The Home Secretary has pledged to appeal a High Court ruling that the proscription on Palestine Action was unlawful, as the government’s former extremism tsar suggested how ministers could ban the group without labelling it a terrorist organisation.
Shabana Mahmood said she was “disappointed” by Friday’s decision that the proscription of Palestine Action as a terrorist organisation was unlawful, following a legal challenge brought by the group’s founder.
Mahmood confirmed the government would appeal the decision.
“I am disappointed by the court’s decision and disagree with the notion that banning this terrorist organisation is disproportionate,” she said, adding that proscription “followed a rigorous and evidence-based decision-making process, endorsed by Parliament".
MPs voted by 385 to 26 last July to proscribe Palestine Action, placing it in the same legal category as Hamas and Al Qaeda.
The decision followed a series of direct-action protests, including an incident in which activists broke into an RAF base, defaced aircraft, and a police officer was struck by an axe.
Lord Walney, the government’s former adviser on political violence and disruption, backed the Home Secretary’s decision to challenge the ruling but urged ministers to prepare an alternative route to deal with the group’s activity should the appeal fail.
Describing the judgment as “disappointing”, Lord Walney said it “risks sending a signal that far left activists can hold the country to ransom.”
"While Palestine Action has deployed violence less frequently than other proscribed groups, the criminal damage they systematically inflict clearly falls within the legal definition of terrorism,” he said.
He called on the government to adopt his proposed amendment to the Crime and Policing Bill, currently before the House of Lords, to ensure groups engaged in “criminal sabotage” can be outlawed without being formally designated as terrorist organisations.
“However, this fiasco could be fixed if ministers accept and fast track my amendment to the Crime and Policing Bill currently in the Lords, that would allow groups dedicated to criminal sabotage to be banned without labelling them as terrorists,” the former Labour MP added.
His proposed amendment would create a separate mechanism which would allow the government to prohibit organisations engaged in systematic criminal activity, without applying the terrorism label.
Jewish leaders said they were "deeply concerned” by the ruling and its impact on the community, arguing that the group’s tactics had created fear beyond the sites directly targeted.
In a joint statement, the Jewish Leadership Council and the Board of Deputies said: "The practical impact of Palestine Action’s activities on Jewish communal life has been significant and deeply unsettling.
"Palestine Action has repeatedly targeted buildings hosting Jewish communal institutions, Jewish-owned businesses, or sites associated with Israel, in ways that cause fear and disruption far beyond the immediate protest sites.
"We welcome the response of the Home Secretary and note her intention to fight the judgement in the court of appeal. We will seek urgent clarity from the government, police forces and the CPS regarding the implications of this ruling and the steps they intend to take to ensure that communities are protected from intimidation and criminality. This includes ensuring appropriate legal tools are available.
"The safety of the British public including Jews must remain a priority.”
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