I want to tell you a story; a joke really. A joke that has turned sour in our collective mouths. You see I’m from Austria. My grandfather told me this joke when I was younger and it stuck with me. It’s a joke that is quite dated as it stems from my grandfather’s youth in the 1920s and 1930s.

Teacher: Class, can you name three of the most important scientists and cultural luminaries of Austria?
Student: Does it have to be a goy?

What does this joke from before WWII tell me who was born in the last quarter of the 20th century?

It tells me that Austria used to be rich! Rich in culture, rich in science, rich in philosophy! Rich because the Jews of Austria brought to it their own cultural heritage and influences to make for a unique and exciting collage that made Austria better.

And then a spiteful xenophobe from Austria went to Germany to bring his brand of hatred to the fore. He came back to Austria in 1938 and was welcomed as its saviour. He was still welcomed when he began to systematically slaughter more than 6 million Jews and anyone else that did not fit his ideal. Many joined him in his savagery.

In the end he was defeated, but his insanity, shared by many, left a scar on Europe that is still visible, that still hurts, today. It left Austria poorer. Poorer not of finances as that was quickly overcome, but poorer of culture, of science, of philosophy.

Today there are very few Jews left in Austria. And the few that remain still attempt to remain inconspicuous lest some old time hate mongers or their mental descendants attack them again. They know there would be little help or protection were that to occur.

Britain is nowhere near as hateful as Austria in the 30s and 40s, but even though there is a pervasive air of anti-semitism that is beginning to trigger Jewish flight instincts. No one expects another holocaust or pogroms - least of all in Britain, but the basic ingredient of hatred is there.

Britain has an exciting and colourful culture influenced by the many people that flocked to it from all corners of the empire. Imagine a London where you could not get a decent curry, because there are no Indians because they fled. That is what Austria feels like today and it is what Britain will feel like if it does not protect its minorities and sheds its anti-semitism and xenophobia. That is what Britain will feel like if it concedes ground to sentiments like “Britain for the British”.

Britain has a long history of absorbing new influences and taking the best out of them to make it its own. Keep that tradition and live by it; don’t let haters of any stripe control Britains destiny.