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 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 [meaning] it helps Israel directly to raise money to fund its genocide and apartheid against Palestinians”.
The Greens have subsequently accused the Scottish Government of breaching a Scottish Parliament vote for an Israel boycott.
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Greer asked Finance Secretary Jenny Gilruth at the end of June what action it has taken to ensure that the “selection of financial institutions to advise on and support its forthcoming bond-issuance scheme is consistent” with the Israel boycott vote.
But he has hit out at the minister after receiving a “non-answer”, adding that the Government had “failed” a simple test of whether it was committed to boycotting companies involved in Israel’s war crimes.
The answer given by Gilruth fails to mention Barclays or the BDS motion agreed in September last year.
She said: “The appointment of financial institutions to the framework supporting the Scottish Government’s multi-year bond programme marks an important milestone as the programme moves into its next phase.
“All appointments were made through a procurement process conducted in line with procurement regulations, policy and law. On 25 June 2026, the Scottish Government announced the appointment of nine banks to a framework that will support delivery of its bond programme during this parliamentary term. HSBC, Bank of America, NatWest, and RBC were appointed as joint bookrunners for the inaugural bond issuance.
“In response to the situation in Gaza, the Scottish Government has consistently advocated for peace, justice, and human rights, and will continue to do what it can to support a rapid resolution to the conflict and to alleviate the suffering of the most vulnerable. The First Minister met Palestinian Ambassador to the UK, Dr Husam Zomlot, on 27 July and discussed the situation in Gaza and the West Bank. During the meeting, the First Minister announced a further £500,000 funding to support access to food, healthcare, clean water and shelter.”
Part of Gilruth’s answer is repeated from a statement she gave previously when the Greens first raised concerns about the Barclays partnership.
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In September last year, a Green proposal asking for “the Scottish and UK Governments to immediately impose a package of boycotts, divestment and sanctions targeted at the state of Israel and at companies complicit in its military operations and its occupation of Palestine” was passed by 62 votes to 31, with 21 abstentions.
Greer told The National: “This is a non-answer from the Scottish Government and they know it. When it comes to supporting Palestine and opposing Israel, their actions just do not match their words.
“There is no BDS-compliant way to work with Barclays. The bank has financed companies supplying the weapons used in Israel’s genocide against Palestinians and it is a partner in the Israeli government’s own bond scheme.
“This was a simple test of the Scottish Government’s commitment to boycotting companies complicit in some of the gravest war crimes of this century, and they failed it.
“Companies that profit from apartheid and genocide against Palestinians should not be rewarded with Scottish Government partnerships, it’s as simple as that. Cosying up to Barclays is the opposite of what our Parliament voted for.”
Bonds would see the Government lent money by private investors in exchange for fixed interest payments and the return of their principal at a set date.
The Scotland Act 2016 devolved powers to Scotland to allow the issuing of government bonds for capital investment.
Greer has also called the SNP’s plans to issue Scottish bonds a “gimmick” and called for it to be stopped as it “creates a new barrier to Scottish independence”.
A report from William Thomson, of Resilient Economy, and Jim Osborne, from the Scottish Currency Group, said that the SNP Government should “pause” plans to issue bonds, saying that the proposals “will result in approximately £170 million leaking out of the Scottish economy”.
Thomson told The National that the bonds plan will “unquestionably” cost the Scottish Government more to borrow money than they currently pay to the UK Treasury National Loan Fund (NLF).