‘Blood on your hands’: Campaigners slam council for ‘dither and delay’ over divestment

Activists have condemned Camden Council for ‘dither and delay’ after councillors refused to unilaterally divest the borough’s pension fund from companies linked to human rights abuses in Palestine.

On Monday (20 January), demonstrators flocked to the Town Hall ahead of a debate triggered by a Camden Friends of Palestine (CFOP) petition which garnered more than 4,000 signatures.

It urged the local authority to “undertake a thorough and transparent audit of its pension fund investments in companies involved in any way in the ongoing Israeli occupation of and military assault on the West Bank and Gaza, with a view to divesting from them”.

Amid cries of “shame” and “blood on your hands” from a packed chamber gallery, a majority of councillors voted to refer the question to the pension board rather than make an unwavering commitment in the room.

But campaigners have claimed victory after pension committee chair, Cllr Rishi Madlani (Labour, Bloomsbury), agreed that the sustainable development goal (SDG) for ‘International Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions’ will drive the council’s investment strategy.

While not legally binding, in theory it makes it an official aim of the local authority to reduce violence, illegal arms flows, corruption and promote peace, among other ambitions, in regards to its pension fund.

Dan, a spokesperson for CFOP, said: “Councillor Madlani’s acknowledgment that [this] will finally be adopted as a core pension belief is a long overdue victory for us. It is something [we] have demanded for over a year.”

During the debate, councillors acknowledged the “immense, heartbreaking pain” of the war that began with Hamas’ deadly assault on 1,200 Israelis in October 2023 and which has since seen roughly 47,000 Palestinians killed.

Yet, in the end, many made the case that in the short-term their hands were tied by the council’s “fiduciary responsibility”.

This is the legal obligation to ensure the “best possible returns” for the borough’s 25,000 pension fund members, which the pension committee says could be jeopardised by the decision to divest.

The council also states advice from Nigel Giffin KC that even if Israel has broken international law, this “does not impose any enforceable legal obligation upon administering authorities, or their members or personally, to divest from or refrain from making particular investments”.

The Town Hall had earlier estimated that around £7 million of the pension fund it manages on behalf of former employees is “indirectly exposed” to firms like Elbit Systems, an Israeli private arms company, linked to alleged human rights abuses and war crimes in the occupied West Bank and in the Gaza Strip.

But drawing on council data retrieved from a Freedom of Information request, CFOP argued the figure was much higher, calculating an £83 million investment in arms manufacturers with ties to Israel such as BAE Systems, Lockheed Martin and RTX.

The debate began with a deputation from local Palestinian resident Lubaba Khalid, who was joined by Holocaust survivor Stephen Kapos and other campaigners.

Ms Khalid noted the council’s historical stance against apartheid, but also the tragedy which has befallen her family in the region, and called for more decisive action.

“What am I meant to tell my cousin Omar, whose home was bombed, killing three of his children and severely injuring his wife by weapons this council invests in?” she asked members.

Councillors also underlined the suffering of both Palestinians and Israelis, and welcomed the “green shoots” of the recent ceasefire agreement.

The pension committee vice-chair, Cllr Heather Johnson, argued against the motion and said that divestment would not bring about the group’s stated goals, as it would simply make it cheaper for those unfazed by ethical concerns.

“The money doesn’t go away. Somebody else will buy those investments, and somebody else will use them,” she said.

But Cllr Madlani did announce that the committee would handle the campaigners’ demand for an audit.

He added that he was “pleased to confirm” the fund’s annual stewardship review would also include “prioritising engagement on conflict zone exposures”, alongside a forthcoming “advanced human rights policy”.

Cllr Lorna Jane Russell (Green, Highgate) was the sole councillor to speak in support of the motion, warning that investment was untenable for both “principled and practical” reasons.

“This is about moral leadership. Camden residents want a pension fund they can trust. Making this commitment today will send a strong message that we will not profit from the suffering of others. Divestment protects our pension fund from unnecessary risks.”

Cllr Shah Miah (Labour, St Pancras and Somers) signalled his “full confidence” that the pension committee was acting on shared ethical concerns, but went further than some of his Labour colleagues in condemning Israel’s actions.

“Watching the events of the past 15 months unfold, it is increasingly unconscionable that the Local Government Pension Scheme (LGPS) continues to invest in companies that prop up an ever violent government in Israel,” he said.

Camden’s pension fund belongs to the LGPS, which is managed by the investment pool London CIV.

Cllr Matthew Kirk (Lib Dem, Belsize) said that, in light of the recent Israel-Hamas ceasefire agreement, he “did not fully understand” the petition’s meaning.

“Timing is not entirely of your making, I appreciate”, he told campaigners, “but the fact that it hasn’t been withdrawn or postponed makes clear that this is not designed as a specific response to what’s been happening in Gaza over the last 14 months, but a continuation of the [Boycott, Divest and Sanction] campaign of many years standing.”

He accused the campaign of attempting to “attack any company that has any link to Israel, and that is not a position that the pension committee will or should support”.

CFOP’s spokesperson said: “[The] council has failed to take a clear position of principle, that it will not remain invested in international criminality.

“They have not promised to audit their pension fund to establish how exposed the fund is to companies complicit in genocide and crimes against humanity.

“The ball is now in the pension committee’s court. They cannot be allowed to dither and delay while Camden’s pension fund continues to profit from international crimes.

“But that can only be the beginning. We expect the committee to consider this issue in detail at its next meeting, and make a principled commitment to divestment and an ethical investment policy without further delay.

“That has to start with a full audit of its investment.”

On Wednesday (22 January), Tower Hamlets Council pledged to audit its pension fund and “publicly declare its intent to divest all funds away from companies involved in arms dealing, violations of human rights, international/humanitarian law, or fossil fuel exploration and processing”.

This follows a similar move from Waltham Forest Council, which promised last July to pull its investments from companies linked to supplying Israel with arms — but cautioned that the process would “take some time”.