemorate the start of the Warsaw Ghetto uprising).

However, on the same day the Iranian President who will be the keynote speaker at the UN's Human Rights Conference, publicly denies the existance of the Holocaust and has called for Israel to be wiped off the map.

I have recently written about how I am concerned about the rise in anti-Semitism that over the past five or so years has started to increase in Britain. However, this is not a phenomenon that is just occuring but which is increasing all over the world. In effect we are experiencing the worst period of anti-Semitim since the Holocaust.

Holocaust Days were introduced in order to highlight the result of hatred and racism, so as to never again allow a genocide to happen again. However, despite us having these days to reflect on the result of hatred and racism, we have still allowed genocides to happen in the former Yugoslavia, Rwuanda and currently in Darfur and Zimbabwe.

The United Nations was also established just over 60 years in order to stop hatred and racism, and in 2001 held a Human Rights, Anti-Racism Conference in Durban South Africa. However, rather than try and halt human rights abuses around the world, whether in the forms of sexism, racism or homophopia; the UN as its sole human rights objective, again began a battle with Israel by effectively defining it as a racist state. As a student at the time I immediately noticed an increase in the hatred of Israel and Jewish students at the time, to the result that on campuses around Britain, groups began to try and ban Jewish Societies in the same way as they did in the 1970s. Not only this, Jewish students were both verbally and physically abused.

I therefore believe that it was the UN's 2001 so called 'anti-racism' conference that has led to the worst anti-semitism occuring in the past 60 years.

This week the UN are again holding a Human Rights, Anti-Racism Conference. I hope unlike in 2001, the delegates actually choose to find a way to tackle racism, sexism and homophobia around the world. However, I am not confident and so I back the few countries such as Italy, the USA and Australia who have supported Israel in boycotting the Conference.

The reason I am not confident is because the UN have invited the Iranian President Ahmadinejad to be the key speaker. Mr Ahmadinejad has actively denied and supported others who deny the Holocaust occured and has called for Israel to be wiped off the map, at the same time as developing nuclear weapons. Given this fact and that Iran together with Libya have prepared the conference, I am concerned that the Arabic World and their supporters will again try and target Israel, which will further worsen the level of anti-Semitism around the world. If this does occur I hope Britain and other delegates will walk-out of the conference and show it for the farce that it is.

Only through actively showing that the world does not support anti-Semitism and the destruction of Israel, can the world help to defeat these evils.

Hendon's Labour MP will be taking more taxpayers money in 2009/10

2009-04-17T15:35:00.003+03:00

British news has recently been dominated by Labour sleaze and MPs wasting taxpayers money. When I was an aspiring Councillor I hoped I could try and help to change this political culture in Britain, however, alas I was unable to and the scinical abuse by many British politicians is not something I will miss when I resign as a Councillor.

Andrew Dismore the Labour MP for Hendon I believe is one of the worst examples of MPs abusing their expenses and taxpayers money. Over 10 years as an MP he has failed to even reach the first ladder of Government, yet consistently has had one of the highest expenses bills in the country. However, this week he has tried to pretend that he will be reducing his expenses when in reality they will be increasing.

Mr Dismore has said he will be claiming less tax payers money in 2009/10, when in fact he will be claiming more.

He has proudly issued a press release announcing that he would no longer be claiming the MP's Second Home Allowance. This he has been claiming for his flat in Burnt Oak (which I don't think he lives in much) while mainly living in Westminster, where he has lived since even before becoming an MP. Mr Dismore announced that he would stop claiming this allowance, which he said in 2008/9 was likely to be £3056.

However, instead he will continue to claim the London Weighting Allowance for his flat in Westminster. In 2009/10 this will increase by £4600 from £2900 to £7500. Therefore because Mr Dismore intends to live in Westminster and not Burnt Oak, next year he will be claiming about £1500 more than he will have claimed in 2008/9.

This is yet another example of Labour MPs taking the taxpayer for a ride.

‘This year we are here – next year, may we be in the Land of Israel.’

2009-04-10T17:20:00.003+03:00

I would like to share with you one of the thoughts that I had as we enjoyed our Sedar at our friends Yehuda and Rachel Newman.

On Wednesday night, Sonia and I sat down to our first Sedar together in Israel and as usual began with Ha Lachma Anya, part of which reads; ‘this year we are here – next year, may we be in the Land of Israel.’

For all our lives we have been beginning the Sedar with the hope that we would be able to fulfil this desire to be able to live in the land of Israel, and this year just three weeks after making aliyah, our hopes have been fulfilled. For us this was a relatively easy move, albeit with all the difficulties of any migration.

Our journey to Israel though is a small-microcosm of the history of the Jewish people. As the Rabbi’s write; the lives and stories of our forefathers in the Torah, are a parallel of future events. The whole Pesach story is the story of how G-d helped the Jewish people to escape Egypt and eventually reach Egypt, after the Yaacov and his sons migrated to Egypt because of the famine in Egypt. The line above in the Hagadah refers to the hope that the Jewish people had for 2000 years after they were exiled from Israel by the Roman Empire.

This hope that next year we would be able to live in Israel, is found all through Jewish prayer. One place it is found is in the Sheva Brachot that we say on behalf of new married couples, there we request that we may again here in the cities of Israel and in the streets of Jerusalem, voices of joy and gladness, voices of the groom and bride … and the voices of young people feasting and singing.

This hope that we would one-day be able to live happily in the Land of Israel has been seen over the last hundred years and especially since the founding of the State of Israel almost 61 years ago.

Therefore, as the Chief Rabbi Jonathan Sack says in his Pesach Hagadah, just as at Pesach we remember the historic returns of the Jewish people to Israel, we should also thank G-d for our new return to Israel. This is because;

“Pesach, like a seed frozen in suspended animation, contained the latent energy the led Jews in the twentieth century to create the single most remarkable accomplishment in the modern world, the rebirth of Israel, the land, the state, the nation and the people.”[1]
[1] The Chief Rabbi’s Haggadah, Essays by Chief Rabbi Jonathan Sacks, page 52.

