UK Conservative MP says party pushing for law to ban BDS 'within a year or two'

A Conservative MP and former housing minister said Tuesday that his party is pushing for legislation to outlaw the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement in the UK. 

During an online conference event entitled “Why Do So Many People Hate Jews”, MP Robert Jenrick said: “In the following months we will be working to outlaw BDS”.

“I do think BDS is being beaten back here. There is no political party in the UK that would support BDS today”, he said.

“What we want to do is pass a piece of legislation here and I’m pretty confident it will be in the next legislative programme in the Spring of next year.”

MP Robert Jenrick's remarks this week about UK gov't plans to legislate against BDS made a few headlines - but this is the full clip. It's...bad.

"Within a year or two, we should...have an absolute ban on BDS here, which would be a great step forwards".https://t.co/99Q4uhBTyl pic.twitter.com/1y1Nezxhn0

— Ben White (@benabyad) December 16, 2021

“Obviously I want it to be as broad as possible so there’s next to no avenue for BDS to continue here. Within a year or two, we should have an absolute ban on BDS.”

..This measure must and will be resisted by all who care about the upholding of international law, democratic freedoms including the right to invest ethically and the fundamental principle of standing always with the oppressed and not the oppressor

— Ben Jamal (@BenJamalpsc) December 17, 2021

Palestinian campaigners and rights groups have slammed Jenrick’s remarks as an anti-democratic suppression of free speech.

Meanwhile, Israel advocacy group Zionist Federation welcomed the move to ban the anti-apartheid campaign, which they claim is anti-Semitic.

A movement which increasingly demonises #Jews and which marginalises #Jewish students on campuses should have no place in mainstream society.

We look forward to the day when legislation will outlaw the @BDSmovement https://t.co/2glUmzNvb4

— Zionist Federation (@ZionistFed) December 15, 2021

The UK Conservative Party, led by Prime Minister Boris Johnson, pledged to ban local councils from boycotting products from countries including Israel in the run-up to the December 2019 general elections.

Labour leader Keir Starmer has said his party will not support BDS, calling the movement divisive and damaging to UK-Israel relations. However, party members passed a motion at the annual Brighton conference in September that labelled Israel an apartheid state and called for sanctions against the country.