UK politics - live: Michael Gove accused of ‘witch-hunt’ as he vows ‘pro-Palestinian marchers will pay’
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Your support makes all the difference.Michael Gove has been accused of a ‘witch hunt’ after saying he wanted pro-Palestinian marchers to pay for the massive weekly protests.
The secretary of state for levelling up labelled pro-Palestine university encampments as ‘antisemitism repurposed for the Instagram age’ and he accused activists of hostility towards Jewish students.
In a speech on Tuesday, Mr Gove also accused organisers of not doing enough to stop some demonstrators spreading anti-Jewish messages, which he claims, included chants calling for the “annihilation of Israel”. His remarks have sparked furore among organisations supporting Palestinians in Gaza, who have been holding huge protests in London every weekend since the 7 October Hamas attacks.
His speech came ahead of the publication of the Lord Walney review into political violence, which recommended government tighten laws to ban Gaza protests taking place on certain days as well as calling for powers to help businesses claim damages from protest organisers.
But on the same day, the High Court ruled the Home Office had acted unlawfully when it implemented regulations to lower the threshold for police intervening in protests.
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UK economy has room for rate cuts, IMF says
The International Monetary Fund has published its lates growth forecast report and said the economy is set for a “soft landing”.
The report said the GDP is expected to rise by 0.7 per cent this year, followed by a 0.6 per cent growth over the first quarter.
Commenting on the results, chancellor Jeremy Hunt said: “Today’s report clearly shows that independent international economists agree that the UK economy has turned a corner and is on course for a soft landing.
“The IMF have upgraded our growth for this year and forecast we will grow faster than any other large European country over the next six years - so it is time to shake off some of the unjustified pessimism about our prospects.”
University encampment organisers accuse Gove of ‘smear campaign'
Pro-Palestine student Fiona Lali has replied to Michael Gove’s attacks on protesters.
Taking to social media, she has accused the communities secretary of starting a smear campaign.
Breaking: Home Office acted unlawfully over anti-protest law
The High Court has ruled government’s move to extend police powers around protests was unlawful.
The ruling comes after civil liberties group Liberty started a legal action proceeding on the home Office last year.
The measured lowered standards of what is considered “serious disruption” to community life, from “significant” and “prolonged” to “more than minor”.
After the ruling Akiko Hart, Liberty’s director, said: “This ruling is a huge victory for democracy and sets down an important marker to show that the government cannot step outside of the law to do whatever it wants.”
In full: Michael Gove wants to “make marchers pay” in pro Palestinian protests
Michael Gove has revealed plans to “make marchers pay” for the massive weekly pro-Palestinian protests dominating the centre of London at weekends.
The communities secretary announced a number of measures to tackle extremism from Islamists, the far right and the extreme left.
He declared that the Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions (BDS) movement on the left directed at boycotting Israeli academia and businesses is “antisemitic”.
Among his measures was a threat to “make marchers pay” for the repeated disruption and cost of policing.
He said: “I don’t want to make it unaffordable for groups to protest but when groups protest again and again and again then I think it is fair to ask them to pay.”
Mr Gove also urged Labour peers to stop slowing down the progress of legislation to allow antisemitism to be tackled more effectively.
He said there will be national advisers on antisemitism and hatred against Muslims.
‘Decolonisation’ calls only benefit UK’s adversaries, says Gove
Speaking from north London, the levelling up secretary said the notion among activists that West prosperity was built on exploitation and empire was “inherently flawed” and only benefited the UK’s adversaries.
Mr Gove said: “But these ideas are deeply congenial to those authoritarian states who are increasingly arrayed together against us. For Iran, for China and even for Russia the decolonisation narrative is meat and drink.
“The idea that the success of liberal Western nations is based on plunder and exploitation… is central to their efforts to advance their goals.”
Gove announces new legislation to tackle antisemitism
The communities secretary is outlining government’s new steps to stop rising numbers of hate.
He urges leaders to adopt the IHRA definition of antisemitism.
Mr Gove also promises to set out a government independent adviser to tackle antisemitism and a parallel one on anti-Muslim hatred.
‘Antisemitism repurposed for the Instagram age’
The Conservative MP claims student protests across the country have caused hostility towards Jewish students.
Slamming the pro-Palestine university encampments, he says it is “antisemitism repurposed for the Instagram age”.
He then urges university and leaders to punish antisemites on campus and to “listen to the Jewish community”.
Meanwhile in Vienna...
Rishi Sunak says the arrest warrant for Netanyahu is unhelpful.
Speaking from Vienna, the PM says: “Of course it is still subject to a final decision, but it remains deeply unhelpful nonetheless.
“There is no moral equivalence between a democratic state exercising its lawful right to self defence and the terrorist group Hamas. It is wrong to conflate and equivocate between those two different entities.
“What I am very clear is that this will make absolutely no difference in getting a pause in the fighting, getting aid into the region, or indeed the hostages out.”
‘The BDS movement is antisemitic,' Michael Gove says
“From the river to the sea,” is a chant for the erasure of the Jewish home, Michael Gove claims.
He says the phrase is directed at Israel and any endorsements are explicitly antisemitic.
Mr Gove goes on to attack the BDS movement and says it stresses the need to “eliminate the state of Israel.”
Michael Gove says antisemitism is the common currency of hate
He says the far-right and the far-left are equally undermining UK democracy.
The Tory MP condemns figures from both spheres and claims BANP Nick Griffin, Patriotic Alternative, Britain First, have been invited to share space with Islamists with the common ground of concern the Jewish state.
He has also accused the Revolutionary Communist Party of antisemitism adding hate “is a virus that evolves”.
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