Cabinet to limit council power in order to win Israeli favour


February 16, 2016
Sarah Benton

This posting has these items, almost all hostile to the Cabinet Office announcement:

1) Independent: Israel boycott ban: Shunning Israeli goods to become criminal offence for public bodies and student unions Critics say move amounts to a ‘gross attack on democratic freedoms’;
2) AFP: UK government to ban English boycotts on Israeli goods;
3) Telegraph: Councils, public bodies and student unions to be barred from boycotting “unethical” firms;
4) IBT: BDS movement: UK government plans to block boycott of Israeli goods and products;
5) Notes and links on, amongst other things, 15 Leicester Jews who wrote a letter supporting Leicester council’s boycott decision. and on new UK right-wing Jewish body, Jewish Human Rights Watch;

Ahava-protest
Protest outside Ahava, London, 10th April 2010.

Israel boycott ban: Shunning Israeli goods to become criminal offence for public bodies and student unions

Critics say move amounts to a ‘gross attack on democratic freedoms’

By Oliver Wright, Political Editor, The Independent
February 15, 2016

Local councils, public bodies and even some university student unions are to be banned by law from boycotting “unethical” companies, as part of a controversial crackdown being announced by the Government.

Under the plan all publicly funded institutions will lose the freedom to refuse to buy goods and services from companies involved in the arms trade, fossil fuels, tobacco products or Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank.

Any public bodies that continue to pursue boycotts will face “severe penalties”, ministers said.

Senior government sources said they were cracking down on town-hall boycotts because they “undermined good community relations, poisoned and polarised debate and fuelled antisemitism”.

But critics said the move amounted to a “gross attack on democratic freedoms”.

A spokesman for the Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn said: “The Government’s decision to ban councils and other public bodies from divesting from trade or investments they regard as unethical is an attack on local democracy.

“People have the right to elect local representatives able to make decisions free of central government political control. That includes withdrawal of investments or procurement on ethical and human rights grounds.

“This Government’s ban would have outlawed council action against apartheid South Africa. Ministers talk about devolution, but in practice they’re imposing Conservative Party policies on elected local councils across the board.”


Cabinet Office minister and computer nerd Matt Hancock MP.

Significantly, and underlining the main target of the ban, the formal announcement will be made by the Cabinet Office minister Matt Hancock when he visits Israel this week.

Israeli companies, along with other firms which have investments in the occupied West Bank, have been among those targeted by unofficial boycotts in the past.

In 2014 Leicester City Council passed a policy to boycott goods produced in Israeli settlements in the West Bank while the Scottish Government published a procurement notice to Scottish councils which “strongly discourages trade and investment from illegal settlements”.

Under the new rules all contracting authorities including local councils, quangos and universities which receive the majority of their funding from the Government will lose the freedom to take ethical decisions about whom they purchase goods and services from. The only exemption will be UK-wide sanctions decided by the Government in Westminster. Government sources said the ban could also apply to student union boycotts but added this was a “grey area”.

A spokeswoman for the National Union of Students said they were “concerned by any external pressure that could prevent student unions taking decisions on any issue that affects the students they represent.”

Mr Hancock said the current position where local authorities had autonomy to make ethical purchasing decisions was “undermining” Britain’s national security.

“We need to challenge and prevent these divisive town-hall boycotts,” he said.

“The new guidance on procurement combined with changes we are making to how pension pots can be invested will help prevent damaging and counter-productive local foreign policies undermining our national security.”

But Amnesty International’s UK economic relations programme director Peter Frankental condemned the move, warning it could encourage human rights violations. The Conservatives have been accused of turning a blind eye to Israeli human rights abuses in the past.

“All public bodies should assess the social and environment impacts of any company with whom they choose to enter into business relationships,” he said.

“Where’s the incentive for companies to ensure there are no human rights violations such as slavery in their supply chains, when public bodies cannot hold them to account by refusing to award them contracts?

