A new report by two Labour MPs has estimated that defence companies have lost out on £30m in investment because of council boycotts.
At least a dozen councils have passed motions ‘divesting’ from defence companies due to the war in Gaza or because of a desire to focus pension funds on ‘ethical’ firms.
The MPs, Luke Charters and Alex Baker, told the Telegraph there was a ‘concerning trend among UK councils to divest from defence, with at least a dozen authorities implementing partial or full exclusion policies since 2022.’
They added there was ‘untapped potential’ in local government pensions to boost the defence sector.
Commenting on the report on X, Charters said: 'One of the issues we found was councils flying flags in support of Ukraine from their town halls, while blocking investment in the British defence industry.'
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