Modiin's main squre full to bursting during Bichat Hachama, Wednesday 8 April, Erev Pesach

On Wednesday morning before our Sedar night, here in Modiin I was able to take part in the celebration of the creation of the world, at the cities communal Birchat Hachama service. Here I saw the voices of joy and gladness as we the Jewish people were able to thank G-d and celebrate here in the land of Israel.
However, just as in the past our future in Israel is not secure. Just in the last few days, since the swearing in of the new Netanyahu Government we have heard many statements which has created questions about what Israel will look like in the future. We have seen Gerry Adams meet with the leader of Hamas in Gaza, we have seen Iran move forward with its Nuclear programme, we have heard President Obama say it is vital to create a two-state solution, and we have heard the new Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman say that it is for the new Israeli Government to set out a process for peace in Israel.

This Pesach I am going to continue enjoy celebrating the history of the Jewish people and our return to Israel, but in the coming weeks I hope to look at what awaits our future here.

Chag Sameach

p.s. I enjoyed being able to write this on 2nd day Pesach (Yom Tov in England).

Future of my blog - www.richardfweider.blogspot.com

2009-04-08T11:57:00.002+03:00

Given that I will be soon be standing down as one of the Edgware Councillors on Barnet Council. I thought now would be a good time to update you on the future of my blog.

However, firstly I would like to thank the organisations that have helped to make our aliyah to Israel possible. Nefesh B'Nefesh, the Jewish Agency and the Modiin Absorption Centre have so far all helped to make our aliyah smooth and easy.

Being a Councillor has many benefits, including being able to make a difference for your local community. However, being a Councillor also means that I had to accept collective responsibility and so I had to limit my views made in public, whether I agreed or disagreed with a Conservative Policy.

Now that I am relinquishing my responsibilities I will again use this blog to express my opinion on various issues and events. I plan to use this blog to comment on local and national issues both in Israel and England. I hope to make this blog interesting for you the readers, and hopefully to provide new and useful insights.

Chag Pesach Sameach.

Modiin - Our new home

2009-04-03T17:15:00.002+03:00

Following my resignation letter of yesterday I thought you might be interested in where Sonia and I are now living.

We have chosen to live in Modiin.

Modiin is a town that is only 12 years old, in central Israel, with a population of about 60,000 people, but which as plans to become the third or fourth largest city in Israel. The town, which is half an hour from both Jerusalem and Tel-Aviv, has a very Israeli-Mediterranean feel, with lovely white Jerusalem stone buildings, lots of parks. There is also a large anglo-population with lots of immigrants from England. The website http://www.ourmodiin.co.il/ is an excellent information tool and if you are interested provides lots of information on Modiin.

In reporting my resignation yesterday, the Edgware Times picked up on my comment that due to the worrying rise in anti-Semitism and anti-Zionism in England, many Jews no longer feel safe. However, I would like to make clear that is not the reason why Sonia and I are making aliyah.

As I wrote yesterday, we believe that Israel is the homeland of the Jewish people where it is right that we should live and where we want to live the rest of our lives; in order to help contribute to the successful future of the Jewish people, in the centre of Jewish life. We are therefore being pulled to Israel and not being pushed away from England.

However, I also see the growing levels of anti-Semitism that are occurring across Europe and see the re-emergence of anti-Semitism that has occurred in Europe throughout the past two-thousand years. The difference today though is that for the past 60 years, as a Jewish people we now have Israel as a State to support and defend us. I therefore feel lucky that I am able to settle here in Israel the home of the Jewish people, when I think of how many millions of Jews, over the past two-thousand years could only dream of living here in Israel.

My Resignation as Councillor

2009-04-02T12:34:00.001+03:00

I am writing to let you know that two weeks ago my wife Sonia and I decided to make aliyah (emigrate) to Israel. I have therefore decided to step down as a Councillor for Edgware Ward.

For the past three years I have felt privileged to serve, support, represent and help the people of Edgware both on their individual issues and those relating to Barnet Council. I have also been proud to be part of the Conservative Administration running Barnet Council under the leadership of Councillors Mike Freer and Matthew Offord and hope you have experienced some of the improvements that I have helped to achieve.

These achievements have included amongst others:
- the improvement of Edgware Library and its opening on Sundays;
- improvements to Stonegrove Park and Edgwarebury Park, which recently received a Green Flag;
- continued improvements to local schools,
- the rebuilding of Broadfields Primary;
- the planning permission for Edgware Jewish Primary School;
- improvements to recycling so that plastic and cardboard can now be recycled;
- fighting for better health care;
- good local cohesion; and
- working closely with the local police.

In order to save you the local taxpayers the £10,000 cost of a by-election, my resignation will be timed to coincide with the European elections, scheduled for 4th June. In the meantime you will continue to be represented by my two colleagues:
Cllr Helena Hart - cllr.h.hart@barnet.gov.uk 020 8371 0658
Cllr Joan Scannell - cllr.j.scannell@barnet.gov.uk 020 8959 5921

My wife and I have decided to emigrate to Israel, because we believe passionately in Israel as the home of Jewish people and believe it is where all Jews should strive to live. Therefore, at this stage in our lives we believe this is the correct step to make. Whilst, we are moving for positive reasons, we are also concerned about the rising levels of anti-Semitism in England, where Jews no longer always feel comfortable living as Jews and supporting Israel.

Over my life I have learnt to love Israel, and for the past ten years I have been doing my best to show this to others by supporting and representing Israel. However, I also believe that it is time for us to contribute even more to Israel by living our lives here and helping to make it as successful a country as possible.

