Hundreds of Jews were offered the chance to escape Nazi Austria. Civil servants in the UK turned them away

Alfred Neumann, back right, with six Jewish workers from Vienna with whom he opened a factory in Newtownards, County Down in August 1938. Photograph: The Northern Whig

On 26 August 1938, Zionistische Rundschau, a Jewish newspaper in Vienna, ran a two-paragraph article under a tantalising headline: “Jewish artisans for Northern Ireland”.

The authorities in Belfast were seeking immigrants from central Europe with skills to train local people and set up enterprises, said the article. “Applications for the registration of startups should be sent to the Northern Ireland Ministry of Commerce, which will examine them in a careful but supportive manner.”