Our schools need proper funding. Not political games on Israel’s behalf.

Education’s in the news! But that’s not because proper funding is coming. It’s because our political elites want to make sure that the Israel lobby can enter our schools without the opposition of those pesky parents and teachers.

Fortunately, Jewish critics of Israel’s crimes — from Zack Polanski to Michael Rosen — are calling out the bullshit.

The school, the pro-Israel lobbyist, and the media frenzy

A multi-academy trust thought it was a good idea to invite Labour Friends of Israel vice-chair, MP Damien Egan, to a Bristol school.

Parents, staff, and the local community did not. They weren’t happy about a high-profile member of the “opaquely funded” lobby group coming, particularly during Israel’s ongoing genocide in Gaza. So they planned a protest. And the trust responded by postponing Egan’s visit to avoid disruption, before later rescheduling it.

Many months later, highly misleading mainstream media coverage arose, alongside intense political pressure from pro-Israel lobbyists (Jewish and non-Jewish). They incorrectly suggested Egan’s conversion to Judaism had something to do with the decision.

School inspector Ofsted has since got involved, as has education secretary (and non-Jewish ‘Friend of Israel‘) Bridget Phillipson. National Education Union general secretary Daniel Kebede has responded by insisting Ofsted is “acting politically” and “well beyond its remit”.

This comes amid the current Labour government’s million-pound outsourcing of ‘antisemitism education’ to pro-Israel lobbyist (and former Labour Friend of Israel) Natascha Engel.

This is about a genocidal apartheid state, not a religion

Jewish leader of the Green Party Zack Polanski, along with numerous other Jewish critics of Israel’s crimes, have made it clear that the Egan story is about Israel, not Judaism.

Polanski has slammed non-Jewish agitators in particular for going:

out to bat against Jewish people in defence of an Israeli Government committing genocide.

More awkwardness for the Lib Dems as they go out to bat against Jewish people in defence of an Israeli Government committing genocide.

Should we start with the fact that literally no one has been banned from a school? https://t.co/JifIECEegm

— Zack Polanski (@ZackPolanski) January 17, 2026

Non-Jewish ‘antisemitism tsar‘ John Mann, for example, has been going after Polanski rather than actually focusing on tackling antisemitism. That’s unsurprising when you consider that Mann has a strong connection with Israel lobbyists (including his wife Jo White, who’s a non-Jewish vice-chair of Labour Friends of Israel).

Jewish author and national treasure Michael Rosen, meanwhile, has also spoken out about this issue. He has himself faced cancellation efforts. And even his own university overlooks his contributions:

I'm very glad to see that @GoldsmithsUoL is marking Holocaust Memorial Day and providing a booklist. Interesting that one of their staff has written 4 books about Holocaust experiences and events. (Me). None of my books on the recommended list nor my video. Good old Goldsmiths.

— Michael Rosen 💙💙🎓🎓 NICE 爷爷 (@MichaelRosenYes) January 18, 2026

So as longstanding Israel defender David Hirsh chipped in on Mann’s spat with Polanski, Rosen did too.

Hirsh had said:

Polanski [is] pretending Israel is committing genocide

Countless genocide scholars, legal experts, and human rights groups call Israel’s actions genocide. Among the 70,373 people it has murdered since 2023, over 20,000 are children. (For the record, Hirsh once called Zimbabwe’s Zanu-PF “genocidal” for killing around 20,000 people from 1983 to 1987.)

Hirsh believed that, because Polanski was calling out the misinformation about Egan, he was:

mobilizing his Jewish identity

Rosen suspected Hirsh might not talk about himself or other pro-Israel figures as ‘mobilising their identity’ when they attack critics of the apartheid state:

Re 'mobilising': how do you distinguish between a) a person saying that they are Jewish and saying something you don't like , and b) another person saying that they are Jewish and saying something you do like? Are they both 'moblising their Jewish identity' or only one of them?

— Michael Rosen 💙💙🎓🎓 NICE 爷爷 (@MichaelRosenYes) January 19, 2026

Our kids’ education isn’t a political football!

The UK government has received significant support from the Israel lobby. So unsurprisingly, it has participated in Israel’s genocide in Gaza and even denied its existence. It has also been doing its best recently to allow genocidal Israeli thugs onto our streets.

At the same time, it has been arresting both Jewish and non-Jewish people for opposing genocide. Egan and other Friends of Israel have been egging these efforts on. And they seem to care little about the opponents of genocide who have faced numerous attacks.

What we are seeing is a continuation of a highly dangerous and antisemitic attempt by political elites to conflate the state of Israel and its crimes with the religion of Judaism. This toxic conflation is useful, because it enables the political silencing of people who want peace and justice.

As leading genocide scholar Martin Shaw insists:

The suppression of freedom of expression in the name of genocide denial has been a key mechanism in this wider shift away from democracy, towards authoritarianism…. Joe Biden, Kamala Harris, Olaf Scholz and Keir Starmer, have been agents of repression, preparing the way for openly dictatorial leaders like Trump.

The global far right, of which Israel is clearly a part, has been:

waiting to pounce on any move that they can represent as anti-free speech, to justify their own repressive approach.

And the Bristol school’s rescheduling of Egan’s visit was one such opportunity.

There have been many cases of schools deciding which public figures to host or not host, of course. And it’s an issue we absolutely should discuss. Should anyone be able to visit our schools? Should we ban all lobbyists and politicians? Or should we encourage vibrant debate and free speech?

However, after years of underfunding and backdoor privatisation, the UK’s education system already has enough problems. The government stepping in on behalf of lobbyists for a genocidal foreign power is an extra problem our schools absolutely don’t need right now. And we’re glad there are people like Polanski and Rosen to call that out.

Featured image via the Canary