I hope that during my time as Councillor, you have appreciated what I have done, even if you did not always agree with it. I also apologies to anyone that I upset.

Finally, I hope to see you all in the future, either here in Israel or in London.

Cllr Richard Weider

Live Blog of Israeli Election Results

2009-02-10T22:17:00.014+02:00

21:50 - Thats it for tonight more comment tomorrow

21:45 - Shas are recommending Likud as the main governing party and Netanyahu and Lieberman are speaking on the phone.

21:40 - Is this the end of Barak and Labour. Yes to the first, increasinly likely to the latter. What are we to make of the continual decline of the founding party of Israel.

21:10 - Sky news are suggesting that Kadima, Likud and Labour could form a grand-coaltion. While, others are trying to suggest and workout how Kadima or Likud form their own coalitions, I think the grand-coalition is quite likely.

21:05 - Turnout was 65%. Despite predictions of Israeli's not being interested in the election. This shows what happens when an election is close, turnout goes-up by over 2% from last time.

20:50 - Despite being the second largest party, Likud, including Netanyahu are predicting they will form the Government. That is confident at this stage. http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1063118.html

20:45 - The people have spoken but as usual in Israel in recent years the elections have been very close. Therefore in the days and weeks ahead as the parties negotiate to try and form a Government, I urge them to remember that they are working to lead Israel, the Jewish state. They should respect who ever forms the Government and becomes Prime Minister, as a Government should. However, the new Government should also remember their responsibility as leaders of Israel and work to help all citizens.

20:40 - Thunder and heavy rain in Israel. Let's hope it is G-d welcoming a new Prime Minister, but who will it be?

20:35 - Earlier today both Kadima and Likud said the size of their votes would be determined by organisation, organisation, organisation. Given that Kadima's volunteers are paid to help the party, unlike the others, could this be the reason for Kadima winning.

20:30 - The exit polls are a bit of a shock. Polls prior to the election were showing that Likud were expected to be the largest party even if their lead had dramatically declined in the past few weeks. However, Likud's falling lead was argued to be because of Yisrael Beitanu having an increasing number of seats from them. This though does not seem to be the reason for Kadima being in the lead as Yisrael Beitanu have not got as many seats as predicted.

20:20 - Twenty Minutes ago the polls closed in the Israeli election results. The exit polls are showing that out of the 120 seats in the Knesset:

Livni's party Kadima are the largest party with 29 - 30 seats
Netanyahu's party Likud are second with 27 - 28 seats
Leiberman's party Yisrael Beitanu have 14 - 15 seats
Barak's party Labour have 13 seats
Shas 9 - 10 seats

Taking in the minority parties http://muqata.blogspot.com/ is predicting that right wing parties have 63 - 65 seats and the left wing parties 55 -57 seats.

Israeli Elections

2009-02-08T14:34:00.002+02:00

The Israeli elections are just two days away on this coming Tuesday and are looking increasingly intriguing.

If I were to be living in Israel I would be supporting Benjamin Netenyahu and the Likud.
However, despite the majority of Israeli’s looking to be supporting parties on the right of Israel, there will be questions over whether Likud can win enough votes to form the Government.

Will they be able to stop voters moving to Israel Beitanu, which could see Kadima become the largest party?

Will the centre-left and left parties see their vote decline dramatically?

Who will be the surprise party in this election.

What type of coalition will be formed?

On Tuesday evening, I hope to be running a live blog answering some of these questions as the results come in and events unfold, see you then.

Do you have a question for me to ask?

2008-11-21T11:53:00.000+02:00

On Tuesday I will be attending the Council's Environment and Transport Scrutiny Committee.

The agenda can be seen here http://committeepapers.barnet.gov.uk/democracy/meetings/meetingdetail.asp?meetingid=4686

and includes items of discussion on:

- the Council's Performance Indicators
- a review of the Council's street cleaning service
- a report on tree protection in Barnet

To give the public a chance to have a question answered, I am happy to consider asking any questions on the agenda, that are posted in my comments section.

So over to you!

New Life for Edgware's Railway Pub

2008-11-20T21:11:00.002+02:00

This week at the Planning Committee I was pleased to support the planning application, which gave permission to convert the Railway Pub in Edgware into a new hotel.

This 1930's listed building which opened as a pub at the same time as the tube station opened, has become a landmark for Edgware. However, in recent years the building has been empty as the pub shut down a number of years ago. I am therefore pleased that the pub will soon reopen together with the hotel and will be improved so that it continues to be an important building in Edgware.

Boris or Barkat who is the better Mayor?

2008-11-12T10:57:00.002+02:00

Last night Nir Barkat was elected as the new Mayor of Jerusalem, following Boris' election as London Mayor 6 months ago, I now have my preferred choices as the Mayors of my two favourite capital cities.

In his first 6 months as Mayor of London, Boris has done an excellent job in developing new and exciting strategies to reduce youth crime and knife crime in London, developing a better transport strategy for London, and finding plenty of ways to reduce the cost of running London, so that the London charge of the Council Tax will not rise next year.

I hope Boris continues in this excellent way and that Nir Barkat is also as good in improving the living and economic coniditions in Jerusalem. This will ensure that these two cities can rightfully be seen as the two best cities in the world.

Update on Barnet's money with Iceland's banks

2008-10-26T20:02:00.002+02:00

Further to my previous post about the position on Barnet Council's savings I point you towards an explanation of the situation from the Leader of the Council, Mike Freer.

http://leaderlistens.com/

Barnet's money in Iceland

2008-10-16T15:19:00.000+02:00

As has been well publicised, Barnet Council has £27.4 million invested in banks in Iceland. This has led to much concern amongst residents of Barnet, given the financial situation across the world and in Iceland and the UK in particular.

