CFI Parliamentary Chairmen Rt. Hon. Stephen Crabb MP and Rt. Hon. The Lord Pickles, together with CFI Honorary President Lord Polak CBE, have underlined the importance of forthcoming legislation to ban public bodies from imposing boycotts in light of a Supreme Court ruling against the Government this week.
Rt. Hon. Stephen Crabb MP, Rt. Hon. The Lord Pickles and Lord Polak CBE said in a statement: “The Supreme Court’s technical ruling on local authority divestments serves to reinforce the importance of the Government’s forthcoming legislation. We reiterate our strong support for the Conservative Government’s manifesto commitment to ban public bodies from imposing their own boycotts, divestments, and sanctions, which have all too often sown discord within local communities”.
The Supreme Court ruled that previous guidance on this issue exceeded the Secretary of State’s powers. In response, a Government spokesperson said: “We are committed to ensuring public bodies take a consistent approach to investments and to stop local boycotts. We will therefore bring back new legislation that addresses the technical points raised by the Supreme Court”.
The Conservative Party manifesto included a commitment to “ban public bodies from imposing their own direct or indirect boycotts, disinvestment or sanctions campaigns against foreign countries”, which “undermine community cohesion”.
At the time, Communities Secretary Rt. Hon. Robert Jenrick MP said: “Town hall boycotts undermine good community relations, weakening integration and fuelling antisemitism. Local public bodies should focus on their day jobs – such as running libraries and collecting bins, rather than running a divisive foreign policy from town halls”.
The commitment was confirmed in a subsequent statement underlining the Government’s pledge to “prevent public institutions from creating independent sanctions and boycotts against: Foreign countries or those linked to them; the sale of goods and services from foreign countries; UK firms which trade with such countries”.
Then-Minister for the Cabinet Office, Rt. Hon. Oliver Dowden MP said: “Our public institutions should focus on their day job, not try to set foreign policy by making rules on which countries they will and won’t do business with. By stopping this unsanctioned activity we can get better value for taxpayers and put an end to boycotts that divide communities and sow hatred”.
