Last week Unison and the Fire Brigades Union took very different decisions on Palestine. Unison reiterated its commitment to suspend relations with the Israeli trade union federation Histadrut, and extended its support for Boycott Divestment and Sanctions, supporting the Russell Tribunal on Palestine, resolving to brief its representatives dealing with pension fund investment and develop guidance to stop public service contracts being awarded to companies whose activities in the Occupied Territories breach the 4th Geneva Convention.

This article was written in 2010 as a contribution to a BNC e-magazine commemorating the 5th anniversary of the BDS call in July 9th 2005.