Next week, the Council's Cabinet will be discussing the issue. Ahead of this meeting, a paper has been published on the Council's website which helps to explain the situation. http://committeepapers.barnet.gov.uk/democracy/reports/reportdetail.asp?ReportID=7341

There has been much debate about whether the Council should invest it's income in bank accounts and the paper helps to outline the wider circumstance's on why this has been done, which has helped over previous years to increase the Council's income. This has therefore helped to maintain the level of services, while not having to raise Council Tax even more then it has increased.

Following the Cabinet meeting next Wednesday on 23 October. There will be an Extraordinary Council meeting at 6:30pm on Tuesday 4 November at Barnet House, to discuss this issue.

Response to Don't call me Dave

2008-10-06T14:09:00.000+02:00

A commentor on my previous post about the Council's new website www.whereilive.org has asked me some questions about one of the postings which was made on the site, which he has said was rude to Jewish people.

I condemn all forms of attacks on Jewish people, whether they be verbal or physical and if anyone experiences this I urge them to report it to the police or the CST http://www.thecst.org.uk/index.cfm?Content=9

I am though not able to comment on whether the posting was anti-semitic, as the Council took the posting off before I had a chance to view it, and has referred the comment to the Borough Police Commander. I believe this is the correct action.

What I do know is that sadly a number of residents in the borough are racist and anti-semitic, but I am glad that these appear to be a tiny minority of the population. However, if this comment or other actions do appear to be anti-semitic they should be punished in accordance with the law.

A new way to comment on what you think of the area

2008-10-05T18:58:00.002+02:00

I am pleased to say that Barnet Council are always trying to find new ways for local residents to communicate with the Council and to give us all the chance to give our views on what we think of the area and areas which can be improved.

To do this Barnet Council has launched a new You Tube style website that allows you to provide comments or to provide video and pictures of what you like or don't like.

So next time you have a chance why not have a look at www.whereilive.org

Happy New Year

2008-10-05T18:55:00.002+02:00

I would like to wish a Shana Tova to my Jewish readers. I hope we will all have a sweet, successful and peaceful new year.

New CCTV Camera for Glengall Road

2008-08-04T14:34:00.001+03:00

I am pleased that this Friday, Barnet Council's Resources Committee will be considering a paper which proposes the installation of a new CCTV camera on Glengall Road, this financial year.

Glengall Road is an area for Edgware which suffers from anti-social behaviour, with a number of teenagers hanging about and annoying the local residents and businesses with loutish behaviour and sometimes more serious criminal incidents.

As one of the local councillors this is an area I have been working very closely with the local police safer neighbourhood team to improve. I believe this CCTV camera will help to reduce the amount of anti-social behaviour and criminal activity in this area. Therefore, making the Glengall Road neighbourhood a nicer place to live.

I am therefore urging the members of the committee to support this proposal.

Salute to Israel

2008-06-29T12:02:00.003+03:00

Today I am attending the Salute to Israel Parade in London, to celebrate Israel's 60th anniversary. In just 60 years Israel has developed into a great country and we have much to be proud and celebrate about it.

Israel is a country that has been under constant threat, but today is a today to celebrate it's many achievements. Whether it is in the field of entertainment, science, IT, culture or sport. Israel has been able to punch above it's weight. All while this for hoping for peace. Hopefully in the future we can enjoy many more achievements, while it's neighbours all finally accept that the Jewish people have a right to live in peace and safety in the Land of Israel.

I look forward to letting you know what I thought of the day.

Welcome to your new flats

2008-06-26T22:21:00.002+03:00

One of the biggest issues in Edgware before I was elected was the regeneration of the Stonegrove estate on the edge of Edgware.
Thanks to the hard work done by the executive of the Council and my colleagues in Edgware Cllr Hart and Cllr Scannell, much of these controversies went away by listening to the concerns of the residents of Edgware.
This week the first new blocks of flats Chantry Court and Dower Court opened on the estate on a new road called Penniwell Close, off Sterling Avenue. This will now allow for the major regneration to take place with the first of the old blocks being demolished.
I hope these new flats will be the start of a new era for this area of Edgware which until now has been a poor estate.

Am I a victim of Boris' cut down on crime?

2008-05-23T14:24:00.002+03:00

Over the last couple of years we have seen the shocking rise in knife and gun crime in London, which during the recent elections Boris promised to crack down on once he became Mayor.

Yesterday, I was one of the first people to face this crack-down, when I was stopped and searched by the police.

Boris promised to introduce knife detectors at tube stations across London. Yesterday on my way home, one of these detectors was in place at Edgware Underground Station. Like every other person I had to go through this detector, and when I did my keys set of the alarm.

Therefore, as the police are required to do, they decided to stop-and-search me. This took about 5 minutes of time. While it may have slightly delayed me I pleased to see this policy is being rolled out across London to catch people with knives and guns, which will hopefully see the level of crime fall.

Well done to Boris and the police team yesterday.

When will they meet their promise?

2008-05-22T15:57:00.001+03:00

Back in October of last year the Labour Party were proudly saying that they had agreed to provide extra funding to ensure security from Jewish schools. http://www.andrewdismoremp.com/c4b915fd-c74a-c1f4-cdc7-a0c5c73d59fd

I welcomed this, because sadly and worryingly Jewish schools, such as in Barnet do face anti-Semitic attacks.

However, as with promises from this Labour Government, I didn't believe it would be true until schools received this money.

It therefore came as no surprise to me to see that three-quarters of a year later, this money seems to be non-existent and the Labour MP for Hendon, seems to have to beg for this promise to be met. http://www.times-series.co.uk/news/topstories/display.var.2287376.0.mp_calls_for_security_cash_for_jewish_schools.php

When will the Labour Government meet their promise and help protect the school children in these schools.

Yom Ha'atzmaut, the BNP and all that

2008-05-12T15:19:00.000+03:00

Last week was Israel’s 60th anniversary of its Independence Day. This has provided an opportunity to look back on the successes of this small country which was created for the Jewish people.

