At a conference on Friday, the second-largest trade union in the UK endorsed the Palestinian-led BDS movement against Israel.
Three motions in favour of BDS were voted by Unite, one of 15 trade unions connected to the Palestine Solidarity Campaign and the employer of 1.2 million workers.
One, which received unanimous support, urges the UK government to drop the Economic Activity of Public entities (Overseas Matters) bill, which forbids public entities, including councils, from initiating their own boycotts and specifically names Israel and the Occupied Territories.
The bill “seeks to limit the ability of public bodies to make ethical choices about spending and investment that reflect widespread public support for human rights, climate goals and international law,” the motion said.
PSC said the bill would also “shield companies engaged in human rights abuse or environmental destruction by preventing public bodies from cutting financial ties with them over abusive or illegal actions committed in a foreign state, unless expressly permitted to do so by the government.”
Three motions in favour of BDS were voted by Unite, one of 15 trade unions connected to the Palestine Solidarity Campaign and the employer of 1.2 million workers.
One, which received unanimous support, urges the UK government to drop the Economic Activity of Public entities (Overseas Matters) bill, which forbids public entities, including councils, from initiating their own boycotts and specifically names Israel and the Occupied Territories.
The bill “seeks to limit the ability of public bodies to make ethical choices about spending and investment that reflect widespread public support for human rights, climate goals and international law,” the motion said.
PSC said the bill would also “shield companies engaged in human rights abuse or environmental destruction by preventing public bodies from cutting financial ties with them over abusive or illegal actions committed in a foreign state, unless expressly permitted to do so by the government.”
