Brown takes on JNF role
27/07/2007
by Daniella Peled
http://www.thejc.com/home.aspx?ParentId=m11&SecId=11&AId=54262&ATypeId=1
JNF UK, one of Anglo-Jewry’s leading charities, has secured Gordon Brown as
its latest patron, the JC can reveal.
The Prime Minister accepted the role following an invitation from JNF UK
president Gail Seal, who wrote conveying her good wishes the day after he took
office.
In a letter to Mrs Seal, the PM responded that “your congratulations and good
wishes are very much appreciated” and that he was “delighted to accept your
offer to become a patron of JNF UK”.
A spokesman for Mr Brown told the JC: “The Prime Minister supports a number of
charities and has agreed to become a patron of the Jewish National Fund UK in
order to encourage their work to promote charitable projects for everyone who
lives in Israel.”
Mrs Seal said she was “very proud that Gordon Brown has agreed to become patron
of JNF UK. This will enhance what is already a close relationship with the UK
Jewish community, and help us progress in our tremendously successful campaign
to bring new communities to the Negev.”
The PM joins other JNF UK patrons including Tony Blair, the Conservative leader,
David Cameron, as well as Chief Rabbi Sir Jonathan Sacks, who is said to be a
close friend of Mr Brown.
JNF UK raises £15 million a year, intended to promote “exclusively charitable
projects in Israel”. Its fundraising events range from London-Israel plane
rallies to the Green Sunday “telethon”.
The charity has faced its share of controversy. Currently, it risks being
dragged into a storm surrounding a proposed Israeli law which would restrict the
sale of JNF-owned land to non-Jews. The bill passed its preliminary reading in
the Knesset last week.
In October 2005, Keren Kayemeth L’Yisrael-JNF parted ways from JNF UK in an
acrimonious split which led to a High Court battle. The two sides have since
been conducting a process of mediation to prevent a return to court.
In March, the Charity Commission dismissed allegations of irregularities at JNF
UK’s head office after a former patron, David Lewis, pressed it to investigate a
100-page dossier of concerns.
Founded in 1901, the JNF (known as KKL in Israel) was the tool for buying up
land in pre-state Israel. Current projects focus on developing the Galil and
Negev regions.
Mr Brown has long been known for his support of Israel.
In a speech to Labour Friends of Israel in April, he recounted how his late
father, a Church of Scotland minister, had taught him about “the trials and
tribulations of the Jewish people, about the enormous suffering and loss during
the Holocaust, as well as the extraordinary struggle he described to me of
people to create this magnificent homeland”.