To mark the 60th anniversary I was pleased to attend both a service at Kinloss Synagogue in Finchley and a celebration at Wembley Arena. Both these events made me realise how lucky we are to have a country in the world in which we the Jewish people can have a country which we can call home.

For 2000 years the Jewish people were scattered around the world and faced virtually constant anti-semitic attacks. This culminated in the Holocaust when 6 million Jews were murdered because they had no where to call home where they were able to escape from the Nazis.

However, we now have Israel, which was created just 3 years after the destruction of the Holocaust and over the past 60 years has been built up to become one of the strongest and most successful countries in the world. This is a great achievement, which for which we should be truly thankful.

Not least because as a resident of London, I now have a BNP politician claiming to represent me on the London Assembly, but who really wants me and many other people to leave this country, because we are not really British. However, if the BNP G-d forbid are to grow into a major force in this county, unlike for the past 2000 years, we Jewish residents will at least have Israel to escape to a place we can really call our home.

Mr Dismore what are you so frightened of?

2008-05-12T14:56:00.000+03:00

I thought readers might be interested to see this article written by Robert Halfon and published on ConservativeHome yesterday http://conservativehome.blogs.com/centreright/2008/05/what-are-labour.html#comment-114229570

Some weeks ago, Conservative Friends of Israel was invited by Hadley Wood Jewish Community to speak in a Dimbleby Question Time-style debate. We readily agreed. I myself was due to appear on the platform with a representatives from other parties.

Last Thursday, we suggested to the organisation, that given the Labour Panelist was a local MP, Andrew Dismore, and the Liberal Panelist, a Barnet Councillor, Monroe Palmer, that instead of myself doing the debate, it might be more apt to have Councillor Matthew Offord (Deputy Leader of Barnet Council and Tory PPC for Hendon).

The organisers were initially pleased with this idea, particularly since Hadley Wood Jewish Community is in Barnet. Moreover Cllr Offord readily agreed to do the event instead of me.

On Friday, matters suddenly changed. The organisers, asked if I would stand in again because Andrew Dismore MP refused to share a platform with Matthew Offord. Astonished, I asked why, particularly given that, although Matthew was Mr Dismore's opponent, they would not be discussing any issues to do with Hendon. Moreover I argued that Matthew was not only Deputy Leader of Barnet Council, but was a member of CFI, had been on a CFI visit to Israel and had a wide knowledge of what was happening in Israel.

The response was clear and I reproduce it below for the benefit of CentreRight eaders:

"The difficulty is this. Andrew Dismore has a rule against debating with parliamentary opponents. He tells me this is standard practice. He is quite firm about this".

This really is a remarkable response from the Labour MP, particularly since no such rule exists and PPCs and MPs regularly share platforms up and down the country. In the last few weeks Boris and Ken debated on numerous platforms.

Out of courtesy to the Hadley Wood Jewish Community, and because of the incredible and kind efforts of the organiser, CFI agreed to do the debate this evening as originally agreed and I will appear on the Platform with Messrs Dismore and Palmer this evening.

For a local Labour MP to be frightened and refuse to debate with his opponent - on matters of a serious nature - just shows what has gone wrong.

Help defeat the BNP in Hale

2008-04-17T14:29:00.002+03:00

In two weeks time on 1 May (the same day as the London elections) there will be a by election in Hale ward in Barnet.

Hale is the ward I use to live in and has a large Jewish population. It has therefore come as no surprise to me that the BNP a nasty fascist party, has continued its recent policy of targeting areas with large Jewish and ethnic communities.

The BNP exist because they want to drive out people, which they don’t consider ‘normal people’ from this country.

There is only one way in which the BNP can be defeated. That is by showing that the overwhelming majority of people disagree and hate their views, by coming out to vote for other political parties on 1 May.

I believe that the best way to do this is to vote for Tom Davey, the Conservative candidate in Hale ward. Tom, together with the Conservative Party, continues to support the Jewish community and it’s schools in Barnet, as excellent examples of community cohesion.

This is in contrast to the Labour Party, who led by Ed Balls the Secretary of State for Education, (and who has been supported by the local Labour Councillors) has been mischievously attacking the approach Jewish schools take. I don’t need to tell you what Ken Livingstone thinks of the Jewish community.

Therefore, on 1 May I urge you to show the BNP and Labour (including Ken) what you think of them, by voting Conservative.

Labour again criticise Jewish Schools

2008-04-03T17:16:00.000+03:00

Today’s papers report that the Labour Government are continuing to attack the excellent Jewish schools in Barnet for no fair reason. The Labour Government and Andrew Dismore the Labour MP for Hendon have unfairly criticised Rosh Pinah, Beis Yakov, Hasmonean Primary and Secondary and Mathilda Marks Kennedy schools for asking for voluntary contributions.

As a councillor for Edgware, where Rosh Pinah is based and where many families of pupils in the other schools live, I feel the Labour party’s attack on these schools is disgraceful.

These schools are not requesting cash for places as the Labour Party is suggesting. Instead these are vital contributions which go towards Jewish studies and to the protection and security of pupils at these schools. This comes in the same week as Labour councillors on the planning committee in Hendon voted to not allow Od Yosef Hai in Hendon put up a security fence.

Yet again the Labour government have shown a complete lack of understanding of Jewish school, while Barnet Council and the Conservative Party continue to support them.

Have your say on London

2008-04-03T17:13:00.001+03:00

I believe London is a great city but as a Councillor I know from comments I get from residents that it can always be improved.

Therefore I am pleased that a new cross-party think tank called LondonSays has been set up to campaign for London.

Londonsays has launched its iWant campaign to hear what Londoners want from their Mayor of London, who ever he will be after 1 May.

