Back in 2019, during his failed first bid for the Lib Dem leadership, I interviewed Sir Ed Davey for The House magazine. In one part of our conversation, the MP for Kingston and Surbiton hit out at the “extreme politics” of the other parties.
Breaking into a military institution, vandalising a factory and smashing a female police sergeant on the spine with a sledgehammer seems pretty extreme to me. It is, therefore, somewhat odd that on Friday, Sir Ed looked seriously down a camera lens and backed the High Court’s judgement to overrule the proscription of Palestine Action. That decision now being appealed by Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood, something Sir Ed opposes.
Of course, the Lib Dem leader, a generally pleasant man, does not support the behaviour of Palestine Action. However, that is what makes his response so weak. It is neither one thing nor another.
A spokesperson for the Lib Dems told The Jewish Chronicle:
“This ruling does not place anyone above the law. The Liberal Democrats condemn as utterly heinous the serious offences members of Palestine Action are accused of. There is no doubt that those using violence, antisemitic abuse or hate speech must face the consequences – and that’s why these individuals can and should be prosecuted and punished under existing law.”
The party’s belief is that “proscribing a group like Palestine Action, however, misuses counter-terrorism powers, which are intended to protect the public from the most serious threats, including Islamic extremists such as ISIS and the IRGC. This impact of this misuse has been seen most clearly in the arrest of peaceful protesters who face up to six months in prison for displaying a placard.”
As I say, weak. It is also the kind of rhetorical contortion that is typical of the Lib Dems, a party that I spent some years campaigning for.
Going through the judgement, something I doubt Sir Ed did before playing to the pro-Palestinian gallery, much of which is made up of the kind of white, middle-class person that votes Lib Dem, it is clear Palestine Action are deemed to have committed acts of terror. The High Court found that “a very small number of its actions have amounted to terrorist action within the definition” of the Terrorism Act 2000. It adds: “For those actions, regardless of proscription, the criminal law is available to prosecute those concerned.”
That may well be. No doubt Sir Ed and his colleagues feel vindicated by such a line. The problem is that “this group has committed acts of terror, just not enough for us to call them a terrorist group”, is not exactly the most compelling argument. Nor is it particularly reassuring to the victims of such a group.
I find it bemusing anyone could come to such a conclusion. Although, in fairness, the judgement itself makes it clear how difficult it was to do so.
It’s worth remembering that in a democracy, politicians, and even us mere civilians, are allowed to oppose court decisions. Judges are highly trained and intelligent, but they are not some higher species with whom it is impossible to disagree on occasion. By backing Friday’s judgement instead of the appeal, the Lib Dems do nothing but encourage extreme anti-Israel action and, ultimately, put Britain’s Jewish community at risk.
Make no mistake, for Palestine Action and its fans, that judgement was a win. The Lib Dems were happy to cheer along with them. Doing it in a suit with a furrowed brow doesn’t change that reality.
Sir Ed, as the leader of the party, chose to record his clip in addition to a statement put out by his home affairs spokesperson Max Wilkinson, showing the importance that he gave the issue. For years, Israel and antisemitism have been a sore point in the Lib Dems. Look at how it struggled to handle David Ward and his comments about Israel when he was an MP. It’s why I have not been involved in the party for a while.
Some things never change.
With 72 MPs and a number of council by-election victories under their belt, the Lib Dems still struggle to make any real impact beyond that, and are reduced to performative nonsense. On this occasion, though, it is not the leader flapping around in a wetsuit, it is a failure to understand the risk a group and its supporters pose to a minority community. Never mind the damage they cause Israeli businesses, their partners and our national security infrastructure.
In December last year, Sir Ed used Prime Minister’s Questions to call on Sir Keir Starmer to adopt a “comprehensive government strategy to tackle antisemitism”. Yet when it comes to the crunch, when it comes to supporting something that would make a real impact, the former cabinet minister comes up short.
Advocating for civil liberties is a noble cause and one of the reasons I supported the Lib Dems for so long. However, backing Friday’s judgement and opposing an appeal is not the same as supporting the right to protest, even if that protects the hate marches that have ruined central London ever since October 7.
Ultimately, when it comes to Palestine Action, the stance of Sir Ed Davey and the Liberal Democrats is shameful.
Charlotte Henry is a journalist and author
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