England, another large union says yes to the boycott of Israel

England's second-largest trade union has declared its support for pro-Palestinian Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movements against the Israeli regime, criticizing UK government legislation banning institutions from boycotting manufactured products in the occupied territories. Unite, which represents 1.2 million British workers and is one of 15 unions affiliated to the Palestine Solidarity Campaign (PSC), passed three motions in support of BDS at its conference on Friday, demanding that the government abandon the economic activity of the public bodies (overseas issues ) legislation that prohibits public bodies from launching their own boycott initiatives, explicitly mentioning the Israeli regime and the occupied territories.

The bill "seeks to limit the ability of public entities to make ethical choices about spending and investments that reflect broad public support for human rights, climate goals and international law," the relevant motion says. The motion also indicated Unite's support for BDS campaigns against companies linked to Israel's occupation of the Palestinian territories.