You can contribute at iwant@londonsays.org

Improvements on the way for Stonegrove

2008-03-04T14:12:00.001+02:00

Last night I voted along with the majority of the planning and environment committee to support the overall outline planning application for the regeneration of the existing Stonegrove estate and to give full approval for the first zone of the application.

It has taken along time for this application to reach this stage and I would like to thank and congratulate my two colleagues Cllr Joan Scannell and Cllr Helena Hart for fighting so hard to get the previous planning permission scrapped and replaced with this much better application.

As a resident of Edgware all my life, I will be extremely pleased to see the existing estate fully demolished and rebuilt in what will be a much better design. I hope this will become a pleasant landmark for all the residents of Edgware and everyone who enters London via Edgware.

For many years now the estate has become completely run-down and a horrible place for it’s residents and a no-go area for the residents of the surrounding neighbourhood. This regeneration is therefore badly needed.

The regeneration will see the demolishment of sub-standard blocks of flats, including 6 blocks of 11 storey flats, with high quality flats and hundreds of houses with gardens (there are currently no houses on the estate) and only 3 blocks of 10 storey flats with the remaining blocks at lower levels.

The estate will also be designed and landscaped to merge in with the surrounding neighbourhood, so that it is no longer seen as a separate estate and a no-go area. However, for this to be effectively achieved, it will of course be important for the architects, planners and the council’s planning committee to ensure the landscaping and designs to be of a very high quality and for the public areas to be properly managed in the future. As Edgware councillors I and my colleagues will continue to ensure this happens together with ensuring proper traffic measures are put in place.

I am also pleased that the developers of this estate will also be providing approximately in £1 million to Barnet to help fund extra resources for the local area, which will include funding for health services and to improve the local Edgwarebury and Stonegrove parks.

Last night’s decision was an important landmark decision for Edgware, which will see a much better development than the previous agreement. While, this is not a perfect solution for suburban Edgware, it will mark a drastic improvement on what is there currently for everyone concerned.

Are Faith Schools Safe under Gordon Brown's Government

2008-01-19T20:51:00.000+02:00

I have written about the importance of having faith schools in this country before but I think it is important to raise this issue again. This is because over the past couple of weeks the Secretary of State for Education, Ed Balls has been backtracking over the Labour Government's support for these schools.

As a former pupil of Rosh Pinah and JFS both Jewish voluntary aided faith based state schools, I believe that these types of schools which have existed for decades and in the case of JFS for hundreds of years are excellent examples of what schools should be like. These and other faith schools produce children and young adults who can become active citizens in this country helping to make it a better place.

I would therefore be concerned if the Government was to stop supporting them.

I was though heartened to hear the recent comments of Michael Gove, the Conservative Education spokesman in Parliament, who highlighted the excellent success story of Jewish schools.

“As to history, I would like the House to recall the experience of one minority community in Britain. Its members came here, often fleeing persecution, with few resources and little in the way of marketable qualifications more than 100 years ago. They found jobs in sweatshops, retail, low-level commerce and other unskilled or low-skilled environments. Yet within 100 years or so—the space of two or three generations—that community has reached a point where it sends 80 per cent. of its young people to university. That community, the Jewish community, is—in education, as in so many other areas—an example to us all. I see no reason why other minority communities might not aspire to similar levels of participation or why we as a nation should not be inspired by that community's example.”
Michael Gove MP, Shadow Secretary for Children, Schools and Families, Hansard 14 January 2008

Organ Donation

2008-01-19T20:45:00.000+02:00

Last weekend the Prime Minister attempted to launch a debate on whether organ donation should be compulsory, unless people opt-out. This would be a change from the current situation where organ's can only be taken from the dead when they and their families have said that they are happy for this to happen. I do not believe this change would be a good thing to see dead bodies without consent.

Therefore some of my colleagues in the Barnet Conservative Counci group have written to the Prime Minister to express our concern. The letter is below.

Dear Prime Minister
We are writing to express our deep concern over the support you have expressed for "presumed consent" to organ donation on death, and for the system of "opting out" of donating rather than "opting in".
We are well aware of the need for an increase of organs for transplant, to enhance medical provision and the health service in general. It is of course the Government’s prerogative, if it wishes, to intensify its publicity machinery with a view to encouraging more people to become donors and carry the appropriate cards. However, the decision to donate should at the end of the day be entirely a matter of individual conscience, and we consider it quite iniquitous to envisage parts of people’s bodies being lawfully removed after death without their clear and positive prior consent.
As you are aware there are also many moral, faith and humanitarian aspects to this issue which affect and concern vast numbers of people, from a wide range of communities. Many of those views have already been expressed very forcefully in response to your opinions in the Sunday Telegraph. With respect, the change you are advocating could cause immense harm to religious freedom and community cohesion in this country – a result that no right-thinking person would desire.
We urge you will reconsider your position and would appreciate an acknowledgement of this letter.
Yours sincerely,

Cllr. Dean Cohen
Cllr. Melvin Cohen
Cllr. Mike Freer
Cllr. Brian Gordon
Cllr. Joan Scannell
Cllr Andreas Tambourides
Cllr Richard Weider

Edgware Police AGM - Wednesday 9 January

2008-01-08T22:57:00.000+02:00

I wish you all a happy new year.

Tomorrow evening I will be attending the AGM of the Edgware Police Safer Neighbourhood Team.

It takes place at 7:30pm at Edgware Masorti Synagogue, Bakery Path (off Station Road) in Edgware.

If you would like a say on how the police conduct their work here in Edgware please come along.

Would you want the BNP in your house?

2007-11-28T19:54:00.000+02:00

This week the BNP have been making the news both nationally and locally here in Edgware.

At the national level there has been much debate about whether Nick Griffin the BNP leader and David Irving should have been invited to speak at the Oxford Union. Those who said they should have been invited, claim that denying them a chance to speak at the Oxford Union is denying them free speech.

