The call comes ahead of a Scottish Parliament debate on ‘Middle East: Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions’. The debate follows growing scrutiny of how public bodies are applying commitments announced by the Scottish Government in response to the crisis in Gaza and the wider situation across the occupied Palestinian territory.
In September 2025, the Scottish Government announced that new public funding would be paused for defence companies whose products or services are provided to countries where there is plausible evidence of genocide, including Israel. The announcement also instructed bodies including Scottish Enterprise, where possible, not to support trade between Scotland and Israel.
However, Oxfam Scotland has previously raised concerns that key information about how those safeguards are being implemented has yet to be published.
Campaigners say the debate provides an opportunity for Scottish Ministers to show how commitments announced by the Scottish Government are being translated into action and how public bodies are ensuring Scottish public money is not supporting companies linked to serious violations of international law.
Oxfam Scotland says the debate comes as Palestinians continue to endure immense suffering, with tens of thousands killed, families driven from their homes and violence continuing across Gaza and the occupied West Bank.
Against that backdrop, campaigners say public commitments made by governments must be judged not only by what is announced, but by what is delivered.
Katherine May, Head of Oxfam Scotland, said: “When history asks whether Scotland did everything it could in the face of the immense suffering in Gaza and the escalating violence in the occupied West Bank, we should be able to answer with confidence.
"At the moment, Scottish Enterprise’s revised human rights due diligence policy remains behind closed doors and impenetrable to public scrutiny. Scottish Ministers should be able to demonstrate that the commitments they announced are being properly implemented and making a real difference.
Without transparency, confidence isn’t possible. When governments make promises in response to atrocities, people have a right to know whether those promises are being kept."
/ENDS
For more information and interviews, please contact: Rebecca Lozza, Oxfam Scotland Media and Communications Adviser: rlozza1@oxfam.org.uk / 07917738450
