UK PM adviser’s wife expresses ‘support’ for Palestine Action

What the report says

British police are reviewing a social media post by writer Sarah Helm, the wife of National Security Adviser Jonathan Powell, after she appeared to express support for Palestine Action. According to Al Jazeera, Helm wrote on X that she supported “Palestine and Palestine Action,” in response to discussion about Irish novelist Sally Rooney and the fallout from her backing of the group.

The Metropolitan Police said on Friday that the post is being assessed to decide whether any further investigation is needed. A government spokesperson, cited by Reuters in the report, said Helm’s views do not represent the government. The case has drawn attention because Powell serves as the national security adviser to Prime Minister Andy Burnham, making the post politically sensitive even though it was written by a family member rather than an official.

Al Jazeera reported that Palestine Action was banned in the UK in July 2025 and designated a terrorist organization after activists broke into a Royal Air Force base and sprayed red paint on two aircraft in protest at UK military support for Israel’s war in Gaza. Under the ban, support for the group can carry a prison sentence of up to 14 years. Rights groups have criticized the move, while police have made thousands of arrests in related cases.

The development matters because it highlights the continuing debate in the UK over free expression, pro-Palestinian activism and the scope of laws targeting support for proscribed organizations.