Starmer rejects calls for Palestinian statehood as Trump flies to the UK
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The National
23 minutes ago
- The National
Leading academics call on Labour to overturn Palestine Action ban
The letter, signed by figures including Angela Davis and Naomi Klein, hailed the 'growing campaign of collective defiance' against the group's proscription under terror laws and commended the hundreds of people who plan to risk arrest on Saturday at a protest in support of the organisation. Expressing support for the group, banned in an unprecedented move by the Home Secretary earlier this year, can result in a prison sentence of up to 14 years. Signatories to the letter, published in The Guardian, include Ilan Pappe, Judith Butler, the writer Tariq Ali, novelist China Mieville. Two representatives of Scottish universities are also included: Rahul Rao, of St Andrews and Emilios Christodoulidis of Glasgow. READ MORE: John Swinney to consider imposing state boycott on Israel The letter said: 'As scholars dedicated to questions of justice and ethics we believe that Yvette Cooper's recent proscription of Palestine Action represents an attack both on the entire pro-Palestine movement and on fundamental freedoms of expression, association, assembly and protest.' It added: 'As hundreds of people again risk arrest by joining street protests on August 9 and as students and teachers prepare for the start of another turbulent academic year, we express our full solidarity with those mobilising on their campuses or in their workplaces and communities to put an immediate stop to the escalating genocide and to end all UK complicity with Israel's crimes.' More than 500 people have pledged to protest in support of Palestine Action outside the Houses of Parliament in Westminster this weekend. The Metropolitan Police said it was prepared to make mass arrests. Palestine Action was banned after activists caused an estimated £7 million worth of damage to planes at the RAF Brize Norton military base. READ MORE: Yvette Cooper under pressure to grant UK visas for 80 Palestinian students Co-founder Huda Ammori is attempting to overturn the ban through the courts and this week accused Home Secretary Yvette Cooper of making 'false allegations' against the group. It comes after 300 Jewish public figures, including director Mike Leigh and author Michael Rosen, wrote to the Prime Minister protesting the ban. The letter, by the human rights lawyer Geoffrey Bindman KC and the playwright Gillian Slovo, accused the Government of 'hand-wringing over the level of slaughter and suffering in Gaza and the West Bank' and of offering 'tacit support' for Israel's actions.
The National
an hour ago
- The National
3 charged with showing support for Palestine Action
Two women and a man were arrested in Westminster following a protest in central London on July 5. Jeremy Shippam, 71, of West Sussex, Judith Murray, also 71, of Surrey, and Fiona Maclean, 53, of Hackney, north-east London, were all charged with showing support for a proscribed organisation under section 13 of the Terrorism Act 2000. READ MORE: Yvette Cooper under pressure to grant UK visas for 80 Palestinian students They are due to appear at Westminster Magistrates' Court on September 16. The charges come ahead of a planned protest in support of the group on Saturday afternoon in London's Parliament Square, with organisers expecting more than 500 people to attend. Commander Dominic Murphy, head of the Met's Counter Terrorism Command, said: 'Anyone who displays public support for Palestine Action, a proscribed organisation... 'Is committing an offence under the Terrorism Act and can expect to be arrested and, as these charges show, will be investigated to the full extent of the law. 'These charges relate to three people arrested in central London on 5 July. We are also planning to send case files to the Crown Prosecution Service for the other 26 people arrested on the same day. 'I would strongly advise anyone planning to come to London this weekend to show support for Palestine Action to think about the potential criminal consequences of their actions.' More to follow ...
The National
2 hours ago
- The National
UK homelessness minister 'evicted tenants and increased rent by £700'
Homelessness minister Rushanara Ali has been found to have kicked out four tenants from her Olympic Park townhouse before re-advertising the same four-bedroom property at an increased price, in an investigation by the i newspaper. The MP for Bethnal Green and Stepney has previously been vocal on rights that renters should have and has stated that 'private renters being exploited". READ MORE: As Ian Blackford considers a return, it's time to look at political comebacks She publicly backs Labour's Renters' Rights Bill. Under the legislation, the Government plans to bring the private rented sector within the minimum standard set for social housing, and would ban landlords who end a tenancy to sell a property from re-listing it for six months. According to the i, a source close to Ali said the tenants had been informed their tenancy would not be renewed by email and were instead offered a rolling contract. They were reportedly told the rolling contract was necessary as the property was put up for sale. Tenant Laura Jackson, a self-employed restaurant owner and one of four people who rented the property, told the paper: 'It's an absolute joke. Trying to get that much money from renters is extortion'. At the time of ending the tenants' contract, the firms which managed the property also attempted to charge Ali's tenants nearly £2000 for the house to be repainted and £395 for professional cleaning. Under the Tenant Fees Act 2019, landlords are prohibited from charging their tenants for professional cleaning, and are prohibited from charging tenants to repaint a home unless serious damage has occurred. Jackson said: 'It was really stressful. It was so much money – nearly £500 each! The property was not clean when we moved in; it was ridiculous and unfair.' The fees were dropped once Jackson told the agencies they knew their landlord was a Labour MP, she said. 'If we hadn't known the charges were unlawful, we would have had to pay them. It's exploitative.' Jackson added: 'I just think it's morally wrong that MPs can be landlords, especially in their own area. It's a conflict of interest.' READ MORE: Yvette Cooper under pressure to grant UK visas for 80 Palestinian students After failing to find a buyer, the house was re-listed for rent at £700 a month more, the paper reports. A spokesperson said: 'Rushanara takes her responsibilities seriously and complied with all relevant legal requirements.' Momentum, the network of activists that grew out of Jeremy Corbyn's first Labour leadership election campaign, reacted to the news: "This Government has got its priorities wrong. "It was quick to suspend four MPs for standing up for disabled people. But when the Cabinet minister for homelessness evicted her tenants to increase rents, it stays silent." Conservative MP Ben Obese-Jecty said: "Rushanara Ali's position surely cannot be tenable. She must resign."
