ByMATHILDA HELLER

Over 1,000 councilors from across Britain and from different political parties have pledged to uphold Palestinian rights and stand against Israel's "genocide."

Councilors in the UK are individuals elected by local residents to serve as representatives on local councils (including unitary, county, district, borough, and parish councils). They are responsible for making decisions on behalf of their local community regarding essential services, setting council policies, and managing local budgets.

The Pledge for Palestine commits council representatives to take all appropriate steps to: uphold the rights of the Palestinian people, stand up to Israel for its crimes of genocide and apartheid, and  ensure their councils are not complicit, including through divestment of pension funds from "complicit companies."

This pledge was launched by Palestine Solidarity Campaign following its alleged discovery that local council-administered pension funds invest more than £12.2 billion in "companies enabling Israel’s crimes" including hundreds of millions of pounds invested in the arms companies that manufacture parts for the Israeli fighter jets.

Of the councilors who signed, 383 are from the Green Party, 359 are from Labour, 111 are from the Liberal Democrats, and 41 are from the Scottish National Party.

A Palestinian flag is held up outside the Royal Courts of Justice, on the day judges decide whether the co-founder of Palestine Action can challenge the UK government's ban on the group, in London, Britain, September 25, 2025.
A Palestinian flag is held up outside the Royal Courts of Justice, on the day judges decide whether the co-founder of Palestine Action can challenge the UK government's ban on the group, in London, Britain, September 25, 2025. (credit: REUTERS/Jack Taylor)

Local councils call to divest from Israel-associated arms companies

30 local councils have already backed the call to divest pension funds from companies they accuse of being complicit in Israel’s crimes.

“I signed… because I refuse to be complicit in Israel's genocide and apartheid,” said Trafford councilor Hannah Spencer.

“Keir Starmer’s Labour government isn’t just a bystander to Israel’s crimes, it’s an active participant: from arming the Israeli military, to the prime minister’s claim that Israel ‘has the right’ to withhold power and water from Gaza," she said.

Richard Burgon, Labour MP for Leeds East, said: “Keir Starmer’s refusal to stand up for the rights of the Palestinian people is wrong and has already badly hurt Labour at the polls. We saw that in the last general election, and I fear we will see it again in the May local elections.”

He said the government needs to listen to its members who are “rightly demanding action against Israel's genocide and war crimes and do so before even more damage is done and we lose more hardworking, principled councilors."