"My Lords, more than 200 people have been arrested across the UK, protesting entirely peacefully for Palestinian rights, one a retired woman priest aged 83 and another for holding up a Private Eye cartoon. Surely this is an unjust, perverse but entirely predictable consequence of the proscription of Palestine Action, …..." Lord Hain - View Speech
"To ask His Majesty’s Government how many people have been arrested for participating peacefully in Palestine Action protests since its proscription...." Lord Hain - View Speech
"My Lords, I welcome what my noble friend the Minister has said, including on sanctions, and emphasise what she has also indicated, that this is a very complex situation. The portrayal of the Syrian conflict by the noble Lord, Lord Cameron, when he was Prime Minister, as being between an …..." Lord Hain - View Speech
"My Lords, on the Economic Crime Act 2023, can my noble friend explain what the Government are doing to block the £90 billion that is laundered through the United Kingdom annually, often by kleptocrats buying properties or via “onshore London” as a means of tax avoidance in UK Overseas Territories …..." Lord Hain - View Speech
"My Lords, I have supported my party for nearly 10 years since I joined this House, sometimes late like the last two nights, but I cannot support this Motion, as my noble friend understands. That gives me no joy because I have been a long-standing colleague of his as a …..." Lord Hain - View Speech
"I totally agree with the noble Lord, but it is like that that they have been charged. There are plenty of other criminal offences that such activity could attract rather than treating young people as terrorists because they feel frustrated about the failure to stop mass killings and bombings of …..." Lord Hain - View Speech
"Of course democracy did not exist in South Africa at the time and women did not have the vote at the time. I concede that point but, frankly, Palestine Action members spraying paint on military aircraft in Brize Norton seems positively moderate by comparison with what the suffragettes did, and …..." Lord Hain - View Speech
"I am making exactly that point. By the way, someone should be disciplined for permitting such an easy breach of security at a key military airfield such as Brize Norton. What if the Palestine Action protesters had been real terrorists? Imagine what would have happened then...." Lord Hain - View Speech
"The acts at Brize Norton were certainly criminal acts and should be prosecuted, as they are being at this very moment. As has been described, it is a matter of sub judice.
Please remember that the suffragettes were arrested and subjected to harsh terms of imprisonment, including force-feeding when they …..." Lord Hain - View Speech
"I am not suggesting that it is. I completely agree with the noble Lord, but there is a difference between that kind of action and the action generally taken by young supporters of Palestine Action. Whether or not I agree with it—I have never supported its activity—there is a great …..." Lord Hain - View Speech