The UK's Metropolitan Police announced on 17 October that it will not pursue a criminal investigation into a post on X by Sarah Helm, wife of national security adviser Jonathan Powell, after concluding the post did not meet the threshold for a criminal offence, according to information released.
A Met Police spokesperson said officers reviewed Helm's post and concluded it "does not meet the criminal threshold. No further action will be taken by police." A day earlier, police had said they were "assessing whether further investigation is required."
Helm, an author and journalist, wrote on X on 16 October: "God bless us authors, who support Palestine and Palestine Action." The post appeared after publisher Faber announced during the week that Irish novelist Sally Rooney could not sell her books in the UK after she said she planned to use royalties to support Palestine Action.
Faber explained in a statement on its website that current UK legal rules prevented it from transferring income from the UK market to Rooney. "Selling a writer's work without being able to pass on their income is an unacceptable situation for a publisher," Faber said, adding that it had reached a decision with Rooney to stop supplying her works in the UK in any format while continuing to sell them in other countries and regions.
Responding to Helm's post, the non-governmental organisation Campaign Against Antisemitism wrote on X that the post was "staggering" and that "clearly the police need to investigate, Ms Helm must face the full force of the law." Asked for comment on 16 October, a government spokesperson said Helm's comments "in no way represent the government."
Palestine Action was designated a "terrorist" organisation by UK lawmakers from July 2025. Amnesty International says more than 3,500 people have been arrested in the UK on charges of supporting Palestine Action since the ban took effect, many in cases involving only holding a banner. Palestine Action previously challenged the government's ban, but the English Court of Appeal ruled in June that the prohibition was lawful.
