Proposed U.K. Communal Merger Raises More Questions than Answers

from The Times of Israel:

Will merger unite UK Jewry or divide it further?

American Jews, who are far less centralized, might find it strange for any single group to officially represent the community. In Britain, it is tradition. But can a grassroots group properly do the job when the media and political worlds are so cutthroat? In the modern era, when it isn’t clear who belongs to the Jewish “community” – or even who is a Jew – can Britain’s Jewish democracy still have any meaning or relevance?

These questions came to a head recently when the Board [of Deputies] proposed merging with another group that speaks for British Jews, but which is self-appointed.