A journalist who has campaigned for 22 years for the Jewish community and has interviewed honours recipients and leaders has himself been made an MBE.

Justin Cohen, who co-publishes the Jewish News weekly community newspaper in north London, is recognised for a quarter-of-a-century of dedication to Britain’s Jewish community and leaving “an indelible mark on the field of community journalism”.

The 43-year-old from Borehamwood has conducted interviews with five prime ministers, six leaders of the Opposition, three Archbishops of Canterbury, two Chief Rabbis and notable figures in Jewish history including Elie Wiesel, Shimon Peres and Sir Ben Helfgott.

“I’ve asked people for quotes about their Honours List awards for many years now,” Justin said. “But I never expected to be writing one of my own.”

His award also recognises his “outstanding contributions to Holocaust remembrance and the Jewish community”.

Justin’s achievements include the Generations project in 2020, photographing some of the last Holocaust survivors in Britain to commemorate the 75th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz, which also featured the King when he was Prince of Wales.

He led a campaign to honour Sir Nicholas Winton, who organised the 1938 Kindertransport, rescuing Jewish children from Nazi Germany before the Holocaust. It led to the Royal Mail issuing a stamp to honour Sir Nicholas.

Justin is also keen to highlight the mission of his newspaper, which is based in Golders Green.

“Journalists don’t tend to be recognised in this way,” he explained. “So this award is testament to our determination to be more than just a newspaper, to make a difference beyond our own community and to the potential for a small media outlet to ‘think big’ while remaining proud of its roots.”

Justin is the son of former Mayor of Barnet Melvin Cohen who died this time two years ago, the longest-serving councillor on the local authority.

“I know that he would have revelled in this investiture as a lover of all things royal and quintessentially British,” Justin added. “I recall my father joking that being a freeman of the City of London enabled him to drive sheep across London Bridge.”

Justin Cohen’s MBE is seen as testament to his dedicated journalism and community engagement on a global scale.