Government imposing its own inaction on all public bodies
Hugh Lanning, PSC

“Not only would it be a bad reflection on public bodies to contract with rogue companies, but it would also be bad for responsible businesses that are at risk of being undercut by those that have poor practices.”

Hugh Lanning, chair of the Palestine Solidarity Campaign, condemned this move as “a gross attack on our democratic freedoms and the independence of public bodies from Government interference”. “As if it is not enough that the UK Government has failed to act when the Israeli government has bombed and killed thousands of Palestinian civilians and stolen their homes and land, the Government is now trying to impose its inaction on all other public bodies,” he said.

“This makes it clear where this Government stands on international law and human rights. Despite the Government admitting that Israel’s occupation and denial of Palestinian rights is plain wrong and illegal, when it comes to it they will insulate Israel from the consequences of its own actions. It seems that for this UK Government, whatever crimes against international law Israel commits, having a military ally trumps the rights of their own citizens and institutions in this country to support human rights.”

Boycott background: Unofficial sanctions

Last April the French-owned multinational water, energy and waste management company Veolia – which collects rubbish for a wide range of British local authorities – announced that it was closing down its operations in Israel.

The decision followed a concerted campaign to persuade it to halt its work in West Bank settlements, during which the Labour-controlled Birmingham council became at least the third to warn Veolia that it might not renew its £35m-a-year waste disposal contract when it ran out in 2019, if the company continued to operate in the occupied West Bank.

In November 2014, Leicester City Council passed a policy to boycott goods produced in Israeli settlements in the West Bank. Jewish groups have recently launched a judicial review of the council’s decision, claiming that it “amounts to a get-of-out-town order to Leicester Jews”.

In August 2014, the Scottish Government published a procurement notice to Scottish councils which “strongly discourages trade and investment from illegal settlements”, though conceding that decisions needed to be taken on a case by case basis. Four Scottish councils have resolved to boycott Israeli goods: Clackmannanshire, Midlothian, Stirling and West Dunbartonshire.

Last December two Welsh councils performed a U-turn on their decision to boycott Israeli goods after court proceedings were issued by Jewish Human Rights Watch. Gwynedd County Council and Swansea City Council said the motions had been non-binding and had now otherwise been superseded.



UK government to ban English boycotts on Israeli goods

By AFP/ Daily Mail
February 15, 2016

English town halls and publicly funded universities face “severe penalties” if they institute boycotts of “unethical” companies or Israeli goods under controversial new rules to be outlined by the government this week.

“Locally imposed boycotts can roll back integration as well as hinder Britain’s export trade and harm international relationship,” the Cabinet Office said in a statement on Monday.

“Town hall boycotts undermine good community relations, poisoning and polarising debate, weakening integration and fuelling antisemitism,” it added.

The proposed rules are due to be announced later this week by Cabinet Office Minister Matt Hancock during a visit to Israel, the government statement said, without saying what penalties may be imposed.

“We need to challenge and prevent these divisive town hall boycotts,” Hancock was expected to say.

The ruling will only affect England as the decision in other parts of the United Kingdom comes under the authority of the devolved governments.

The Israeli government praised the ruling. “We welcome the decision taken by the British authorities not to allow anti-Israeli initiatives at local level,” foreign ministry spokesman Emmanuel Nahshon told AFP.

“This is a measure adopted following a few cases in which anti-Israeli elements tried to initiate local initiatives against Israel,” he added.

The measure would apply to the public sector in England as a whole, including the National Health Service.

The only exception to the boycott ban, which also covers action against companies involved in the arms trade, fossil fuel and tobacco, would be official sanctions agreed by the central government.

The move follows a series of local boycotts in recent years that have angered Israeli authorities.

In 2014, Leicester City Council instituted a boycott on goods made in Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank.

The European Union last year backed the labelling of products from Israeli settlements, in a move that Israel condemned as discriminatory and warned could harm the peace process with the Palestinians.