This argument though misunderstands what free speech is. Here in the United Kingdom we believe and allow everyone to express their views no matter what it is as long as it does not encourage harm to others. We therefore often have to hear in the media the awful things that Nick Griffin and David Irving come out with. We also allow the BNP to stand in elections. This is freedom of speech.

However, to invite these two disgusting men to the Oxford Union, one of the most prestigious private clubs in this country for debate, does not allow them freedom of speech, because they already have that. What it does is give a platform for racist views to be expressed and so accepted and valued while also upsetting millions of people including many members of the Oxford Union who saw their institution accepting racist white supremacist views.

At a local level I will also be out campaigning in a local Council election in Stanmore, next door to my ward of Edgware, where the BNP have decided to stand a candidate. While, we allow the BNP have every right to stand for election, I hope I can encourage the people of Stanmore to turn out on mass to vote for democratic parties (I hope the Conservative Party). This will then show how the local residents dont want anything to do with the BNP in North West London.

Labour Oppose improvements at Edgware Libarary

2007-11-07T15:42:00.000+02:00

I apologise for not writing an article recently, but I just haven't had time.

However, the debate and vote last night at the council meeting has really spurred me into action.

A motion was put forward and won by the Conservative Group to re-invigorate libraries as centres for community life, which will see:

- Edgware Library refurbished, with improvements to its facilities, including the provision of public toilets, disabled access, new RFID technology to allow self-service and new IT facilities.
- Savings being made to allow for Edgware Library to open on Sundays.
- Burnt Oak Library upgraded to become a major hub for local residents.

However, for some reason the Labour Group condemned this new innovative library strategy and then did not vote for the important improvements to Edgware and Burnt Oak libraries. However, before deciding to abstain in the formal vote, they had initially voted against the proposals, before realising that they would be criticised.

However, they should not only be criticised for not supporting these proposals, but I can see that the local Labour Party can be seen to be just as chicken as Gordon Brown who also a chicken and was too scared to call an election.

Wembley, Wembley - Traffic Traffic?

2007-09-09T13:52:00.000+03:00

As a result of the traffic gridlock caused by the England-Germany match on 22 August i have been working with Council officers to try and resolve the traffic problems caused by the new Wembley Stadium.

The night of 22 August, experience worse traffic conditions than normal because of the normal commuting, plus the England match with supporters trying to park in nearby stations. This was made even worse by an emergency road closure in Harrow due to a burst water main.

However, as matches and events at the new Wembley have caused traffic problems in Edgware caused by people trying to park in Stanmore and Canons Park, we have been working with Harrow Council to try and resolve the situation.
We are working with Harrow Council and local residents to try and find the optimum parking solutions around their tube stations. While we are also trying to work with Brent Council and Wembley Stadium to encourge their visitors to avoid parking locally which causes gridlock between Edgware and Stanmore.

When will Ken start helping the people of Edgware?

2007-08-20T11:59:00.000+03:00

In February I explained how I had received the support of Barnet Council and Matthew Offord, the Barnet Cabinet Member for Envrionment and Transport to request that Ken Livingstone the Mayor of London and Transport For London consider re-zoning Edgware Station from Zone 5 to Zone 4. By being in Zone 5 commuters to and from Edgware Station are penalised with a higher cost of travel compared to customers using similar stations in the suburbs of Londo, while also receiving a poorer service as trains often don't go to Edgware but instead terminate at Golders Green and Colindale stations.

I therefore recently wrote to Transport for London to see if they had considered my request for an improved service at Edgware Station and for the re-zoning of Edgware to zone 4. If you also want to see improvements to services at Edgware Station you can contact TfL at
ChrisWidgery@tfl.gov.uk
020 7126 4071

I will keep you informed of any responses I get from TfL.

Below is a copy of my correspondence.

---------
Dear Sir/Madam

Last February I received support from Barnet Council to lobby Transport for London to move Edgware Station from Zone 5 to Zone 4. By being in Zone 5 commuters to and from Edgware Station are penalised with a higher cost of travel compared to customers using similar stations in the suburbs of London. At the same time as having to pay more to travel to and from Edgware Station, these same customers also receive a lower quality service. This is because many trains terminate at either Golders Green or Colindale stations and so have to change trains and have their journeys delayed, which is becoming an increasing occurrence.

As I have still not heard whether Transport for London have considered the request from Barnet Council to move Edgware station to zone 4 I hope that you have not forgotten about this request and I look forward to a favourable decision.

Yours Sincerely

Richard Weider
Cllr for Edgware Ward

83 Highview Avenue, Edgware, Middlesex, HA8 9TY Tel - 020 8958 0640

--------------

Dear Councillor Weider

Thank you for your recent enquiry, about whether Edgware Station might be re-zoned for charging purposese, from Zone 5 to Zone 4.

This issue was , as I am sure you are aware, raised with the Mayor by Leo Boland, Barnet's Chief Executive, earlier this year . The Mayor replied on 15th February - a copy of that letter is attached.

As the Mayor explains, we need to bear in mind that if some fares go down, as would be the case if we re-zoned Edgware to Zone 4, other fares must go up to maintain London Underground’s revenue overall. This revenue is essential if we are to continue to invest in the modernisation of the Underground.

As promised in the letter, we have looked at the zoning of Edgware station in comparison to other stations in north London, on the basis of distance from Zone 1. This showed that, overall, the allocation of Edgware within Zone 5 is correct . As a result, the level of fares from that station are not such as to warrant other fares going up to make up the consequential revenue loss were it to be re-zoned. Therefore, we do not intend to re-zone Edgware to Zone 4.

I am sorry this response is not what you were hoping to hear.

