Rabbi Ephraim Mirvis, Britain’s chief rabbi, arrives to attend the National Service of Remembrance, on Remembrance Sunday, at The Cenotaph in Westminster, London, Nov. 10, 2019. Photo: Reuters / Simon Dawson.

JNS.org – A new academic center to study antisemitism that was unveiled in London on Sunday has received praise from Labour Party leader Keir Starmer and the United Kingdom’s Chief Rabbi Ephraim Mirvis, wrote The Jewish Chronicle.

Starmer said the new London Centre for the Study of Contemporary Antisemitism (LCSCA) had his “full backing” in its “important work” of combating the rise in antisemitism.

He added that “it’s vital that as a society we continue to challenge antisemitism in all its forms and provide the education needed to prevent it. I look forward to seeing the impact of their work.”

LCSCA’s mission statement on its website says that it aims “to challenge the intellectual underpinnings of antisemitism in public life and to confront the hostile environment for Jews in universities.” The institution, which has a network of donors supporting it, opened with a three-day conference and a launch event at the Bloomsbury Theatre in London.

In a video message reportedly played at the conference, Mirvis intends to discuss the “significant threat” of racism targeting the Jewish community in the United Kingdom.