The Cabinet Office said it continued to support labelling “to ensure that individual consumers are able to make informed choices before they buy”.

But an opposition Labour Party spokesman said the boycott ban was “an attack on local democracy”.

“This government’s ban would have outlawed council action against apartheid South Africa,” he said.

Amnesty International’s UK economic relations programme director Peter Frankental also condemned the plan.

“Where’s the incentive for companies to ensure there are no human rights violations such as slavery in their supply chains when public bodies cannot hold them to account,” he told the Independent newspaper.



Councils, public bodies and student unions to be barred from boycotting “unethical” firms

Proposals to stop town halls boycotting Israeli goods triggers warnings of an ‘attack’ on local democracy amid fears of wider impact

By Ben Riley-Smith, Political Correspondent, Telegraph
February 15, 2016

Ministers have been accused of launching an “attack” on local democracy after revealing plans to ban councils, public bodies and student unions by law from boycotting “unethical” companies.

Matt Hancock, the Cabinet Office minister, revealed plans to block “counterproductive” boycotts of Israeli companies by town halls and other public bodies over the weekend.

Mr Hancock, who will formally announce the change during a visit to Israel this week, has said council bans were “undermining our national security”.

However Jeremy Corbyn and human rights campaigners warned the change would have far wider consequences that would stop publicly funded institutions not funding unethical companies.

There are fears they will lose the freedom to refuse to buy goods and services from firms involved in the arms trade, fossil fuels and tobacco products.

A spokesman for the Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn told The Independent:

The Government’s decision to ban councils and other public bodies from divesting from trade or investments they regard as unethical is an attack on local democracy.

People have the right to elect local representatives able to make decisions free of central government political control. That includes withdrawal of investments or procurement on ethical and human rights grounds.

This Government’s ban would have outlawed council action against apartheid South Africa. Ministers talk about devolution, but in practice they’re imposing Conservative Party policies on elected local councils across the board.

Mr Hancock said: “We need to challenge and prevent these divisive town-hall boycotts. The new guidance on procurement combined with changes we are making to how pension pots can be invested will help prevent damaging and counterproductive local foreign policies undermining our national security.”

Peter Frankental, Amnesty International’s UK economic relations programme director, said: “All public bodies should assess the social and environment impacts of any company with whom they choose to enter into business relationships.

“Where’s the incentive for companies to ensure there are no human rights violations such as slavery in their supply chains, when public bodies cannot hold them to account by refusing to award them contracts?

“Not only would it be a bad reflection on public bodies to contract with rogue companies, but it would also be bad for responsible businesses that are at risk of being undercut by those that have poor practices.”



BDS movement: UK government plans to block boycott of Israeli goods and products

By Priyanka Mogul, International Business Times
February 14, 2016

A senior UK minister is expected to announce plans of a government attempt to prevent local authorities from participating in the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) Movement against Israel. Under the new guidance, NHS trusts, councils, universities, student unions, and other public bodies will be prevented from boycotting foods and products from Israel.

Matthew Hancock, Cabinet Officer Minister, will provide details of the new regulations during a visit to Israel this week. The new legislation will reportedly make it easier for the government to challenge organisations that boycott Israel, with the plans first being announced in October 2015 ahead of the Tory Party annual conference.

Hancock said at the time: “We will take steps to stop such outdated policies being pursued through procurement and pension policies. We will safeguard the security of families at home and prevent such playground politics undermining our international security.”

The new regulations will mean that any organisations imposing boycotts against Israel would likely be taken to court over it. All public authorities would fall under the regulations and be prevented from imposing a boycott against any countries signed up to the World Trade Organsiation government procurement agreement.

Leicester City Council adopted an Israeli boycott policy in November 2014 under the Labour Party. Newly-elected Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn said ahead of his election that he would support a boycott of Israel settlement goods, while Labour MP Shabana Mahmood took part in a protest against Israeli goods, temporarily closing a supermarket in her constituency.



