Kneecap Glastonbury Festival slot slammed by Keir Starmer as 'not appropriate'
The UK PM blasted Kneecap's upcoming Glastonbury performance, after the Irish rappers were axed from Glasgow's TRNSMT festival last month
Kneecap's upcoming Glastonbury Festival performance is not "appropriate" according to Sir Keir Starmer. The Prime Minister made the comments following rapper Liam Og O hAnnaidh's appearance in court on Wednesday on a terrorism charge after allegedly displaying a flag in support of Hezbollah while saying 'up Hamas, up Hezbollah' at a gig in November.
In an interview with The Sun, Sir Keir was asked if he thought the trio should perform at Glastonbury, to which he replied: 'No, I don't, and I think we need to come down really clearly on this.
'This is about the threats that shouldn't be made, I won't say too much because there's a court case on, but I don't think that's appropriate.'
It comes after Conservative Party leader Kemi Badenoch said she thought the BBC 'should not be showing' Kneecap's performance at the festival next week.
Mrs Badenoch said in an X post, which was accompanied by an article from The Times that claimed the BBC had not banned the group: 'The BBC should not be showing Kneecap propaganda.
'One Kneecap band member is currently on bail, charged under the Terrorism Act.
'As a publicly funded platform, the BBC should not be rewarding extremism.'
Last month, the Irish rap group was axed from the line up of Glasgow music festival TRNSMT amid safety fears.
The trio - made up of O Hannaigh, known as Mo Chara, JJ Ó Dochartaigh, known as aDJ Provai, and Naoise O Caireallain, known as Moglai Bap - are no longer set to play Glasgow Green on Friday, July 11 due to concerns over the safety of the event.
Police Scotland had previously said the performance at Glasgow Green in July would require "a significant policing operation".
Kneecap were also criticised over 2023 gig footage that appeared to show a band member saying: "The only good Tory is a dead Tory. Kill your local MP."
The band posted a statement on X on May 28 which read: "Due to concerns expressed by the Police about safety at the event, Kneecap can no longer perform at TRNSMT.
"To the thousands of people who bought tickets, flights and hotels to see us play, we are sorry...it is out of our hands. Glasgow has always been a huge city for us.
"We've played there many many times, with no issues - ever. Make of that what you will."
The Tory Leader of the Opposition has previously called for the group to be banned from Glastonbury, and last year Kneecap won a discrimination case against the UK Government in Belfast High Court after she tried to refuse them a £14,250 funding award when she was a minister.
Kneecap took aim at Mrs Badenoch in their latest single, The Recap, released just before their headline set at London's Wide Awake festival in May, with the song mocking the politician's attempts to block their arts funding and the Conservative Party's election loss.
On Wednesday, O hAnnaidh was cheered by hundreds of supporters as he arrived with his bandmates at Westminster Magistrates' Court in 'Free Mo Chara' T-shirts.
During the proceedings, a prosecutor told the court the 27-year-old is 'well within his rights' to voice his opinions on Israel and Palestine, but the alleged incident at the O2 Forum in Kentish Town, north London, is a 'wholly different thing'.
O hAnnaidh was released on unconditional bail until his next hearing at the same court on August 20.
Following the hearing, the rapper said: 'For anybody going to Glastonbury, you can see us there at 4pm on the Saturday.
'If you can't be there we'll be on the BBC, if anybody watches the BBC. We'll be at Wembley in September.
'But most importantly: free, free Palestine.'
The charge came following a counter-terrorism police investigation after the historical gig footage came to light, which also allegedly shows the group calling for the deaths of MPs.
In April, Kneecap apologised to the families of murdered MPs but said footage of the incident had been 'exploited and weaponised'.
In an initial post in response to the charge, Kneecap said: '14,000 babies are about to die of starvation in Gaza, with food sent by the world sitting on the other side of a wall, and once again the British establishment is focused on us.
'We deny this 'offence' and will vehemently defend ourselves, this is political policing, this is a carnival of distraction.
'We are not the story, genocide is, as they profit from genocide, they use an 'anti-terror law' against us for displaying a flag thrown on stage. A charge not serious enough to even warrant their crown court, instead a court that doesn't have a jury. What's the objective?
'To restrict our ability to travel. To prevent us speaking to young people across the world. To silence voices of compassion. To prosecute artists who dare speak out.
'Instead of defending innocent people, or the principles of international law they claim to uphold, the powerful in Britain have abetted slaughter and famine in Gaza, just as they did in Ireland for centuries. Then, like now, they claim justification.
'The IDF units they arm and fly spy plane missions for are the real terrorists, the whole world can see it.'
Formed in 2017, the group are known for their provocative lyrics in both Irish and English and their merchandise.
Their best-known tracks include Get Your Brits Out, Better Way To Live, featuring Grian Chatten from Fontaines DC, and 3Cag.
A BBC spokesperson said: 'As the broadcast partner, the BBC will be bringing audiences extensive music coverage from Glastonbury, with artists booked by the festival organisers.
'Whilst the BBC doesn't ban artists, our plans will ensure that our programming will meet our editorial guidelines. Decisions about our output will be made in the lead-up to the festival.'
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