Row over Starmer’s call to ban some pro-Palestine protests

Keir Starmer faced backlash after calling for a ban on some pro-Palestinian protests as part of a crackdown on antisemitism.

The Prime Minister suggested there were “instances” where it was appropriate to prevent such marches on UK streets, as in France, and said he would fight “with every breath I take” for a diverse and tolerant Britain following a series of attacks on Jewish communities in recent weeks, including the Golders Green terror attack.

But even his government’s independent adviser on antisemitism said it would be “unreasonable” to outlaw peaceful pro-Palestinian protests opposing Israel’s actions in the Middle East.

Lord Mann led a chorus of opposition to the idea, including Green Party leader Zack Polanski, who accused the Labor leader of threatening “further authoritarian restrictions on peaceful protests”.

Jonathan Hall, Sir Keir’s independent adviser on terrorism, called for a halt to pro-Palestinian marches this week, while chief rabbi Sir Ephraim Mirvis said they were contributing to “an increase in Jew hatred”.

Lord Mann said Independent: “There are numerous small anti-Israel (or similar) protests every week, and usually very few people attend.

“If they are not calling for violence… then the application of such a concept in a democracy is unconscionable. The safety and security of the Jewish community requires effective and strong leadership, not gestures.”

Mr. Polanski accused the prime minister of “using the pain and fear of the Jewish people to threaten further authoritarian restrictions on peaceful protests.”

“This would be the worst response to the attacks in Golders Green and will lead to further divisions when it is the duty of responsible leaders to bring people together,” he added.

Meanwhile, his Labor colleague Shami Chakrabarti, a former director of civil liberties and human rights group Liberty, warned: “It is perfectly logical for political leaders to call for sensitivity and restraint on protest in the wake of terrorist violence and the fear it engenders. But equating protest with violence or further restricting peaceful dissent is quite another.”

“I call on the government to lead by example and demonstrate to others the balanced judgment they offer.”

Organizers of pro-Palestinian marches also responded to the Prime Minister.

Protest group Save Our Juries responded to Sir Keir’s comments on X, saying: “End genocide, not our freedom to oppose it.”

John Rees, co-founder and national officer of the Stop the War coalition, warned against attacking “the root of freedom of assembly and expression” in the UK.

In England and Wales, police can restrict or even ban protests altogether in some cases.

The row comes as the Metropolitan Police chief warned that British Jews face the biggest threat yet following a terror attack in north-west London.

Sir Mark Rowley said Jews faced a “terrible Venn diagram” of hate from all sides. Asked whether the threat to the Jewish community was greater than it had ever been before, he said in an interview with The Times newspaper that surveys revealing the prevalence of antisemitic views showed “that must be true”.

Britain’s terrorist threat has been raised to a serious level; This means authorities believe there is a “high probability” of an attack in the UK within the next six months following the stabbing of two Jewish men in north London.

Sir Keir’s call came during an interview on BBC Radio 4’s Today programme; On his visit to Golders Green he was greeted by a group of protesters holding banners and chanting “Keir Starmer, Jew Harmer”.

Asked whether he wanted chants to be cracked down on or some protests stopped altogether, he told the BBC: “I think it’s certainly the former, and I think there are examples of the latter.”

He stated that he wanted “tougher action” on some elements of the marches. “I don’t want to get involved in operational policing, but I think when you see some of the slogans of ‘Globalize the Intifada,’ when you hear some of the slogans that I would choose, then I think clearly there needs to be tougher action in relation to that,” he said.

He continued: “Regarding the repetitive nature of the marches, many people in the Jewish community have told me that ‘this is a repeated nature, this is a cumulative effect.’ I accept that now, so we aim to deal with cumulative effects.”

He urged “some of the people who are protesting to think about what the Jewish community is going through and the overall impact this is having.” The Prime Minister also said that “too many people do not see or do not want to see antisemitism” and called for “the whole of society to respond”.

He said: “We all have to fight for this together because it’s about the kind of country we want to live in. I want to live in the Britain that I love, the Britain that is tolerant, the Britain that lives and lets live, the Britain that is diverse. But this is now being debated in a way that has never been challenged in my lifetime.”

“With these values, we must fight for the Britain we believe in. This is who we are. This is what being British is. And that is what I will fight for with every breath I take.”

Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch said the interview showed the Prime Minister “didn’t know what to do” about antisemitism following the terror attack.

“There are things we can do,” he added. “We can ban hate preachers from this country and prevent them from coming. We can remove visas from non-British people who spread hate and antisemitism here. But we need to do more. Enough platitudes, we need action. We need to shame people who think antisemitism is acceptable.”

Lord Walney, the government’s former adviser on political violence, said: “The Prime Minister appears determined and sincere but offers nothing different; he needs to stop rejecting changes to the law that would actually reduce the harm caused by these hate-filled marches.”

But your Party Chair, Jenn Forbes, said her party condemns “all attempts to link the security of Jewish communities to restrictions on Palestinian protests.”

The Golders Green stabbings were the latest in a series of attacks on Jewish sites since the start of Donald Trump and Benjamin Netanyahu’s war against Iran, leading to accusations that the UK government is not doing enough to tackle antisemitism.

Heaton Park synagogue He was the target of a terrorist attack in Greater Manchester in October last year. In March, four Jewish community ambulances were set on fire in Golders Green. There was also an attempt at arson at the Finchley Reform Synagogue in north London.

On Friday Sir Mark called for 300 extra civil servants to tackle the growing epidemic of antisemitism in the UK.

He also said he was considering whether police powers should be used to limit two protests in London in late May – a pro-Palestinian march and the other a rally led by far-right activist Tommy Robinson.