UK parliament debates anti-Boycott bill as Israel's war on Gaza wages on

The UK government’s timing of the debate on the contentious anti-Boycott bill aimed at banning anti-Israel movements has been heavily criticised by British politicians on Wednesday.

The right-wing Conservative government has been keen to push the bill - which targets the anti-Israel Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement - ahead of the state opening of parliament next week, and with the Israel-Palestine crisis returned to the forefront of government affairs.

Amendments to the Economic Activity of Public Bodies (Overseas Matters) Bill, known as the Anti-Boycott Bill, were discussed in parliament as Israel's war on Gaza entered its third week.

Cross-party MPs, human rights groups and a coalition of more than 70 organisations have publicly opposed the bill which seeks to restrict public bodies, like local councils, universities or businesses, from making independent ethical decisions and investments.

Liberal Democrat MP Layla Moran criticised the timing of the bill's debate when she spoke in the House of Commons on Wednesday.

"The impact of the awful violence in Israel and Palestine on communities across the world cannot be underestimated. But the answer is not to debate this bill right now," Moran said.

She told parliament that she had urged Prime Minister Rishi Sunak on Monday to reschedule the debate considering the war on Gaza, which has so far claimed the lives of 6,500 Palestinians and 1,300 Israelis since 7 October.

“In his response, he spoke about the importance of not undermining community cohesion. I would politely suggest that if you don’t want to undermine community cohesion the last thing you should do is bring forward this bill,” Moran said.

Downing Street’s timing of the debate has been regarded as deliberate as the Conservatives seek to take advantage of rifts within the opposition party Labour over their approach to the Israel-Hamas conflict and the bill itself.

Labour abstained on the second voting of the bill but have said that they will oppose the bill on its upcoming third reading before it is scrutinised by the House of Lords.

Labour leader Keir Starmer previously said his party does not support the BDS movement.

For years, the BDS movement has highlighted the Palestinian struggle against Israeli oppression by encouraging individuals and parties to avoid companies supporting Israel’s violation of the rights of the Palestinian people, including Israel’s settlement expansion on Palestinian territory and the bulldozing of Palestinian homes.

Omar Barghouti, co-founder of the @BDSmovement, has accused the UK govt of "trying to silence" advocates of Palestinian rights. Barghouti spoke with The New Arab about British MP Michael Gove's controversial anti-boycott bill, which is currently making its way through parliament: pic.twitter.com/jV37oUbSlQ

— The New Arab (@The_NewArab) August 22, 2023

The right-wing Conservative government introduced the bill in June to honour a manifesto promise to stop councils and other publicly funded bodies "from pursuing their own foreign policy agenda".

The government alleged that the legislation had sought to protect minority communities, "especially the Jewish community, against campaigns that harm community cohesion and fuel antisemitism".

But Human Rights Watch, among other humanitarian organisations, expressed concern, describing the move as a step backwards and undermining the UK government's commitment to international law.