Stuart Polak, Baron Polak

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Stuart Polak, Baron Polak

Stuart Polak, born on 28 March 1961, is a British Conservative politician and a life peer in the House of Lords. He is the honorary president of Conservative Friends of Israel.

Early life
Polak was born in Liverpool, England. He grew up in the Jewish community and was a cantor (chazan) at the Childwall Hebrew Congregation during the High Holidays. He started educational trips to Israel from the age of fifteen.

Career
Polak worked as a youth officer at the Edgware United Synagogue in northwest London and later served as an officer of the Board of Deputies of British Jews in the 1980s. He joined Conservative Friends of Israel (CFI) in 1989 and led the organization as Director for 26 years, until August 2015; he is now its honorary president. He is also chairman of TWC Associates and a senior consultant to Jardine Lloyd Thompson.

Honours and peerage
Polak was appointed Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) in 2015 for political service. He was made a life peer as Baron Polak, of Hertsmere in the County of Hertfordshire, on 2 October 2015.

Notable events
In November 2017, it was reported that Polak had accompanied Priti Patel on meetings in Israel in August 2017, which contributed to her resignation from the Cabinet.

Criticism
In 2021, former Foreign Minister Alan Duncan published diaries accusing Polak of opposing Duncan to limit his government positions. In 2024, Duncan said Polak was pursuing Israeli interests, not those of the UK. The Conservative Party investigated this claim but cleared Duncan in July 2024.