An investigation has revealed that the United Kingdom awarded 10.7 million pounds, equivalent to approximately $14.4 million, in new public sector contracts to companies connected to illegal Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank. The deals moved forward despite earlier British government promises to penalize businesses profiting from settlement activities.
The public agreements were published after the UK government introduced new powers on September 8 aimed at sanctioning firms that benefit from business operations tied to West Bank settlements, which are considered illegal under international law. Data from the UK public sector market intelligence firm Tussell, alongside procurement records and corporate filings, showed that businesses identified by the United Nations and their subsidiaries secured these agreements.
Legal experts note that companies involved in the occupation appear to breach international humanitarian law and face direct conflict with the emerging sanctions framework overseen by UK Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband. This follows an earlier August investigation which uncovered that at least 17 companies tied to illegal settlements had previously obtained UK public sector contracts valued at over 2.1 billion pounds, or approximately $2.85 billion.
Former Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn criticized the findings, describing the continued flow of public funds to these businesses as outrageous and insulting to the public. The Cabinet Office did not respond to requests for comment regarding the latest contracts, though previous statements indicated that individual public authorities handle supplier exclusions on a case-by-case basis and that procurement should not act as an informal boycott mechanism without formal restrictions.