Yours sincerely

Chris Widgery

Borough Liaison Manager
ChrisWidgery@tfl.gov.uk
10th Floor, Windsor House
42-50 Victoria Street
London
SW1H 0TL
020 7126 4071

--------------------

Dear Mr Widgery

Thank you for your response to my email. While I can understand TfL's desire to maintain the overall revenue of the underground, what I can deduce from this is that TfL does not care about the concerns about the residents of the outer suburbs of London, as much as it does those residents living in the centre of London.

While you have addressed the issue of why Edgware Station can not be moved to Zone 4, you have not addressed my other concern about trains regularly terminating at Golders Green and Colindale stations. As a result, while commuters travelling to and from Edgware Station have to pay a higher price, these commuters leaving from Edgware Station have fewer trains per hour leaving from Edgware Station than further up the line, despite it being a busy station. While when travelling northbound trains often terminate at Golders Green or Colindale stations, many times unexpectedly, meaning that commuters travelling to Edgware have to wait for another train and than struggle to get on to what is already a crowded train.

I look forward to you letting me know that TfL will be providing a better service of trains to Edgware, if given your argument the price of the journey can not be reduced.

Yours Sincerely

Richard Weider
Cllr for Edgware Ward

83 Highview Avenue, Edgware, Middlesex, HA8 9TY Tel - 020 8958 0640

Science in Barnet

2007-08-08T17:42:00.000+03:00

As I have previously reported over the past year I have chaired a working group examining the quality of science teaching in Barnet schools. Last week I was pleased to present a report to the Education and Children Overview and Scrutiny Committee.

Over recent years there has been lots of controversy that fewer and fewere students are studying science beyond GCSE's as it is seen as too difficult a subject to study at A-Level and university. As a result some university science departments were shutting and there have been worries that we will have a lack of science graduates to work in Britain's scientific industries and to teach science at school.

In Barnet other councillors and I were worried that if the excellent pupils of Barnet were not studying science beyond GCSE, where would the future science graduates come from in this country.

One way in which the Government has tried to reverse this trend is to introduce a new GCSE science curriculum. Therefore, as part of our review into how science is taught in Barnet's schools the committee decided to look at how successful the new curriculum had been.

We carried out a number of interviews with science teachers and pupils across Barnet.
What was heartening to see was that in Barnet the state of science does not seem to be as bad as some news reports have suggested. In a number of schools there is already a high take-up of science courses at A-Level and many schools also offer more vocational science courses. In addition all schools which we went to had a full compliment of science teachers who had science degrees.

We also found that exam results were also high and so the subjects may not be as hard as the perception that may exist.

In producing our report we found that schools in Barnet were happy with how Barnet Local Authority had helped them in preparing for the new GCSE science curriculum.

An interesting area of our findings were that pupils and teachers found the new GCSE curriculum more interesting than the previous traditional curriculum. This was one of the aims of the new curriculum to open pupil's up to the real world nature of science, by showing how science affects our diets, our climate, nuclear power and many other interesting areas.

However, we found that this change in style compromised the success which our more able pupils can achieve. We found that the more able students were not being challenged by the new curriculum and so may struggle to have a strong understanding of scientific theories if they are to carry on to study science at A-Levels and university. We therefore called on the local authority to offer support to science teachers to provide a challenging curriculum for all pupils particularly for the more able pupils. We also called on the Cabinet Member of Children's Services to write to the Secretary of State for Schools to advise that in Barnet we feel the GCSE science curriculum need to provide a more challenging option for the more able pupils.

In working on this report I found it very interesting looking at how science is taught in our schools and the hard work that the local authority employees and teachers put into helping our pupils to achieve to their potential.

It was also important to note know that it is important to make subjects enjoyable to encourage students to work in school but at the same time, theories and issues must be taught properly so that they also get a full understanding of the subject.

The full report can be found at:
http://committeepapers.barnet.gov.uk/democracy/reports/reportdetail.asp?ReportID=5814

Good News for Edgware Library

2007-07-22T00:57:00.000+03:00

At last years local elections my colleagues Cllr Hart, Cllr Scannell and I as councillors in Edgware pledged to campaign to improve Edgware Library. I am pleased to say that our hard work has paid off.
John Marshall the Cabinet Member for Libraries this week announced a new Leading Libraries policy, to go to Cabinet for agreement this week. The policy follows the similar successful Premier Parks policy recently introduced by Matthew Offord Cabinet Member for the Environment.
Edgware Library has been chosen has one of six leading libraries in Barnet. Over the next six months Edgware library will be enhanced to provide wi-fi provision, and self-service machines amongst other benefits including better information about council services and more disabled access. As a result the library will be more modern and brought into the 21st century by being equipped.

Helping to Free the 3 Israeli Hostages

2007-07-17T12:51:00.000+03:00

Last night with about 2000 other people, many of whom were from Edgware and Barnet, I attended a rally outside the Syrian embassy calling for three Israeli soldiers to be released from being held hostage.

These three soldiers are:
Gilad Shalit who is being held in the Palestinian Territories
Ehud Goldwasser and Eldad Regev who are being held hostage after being captured from sovereign Israeli territory by Hizbollah

These 3 soldiers were all captured a year ago, which was one of the causes of the Israeli war with Hizbollah. However, one year on despite the UN Resolution which ended the war calling for these soldiers to be released we are still waiting for their return.

However, let us hope that just a few weeks after we heard the good news that the BBC reporter Alan Johnson had been released from also being held hostage in the Gaza strip, these 3 soldiers and all other hostages around the world can also be released.

One thing really struck me though when I was at the rally last night with 2000 other people and also about the rally's to free Alan Johnson. Why are people that attend these rally's able to protest peacefully. However, when ever we see protests by Moslem organisations, usually against our and other democratic governments, we see the people attending calling for people to be killed and flags being burnt. Therefore, while these more aggressive and violent protests may gain more media attention in the short term, it shows that they find it harder to justify their argument peacefully, and so I am sure in the long term it means they wont be able to win the argument.