Israel Palestine Boycott Ban: Prohibition Of Settlement Goods To Become Criminal Offence For Public Bodies

By George Bowden, Huffington Post UK
February 15, 2015

Boycotts target goods and services produced by Israeli firms on contested territory in the West Bank. Campaigners say that Israel’s alleged apartheid is implicitly supported by firms operating in the zone.

While the government plans will limit local authority procurement decisions – they may also impact upon some student unions, an increasing number of which have passed policies governing the sale of consumer goods.

A revealing list of items prescribed for boycott on the Boycotts, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement’s website highlights the goods targeted by the campaign – and which may soon be protected by government.

Medjoul dates are especially popular snacks, but  almost exclusively hail from occupied territories on the West Bank.

Several UK supermarkets continue to stock the dates — clearly labelling their origin.

The BDS movement renews its advice before Ramadan each year — as the dates are traditionally used to break day-long fasts.

 

 

Jaffa variety oranges are one of the main types grown in the middle east, traditionally cultivated by Palestinian farmers in the city of Jaffa.

Yet more recently, the fruits became symbols of the Israeli state – and Israel is now one of the biggest exporters of citrus fruit to the European Union.

Not all Jaffa variety fruits come from occupied territories, but the BDS movement advises consumers to check the label to make an informed decision.

Jaffa oranges were the biggest  export of 19th century Palestine. Citrus groves bloomed abundantly. This advert from 1925.

 

 

 

 

Eden Springs also provides office water coolers and says: ‘With more depots, delivery staff and  customers than any other company, Eden Springs is officially the leading water cooler supplier in Europe.”

Eden Springs provides water to offices and wholesalers, as well as coffee products, across the UK.

It’s listed on the BDS movement website, which states “the company uses water from a spring in the occupied Golan Heights”.

Eden Springs UK has yet to respond to a request for comment on Monday.

Ahava’s Dead Sea mineral cosmetics have provoked worldwide anger through their use of “stolen Palestinian natural resources in the Occupied Territory, ” according to a campaign against the brand.

Stolenbeauty.org says that Ahava hides behind a “Made in Israel” claim which “helps finance the destruction of hope for a peaceful and just future for both Israelis and Palestinians.”

Protests outside the firm’s London branch caused disruption and damage — to the extent that it shut the store down.

Ahava was not immediately contactable on Monday.

It’s not just Israeli companies affected.

The American ice cream brand Ben and Jerry’s  is in the sights of those boycotting Israeli goods through its “long-standing contractual relationship with an Israeli franchise that manufactures ice cream in Israel proper and sells it in Israel settlements in the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem.”

Vermonters for a Just Peace in Palestine/Israel have since placed the brand, famous for Baked Alaska and Cookie Dough varieties, on their official boycott list.

Ben & Jerry’s was not available for comment on Monday.

The move comes after some local authorities have moved to use their procurement decisions to challenge Israel’s human rights record.

Birmingham City Council threatened to impose a boycott on the services of French waste firm Veolia, which had been operating in the occupied territory on the West Bank.

While in November 2014, Leicester City Council passed a policy to boycott goods produced in Israeli settlements in the West Bank.

The boycotting of goods produced on settlements in the West Bank by local councils and public bodies is to be outlawed, the government will announce this week.

Cabinet Office minister Matthew Hancock will reveal details of the new regulations later this week after describing the prohibition of goods, including fresh produce, electronics and waste services as “divisive” and “counter-productive”.

Hancock described the “need to challenge and prevent divisive town-hall boycotts.” However, a spokesperson for Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn has condemned the move as an affront to local democracy.

Boycotts are called against a range of products produced in occupied territories

Boycotts target goods and services produced by Israeli firms on contested territory in the West Bank. Campaigners say that Israel’s alleged apartheid is implicitly supported by firms operating in the zone.

While the government plans will limit local authority procurement decisions – they may also impact upon some student unions, an increasing number of which have passed policies governing the sale of consumer goods.

