THE Scottish Government is failing to deliver the basics of its Israel boycott pledge, the Scottish Greens have said.
In June, the Scottish Government confirmed the nine banks which had been chosen to support a £1.5 billion issuance of bonds, with Barclays being one of the organisations to sign up.
But the Palestinian-led Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions (BDS) movement notes that Barclays has an agreement with Israel to act as a “primary dealer” for its government bonds.
Meanwhile, the global bank has also been accused of holding over £2bn in shares and providing over £6.1bn in loans and underwriting for nine firms whose weapons and technology are being used by the Israeli military against Palestinians.
As a result, the Greens accused the Scottish Government of breaching the Scottish Parliament vote for an Israel boycott – which occurred exactly one year ago today.
Now, the party have again hit out at the Scottish Government following a parliamentary answer from Deputy First Minister Jenny Gilruth which they said confirms that the Scottish Government didn’t consider a deal with Barclays to be in breach of the boycott policy agreed in the Holyrood vote in September last year.
In her answer, Gilruth said that the “exploitation of assets in illegally occupied territories may constitute grave professional misconduct and could provide grounds for exclusion” from Scottish Government contracts.
However, the Scottish Government has also confirmed that Barclays did not fail these tests and was therefore not excluded from becoming a partner to the Scottish Government’s bonds programme.
“It is one year to the day since our parliament voted to boycott apartheid Israel, but the Scottish Government isn’t even doing the basics,” Scottish Greens co-leader Ross Greer told The National.
“What is the point of applying a test so weak that a bank closely linked to Israel can pass it? If Barclays is not covered by the boycott, then what more would a company have to do to fall foul of it?”
The MSP added: “Paying lip service is not enough. Tens of thousands of Palestinians have been killed, while Barclays have supported those profiting from the destruction.
“Scotland’s Parliament made a clear commitment a year ago. If a company has profited from apartheid and genocide then they should not be able to profit here in Scotland. They certainly shouldn’t be helped to do so by the Scottish Government.
“Ministers must pull every lever at their disposal to ensure public money and public contracts are used for the public good, not to support the companies implicated in Israel’s assault on Palestinians.”
He went on: “Instead, we have a Scottish Government which supported the Greens’ proposals for a boycott last year, but which has since made no real effort to implement it.
“If Ministers are serious about their commitment to boycott and divest from Israel, they need to stop hiding behind vague words and start actually delivering what MSPs voted for.”
Meanwhile, campaign groups the Scottish Palestinian Society and Scotland for Palestine have also said there’s “little evidence” of the Scottish Government taking the “necessary steps” – branding it a “shameful chapter in Scottish history”.
"This is yet another example of the SNP government choosing not to answer questions on its business deals and use of public money,” Scotland for Palestine said.
“Instead, it has responded with the usual woolly lines around Palestine, the genocide and the responsibility it has to do the right thing and enforce the boycott vote in full.”
The Scottish Palestinian Society added: “The SNP calling for a “ceasefire” and saying they “advocate for peace, justice and human rights in Gaza” while using public money to fund businesses complicit in the Palestinian suffering is disingenuous. It's also a blatant disregard for democracy and hard-working Scots who want their taxes to fund vital services and infrastructure such as better buses, schools and hospitals, not the horrors being committed against Palestinians.”
A Scottish Government spokesperson said: “As one of the first governments to call for a ceasefire, the Scottish Government has been a clear and consistent advocate for peace, justice and human rights in Gaza. We have taken the most direct and effective action within our own powers to press for an immediate and lasting resolution and an end to the suffering of the Palestinian people.
“In September 2025, the Scottish Government announced a comprehensive package of economic and humanitarian measures in response to the genocide in Gaza. This included a pause on new awards of public money to defence companies whose products or services are provided to countries where there is plausible evidence of genocide being committed by that country. This measure was implemented immediately and remains in effect."
