11 hours ago
Palestine Action activist to give Glastonbury talk
A Palestine Action activist is set to appear as a speaker at Glastonbury Festival.
Francesca Nadin, who described herself as a former 'political prisoner' and contributes to the Revolutionary Communist Party website, is listed as a speaker at the festival.
Nadin said she was arrested for 'conspiracy to commit criminal damage' against two Leeds banks, Barclays and JP Morgan, that activists claim have financial ties to Israel.
Details of her presence at the festival emerged on the day that Yvette Cooper, the Home Secretary, confirmed that the group will be banned as a terror group following a break in at the RAF base at Brize Norton.
A video shared by the group showed an individual on an electric shooter spray red paint into the engines of Airbus Voyager aircraft, which they claimed would be used to support British military operations in Cyprus and the Middle East.
As of Monday, official listings for Glastonbury Speakers Forum events state that Palestine Action's Nadin is set to appear. The same event listing states that other speakers will include Baroness Jones, a Green Party peer.
Also listed is Sam Holland, the leader of Youth Demand, the activist group that claimed credit for vandalising Vincent Van Gogh's Sunflowers in the National Gallery.
Lady Jones told the Telegraph that she was only aware that she would be joined by Youth Demand, and not Palestine Action.
'Shocking overreaction'
She said: 'Yes, I'll debate with them. I do know that belonging to or expressing support for a proscribed organisation is a criminal offence carrying a maximum sentence of 14 years in prison.
'This is a shocking overreaction by the Government to a couple of protesters using paint.
'Such a move would be completely non-proportional and a hugely worrying restriction on the right to peaceful protest which is a cornerstone of democracy.
'But PA isn't proscribed yet. Plus 239,900 people follow it. Perhaps you can ask Mark Rowley and Yvette Cooper if there is a plan to arrest them all?'
Glastonbury has been approached for comment on the event, and whether it will go ahead.
Both MPs and peers will need to vote for the intended ban if it is to come into force.
If proscribed, the group's assets and money could be seized, and support for the group could become an offence.
Islamist group Hizb ut-Tahrir was the last organisation to be proscribed, in 2024, after its members were accused of praising and celebrating Hamas's terrorist attack on Israel on Oct 7 2023.
Proscription will make it illegal to be a member of Palestine Action, to invite support for it or to wear clothing or carry flags and placards backing it. Anyone caught doing so will face up to 14 years in jail.
It comes as Glastonbury has refused to bow to pressure to remove Kneecap from its listings.
Last week, Liam O'Hanna, one of the band members, appeared in court after being charged for allegedly displaying a flag in support of proscribed terrorist organisation Hezbollah while saying 'up Hamas, up Hezbollah' at a gig in November last year.
