Police have arrested people outside the Labour Party conference in Liverpool after a demonstration in support of the banned Palestine Action group. More than 200 protesters sat outside the conference, many holding home-made banners reading: “I support Palestine Action.”
Police stood by before moving in to arrest an elderly man who was sitting under a tree. They then made another arrest after telling a protester he was holding up a sign supporting a proscribed organisation. After asking the man if he was going to continue holding up the sign, police led him away.
Arrests escalate as protesters remain
More protesters sat in the same spot as those who had been arrested. The number of arrests reached double figures an hour after police started taking action. Arrests continued throughout the afternoon as police moved in on those holding banners stating: “I oppose genocide. I support Palestine Action.” Demonstrators cheered and chanted “free, free Palestine” every time someone was carried away by police.
Protest organisers Defend Our Juries said: “We had hoped the new Prime Minister, Andy Burnham, would do the sensible thing and bin the ban on Palestine Action given the weight of public pressure to do so and the escalating amount of resources required in enforcing it.
“Continuing the charade of the proscription of Palestine Action is illogical, unsustainable and immoral. Hundreds of people from professions including teachers, pensioners, and healthcare workers are willing to be arrested today to let Andy Burnham know that it is not enough just to say that Israel is committing war crimes including ethnic cleansing in Gaza, he must take meaningful action to end UK complicity with Israel’s crimes.
“The first step the PM could do today, from the podium of his inaugural party conference is to commit to ending the prosecution and jailing of people as terrorists just for standing up against war crimes and genocide.”
Campaign since proscription
Since the group was proscribed in July 2025, a civil disobedience campaign has seen more than 3,600 people arrested for showing their support for the group. Sir Keir Starmer was Prime Minister when the UK proscribed Palestine Action under the Terrorism Act. In July, the Supreme Court dealt a major blow to the Home Office when it confirmed it had given the group's co-founder permission to appeal the ban. The court is set to review the ban at a later date.
Kerry Moscogiuri, chief executive of Amnesty International UK, said: “Protesting is one of the most effective tools we have to make our leaders listen to us, but we have seen consecutive Governments crack down on our right to do it.
“The arrests of grandparents, teenagers and everyone in between for holding placards outside the Labour Party conference are a truly shameful attack on freedom of speech.
“The new Prime Minister can reform our laws so that communities are protected in coming together and demonstrating on the issues they care about. Will he do so?”
Prime Minister's stance
Mr Burnham has so far been quiet on the issue of the Palestine Action ban. Earlier this month he announced sanctions on Israel including a ban on trade with illegal settlements in Palestine. He said at the time: “The suffering of the Palestinian people is a scar on the conscience of the world. Innocent Palestinians, including children, continue to be killed in Gaza. And there is still a humanitarian crisis, with far too little aid getting in.”
