Greta Thunberg and Gary Lineker sign letter defending Southbank Centre chair
Greta Thunberg, Tracey Emin and Gary Lineker are among those to sign an open letter in support of Southbank Centre chair Misan Harriman, after what they call a “dishonest smear campaign” by media outlets who accused him of promoting Golders Green attack “conspiracies” and comparing Reform voters to Nazis.Harriman, who has been chair of the Southbank Centre’s board of governors since 2021, was accused by the Telegraph of sharing a social media post that contained a “conspiracy” about the Golders Green attack because it questioned the amount of coverage given to the Muslim victim, Ishmail Hussein.Critics of Harriman said the repost risked minimising the antisemitic nature of the attack.David Taylor, the Labour MP for Hemel Hempstead, said: “These posts are not only incredibly inappropriate for the chair of a charity board, but for anyone in the public eye.”The Telegraph then ran a story with the headline “Southbank Centre chief ‘compares Reform victory to Holocaust’” after the activist quoted Susan Sontag in a video giving his thoughts after Reform’s historic local election results.
He said: “She said when thinking about the Holocaust, 10% of people in any population are cruel no matter what, and 10% is merciful no matter what and the other – this is important – the other remaining 80% could be moved in either direction.“It’s such a profound way to look at us.In the context of yesterday’s election result it is something which I think is really topical.”Karen Pollock, the chief executive of Holocaust Educational Trust, also criticised Harriman, asking: “How on earth could yesterday’s election results ever be comparable to the Holocaust?”Robert Jenrick, the Reform MP, said the post was “disgusting” and called for him to be removed from his position at the Southbank Centre.He wrote: “This crass moron should be nowhere near a taxpayer-funded organisation.
”Amid widespread coverage of Harriman’s comments, the letter reflects concern that public figures are being silenced for speaking out at a moment of heightened tension over antisemitism.But critics argue that Harriman’s role leading a major publicly funded institution makes the scrutiny not only legitimate but necessary.“The purpose of the smear campaign, which we repeat is entirely without foundation in fact, is to traduce and marginalise Misan,” reads the letter.“And it is intended to send a message to others that if they speak out, they will be subject to harassment and threats.More than 245 people signed the letter, including Riz Ahmed and David Oyelowo, which said that “trying to silence responsible critics of Israel by smearing them as antisemitic does not protect Britain’s Jewish community”.
Several Jewish cultural figures, including Pulitzer prize-winning Sontag biographer Benjamin Moser, actor Morgan Spector and the photographer Jillian Edelstein, signed the letter.Harriman told the Guardian: “We have reached the point where truth itself is being crushed by the very institutions that are supposed to uphold it.I will never whisper about the oppressed.I stand with truth, I stand by my right to use my voice to help others.”The letter comes after 53,000 people backed a campaign to lobby the press regulator Ipso about the coverage, which is more than double the number of people who complained about Jeremy Clarkson’s 2022 column where he said he wanted the Duchess of Sussex “paraded naked through the streets of every town in Britain”.
Harriman has built a large online following after emerging as a photographer during the Black Lives Matter protests and is the subject of a forthcoming documentary about his work made by Bafta-winning director Andy Mundy-Castle.He was chosen by the Duke and Duchess of Sussex to shoot their portrait, while Harriman has worked with children who have fled Gaza, giving them equipment to shoot their own images.He is also an ambassador for Save the Children.A spokesperson from the Southbank Centre said the institution was an “inclusive and welcoming place for everyone including our artists, audience and all colleagues.“The Southbank Centre condemns all forms of antisemitism, hatred and discrimination.
All Southbank Centre board members, including the chair, have the right to exercise their freedom of expression within the law.The personal views of individual members of our board do not represent the views of the Southbank Centre and in no way affect our programming nor the welcome that we extend to all.”
How new owner became all powerful in ‘high stakes’ attempt to revive former WH Smith chain
Shoppers at WH Smith were once accustomed to being offered cheap chocolate stacked high at the counter while buying their morning newspaper. Now, the chain’s former high street stores have themselves become the subject of a cut-price deal – as the low-profile investment group that snapped them up appears set to pay less than half of the original cash price.The paperclips to books chain had notched up 233 years on the British high street when it was bought by Modella Capital last summer.In less than a year, the future looks very different for the chain, which was hastily rebranded to TG Jones. First established in Little Grosvenor Street in London by Henry Walton Smith and his wife, Anna, WH Smith grew rapidly in the 19th century, building a newspaper distribution business as the railway network expanded
JP Morgan could scrap £3bn London HQ if Starmer is replaced by PM ‘hostile to banks’
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Investor jitters over Starmer uncertainty drive UK borrowing costs to 28-year high
Long-term UK borrowing costs soared to the highest level in almost three decades on Tuesday as fears about a change of Labour leadership triggered investor jitters and warnings of further bond market turmoil.With investors worried about potential changes to Labour’s tax and spending plans, the yield – in effect the interest rate – on 30-year government bonds, or gilts, hit a high on Tuesday of 5.81%, a rise of 14 basis points and the highest since 1998.Neil Wilson, an investor strategist at Saxo Markets, said: “We could see a blowout in longer-dated gilts if this turns into a dogfight – political, fiscal and inflationary risks will rise. Markets tend to dislike a lack of certainty over who runs a government; the fiscal position is already fragile and likely to become worse should a left-leaning ticket prioritise spending, and that makes inflation stickier
GameStop hits the limits of credibility with $55.5bn eBay bid | Nils Pratley
“Neither credible nor attractive.” No, not a line from a junior minister’s resignation letter on Tuesday. It was eBay’s succinct appraisal of the bizarre $55.5bn (£41bn) takeover offer from video games retailer GameStop, an affair that offers light distraction from the sight of UK 10-year gilt yields at 5%-plus.To recap: GameStop is the “meme stock” company that became famous a few years ago when amateur traders on a Reddit forum piled in furiously in an attempt to burn the short-sellers who were betting on the struggling retailer’s demise
UK long-term borrowing costs dip from 28-year high after Starmer allies back PM – as it happened
After a rocky session, UK government bond prices were significantly lower as trading drew to an end in London.That shows that the day of political drama, as Keir Starmer fought off efforts to make him step down, have pushed up UK borrowing costs as the markets anticipated the possibility of a more left-wing successor.The UK 10-year bond yield, which hit its highest since 2008 this morning at 5.13%, has eased back to 5.1%, up from 5% yesterday (that’s a rise of 10 basis points)
US inflation jumped to 3.8% in April as war with Iran continues to drive up prices
US inflation jumped to 3.8% in April as the war in the Middle East continued to drive energy prices and everyday costs for Americans.Prices rose 3.8% over the last year, according to the data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the highest jump since 2023.This is the second official measure of the consumer price index, which measures the price of a basket of goods and services, since the start of the war with Iran
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Streeting to meet Starmer on Wednesday as the prime minister defies calls to step down – as it happened