Overview
- Scotland Yard said it would largely stop on-the-spot arrests for expressions of support for Palestine Action and will focus on gathering evidence for later enforcement.
- The High Court found that only a very small number of the group’s 385 direct actions amounted to terrorism and said ordinary criminal law can prosecute those cases.
- More than 2,000 people were arrested for sign-holding since last summer’s proscription, with policing costs reported at well over £10m, including £8.73m for four days by the Met.
- Judges said the proscription disproportionately curtailed peaceful supporters’ rights under the European Convention on Human Rights and criticized reliance on the added police powers of listing.
- Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood vowed to fight the judgment in the Court of Appeal, while former Home Secretary Yvette Cooper defended her original decision to proscribe the group.