A revealing list of items prescribed for boycott on the Boycotts, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement’s website highlights the goods targeted by the campaign – and which may soon be protected by government.

The BDS movement renews its advice before Ramadan each year — as the dates are traditionally used to break day-long fasts

Ahava Israeli Cosmetics

Ahava’s Dead Sea mineral cosmetics have provoked worldwide anger through their use of “stolen Palestinian natural resources in the Occupied Territory, ” according to a campaign against the brand.

Stolenbeauty.org says that Ahava hides behind a “Made in Israel” claim which “helps finance the destruction of hope for a peaceful and just future for both Israelis and Palestinians.”

Protests outside the firm’s London branch caused disruption and damage — to the extent that it shut the store down.

Ahava was not immediately contactable on Monday.laced the brand, famous for Baked Alaska and Cookie Dough varieties, on their official boycott list.

The move comes after some local authorities have moved to use their procurement decisions to challenge Israel’s human rights record.

Birmingham City Council threatened to impose a boycott on the services of French waste firm Veolia, which had been operating in the occupied territory on the West Bank.

While in November 2014, Leicester City Council passed a policy to boycott goods produced in Israeli settlements in the West Bank.

Student unions as Birkbeck University, Kingston University, Swansea University, Brunel University, and University of Arts London are among those which have implemented a policy of BDS against goods produced on the West Bank.

Ali Milani, President of the Union of Brunel Students told HuffPost UK: “Students have always felt that university campuses should be the heart of moral and ethical practices and that companies we work with should be free from occupation and apartheid policies.

“This is the best form of non-violent protest against these – but we feel we’re in a strong position to resist this latest move by the government as student unions are charities rather than public institutions.”

A spokesman for the Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn told the Independent: “The Government’s decision to ban councils and other public bodies from divesting from trade or investments they regard as unethical is an attack on local democracy.

“People have the right to elect local representatives able to make decisions free of central government political control. That includes withdrawal of investments or procurement on ethical and human rights grounds.

“This Government’s ban would have outlawed council action against apartheid South Africa. Ministers talk about devolution, but in practice they’re imposing Conservative Party policies on elected local councils across the board.”

Notes and links

Tories urge breaking law to punish ‘Hard Left’

from Lawyers for Palestinian Human Rights (LPHR)
October 12, 2015

On Saturday 3 October 2015, the Conservative party issued a press release announcing plans to introduce “new rules to stop politically-motivated boycott and divestment campaigns by town halls against UK defence companies and against Israel.”

Letter to Leicester Mercury from 15 Jews supporting Leicester council’s boycott decision

“We write to you, as individual Jewish residents of Leicester, to express our support and appreciation for your decision to declare a boycott on goods originating from Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank.

“Our commitment to social justice and the pursuit of peace, rooted in Jewish and universal values, leads us to endorse this non-violent measure to oppose the daily oppression and dispossession of the Palestinian people.

“We believe it only right and proper that local taxpayers’ money should not be used to support the economies of West Bank settlements.

“The Israeli government under Netanyahu – who we fear will remain in power after the elections this March – has proven that it is not interested in sincere negotiations towards a lasting peace.

“Instead it has only acted to deepen the occupation, while denouncing Israeli and international activists for peace and human rights.

“This state of affairs justifies international pressure to force the hand of the Israeli leadership.

“We are pleased to see Leicester City Council adding its voice to this effort.”

JEWISH HUMAN RIGHTS WATCH IS A NEW ORGANISATION ESTABLISHED TO DEFEAT THE ANTI-JEWISH BDS

For several years now, anti-Semitism has been on the rise, not just globally, but also here in the UK.

One of the BDSs main goals is to make the Jewish community fearful and to feel unwanted.

JHRW – Jewish Human Rights Watch has been established to combat and record the anti-Jewish boycott movement’s action, the rise of anti-Semitism and to respond accordingly.

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