UK and Irish governments condemn alleged comments

The UK government has condemned alleged comments made by rap group Kneecap as “completely unacceptable” and suggested they should not be able to receive government funding.

Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch blocked a government grant to the bilingual Belfast group while she was business secretary, but the decision was overturned.

Video footage has emerged of the group at a concert in November 2023, where one of the band members appears to say: “The only good Tory is a dead Tory. Kill your local MP”.

A spokesperson for Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer said he did not think “individuals expressing those views should be receiving government funding”.

Kneecap have said on social media that they have “faced a co-ordinated smear campaign”.

The footage is being assessed by counter-terrorism police and Badenoch has called for prosecution.

The Metropolitan Police said they are assessing that and another video, from November last year, where the footage appeared to show a band member shouting “up Hamas, up Hezbollah” at a performance in London.

The Taoiseach (Irish prime minister) Micháel Martin called on the trio to “urgently clarify” the comments.

Both Hamas and Hezbollah are banned in the UK and it is a crime to express support for them.

None of the members of Kneecap has been charged with any offences.

In Dublin on Monday the taoiseach said: “Have they, or do they, support Hamas and Hezbollah, because that would be unacceptable.

“I mean Hezbollah are responsible, in my view, for the murder of Sean Rooney.

“And both Hamas and Hezbollah have views that are absolutely… not just views, but participated in terrorist activities and appalling killing of innocent people, as witnessed on October the 7th.

“But it’s not clear to me that they do, that Kneecap does support Hezbollah and Hamas. It’s been asserted that they have made commentary in support of both. I think they need to urgently clarify that.”

He said there was a “huge responsibility” when it comes to the safety of public representatives.

“I think it’s important that free speech is always facilitated and the capacity to speak out and criticise and condemn policies of others. That’s all legitimate. But in terms of life and security and safety of people, that’s a different issue,” he added.

Last year, Kneecap won a discrimination case against the UK government after Badenoch withdrew arts funding for the band, in a move which was deemed “unlawful”.

Kneecap was awarded £14,250 – the same amount they were initially granted.

Badenoch, speaking on a local election campaigning visit to Lincolnshire, said the statement was “disgusting “and the band “should be prosecuted” and that “people are in prison for sending tweets that don’t go that far”.

She said they “should not be glorifying terrorism” and are “anti-British”.

Northern Ireland’s Economy Minister Caoimhe Archibald told BBC News NI that she did not agree with what was said, but that Kneecap is “group that have been very vocal on issues that are important to them like Gaza”.

“I think the most outrageous issue facing the world today is the ongoing genocide that we are seeing in Palestine and the bombardment that continues on a daily basis, the blockading of aid, the slaughter of innocent women and children and I think that’s what our focus should be on as an international community in bringing an end to that,” she added.

DUP leader Gavin Robinson said Kneecap had become a “hatefest”.

The East Belfast MP said the band’s position was “appalling and outrageous” and said there was a collective political will in London and Dublin to “call out” their comments.

“These gentlemen don’t need to be on a stage they need to be in a courtroom because it is a hate crime what they are doing,” he added.

The Alliance MLA, Sian Mulholland, said that Kneecap’s alleged comments “crosses a line from art as a tool of protest and into incitement”.

She described the rap group’s political views on the conflict in Gaza as “valid” however, Mulholland said the band’s views were being “undermined and overshadowed” by the group’s actions.

The First Minister of Scotland, John Swinney, has backed calls for Kneecap to be axed from Glasgow’s TRSMT music festival this summer.

Speaking at the Scottish Trades Union Congress in Dundee, John Swinney said the band’s alleged comments had “crossed a line” and were “beyond the pale”.

There has also been a call by a Labour MP for the group to be removed from the Glastonbury Festival line-up in June.

The band are listed to play on the Saturday of this year’s festival.

In a letter to Sir Michael Eavis, a co-creator of the festival, David Taylor said it would be “deeply troubling” to see the band performing at the event.

Meanwhile, a spokesperson for a German concert promoter and event producer, FKP GmbH, said Kneecap “will not be performing at Hurricane or Southside festival this year” in the country.

On Monday, the daughter of a Conservative MP who was stabbed to death at a constituency surgery said the rap group should apologise.

Katie Amess, whose father Sir David Amess was an MP when he was murdered in 2021, said she was “gobsmacked at the stupidity of somebody or a group of people being in the public eye and saying such dangerous, violent rhetoric”.

Ms Amess said she would be prepared to meet Kneecap and have a conversation with them.

“If they are willing to listen to how my life has been obliterated and will never be the same, for them to say those words is obviously very triggering,” she said.

Last week, TV personality Sharon Osbourne said the group should have their United States work visas revoked after they ended their set at Coachella, an annual music festival in California, with pro-Palestinian messages.

Ms Osbourne said that Kneecap “took their performance to a different level by incorporating aggressive political statements”.

When asked by BBC News NI for response, the band said: “Statements aren’t aggressive, murdering 20,000 children is though.”