SNP block action to halt funding for companies arming Israel
The SNP has used a wrecking amendment to keep grants for arms companies complicit in Israel’s genocidal assault on Gaza.
The Scottish Government has rightly and strongly opposed the bombing and collective punishment of Gaza. Despite this, since the war began, it has given over £1 million to companies that have armed Israel via Scottish Enterprise.
Scottish Green Co-leader Lorna Slater said:
“The humanitarian crisis in Gaza is one of the worst in the world, and this was an opportunity for our parliament to take concrete steps to ensure that Scotland is playing no part in it. It is deeply disappointing that the SNP chose to block action.
“The Scottish Government is right to support a ceasefire in Gaza, but it is simply hypocritical for them to continue backing companies who are enabling and profiting from the atrocities that have been inflicted by Israeli forces.
“When Russia invaded Ukraine the Scottish Government rightly took action against companies who were supporting Putin and his war machine, with measures that went far further than arms companies. It is time for them to do the same for Israel.
“Not a penny of public money should be given to companies that are profiting from genocide or war crimes whether they are being carried out by Russian forces or by Israel."
As part of the debate the SNP agreed to review the human rights checks which are applied by public bodies to grant applicants. To date, no company has ever failed one of the existing tests, including many of the world’s biggest arms companies.
Ms Slater added:
“We welcome the SNP’s commitment to review the human rights checks that are applied, but it should not have taken our debate to make them do that.
“The new tests need to be far more robust than anything we have had to date, as no human rights check worthy of the name would allow grants to companies that are complicit in genocide.”