The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) is not yet banned in the UK. Yet, in 2023, the Labour opposition pledged to proscribe the IRGC if it came to power. Now that Labour is in government—and the IRGC remains a terrorist organisation that seeks the destruction of Israel and the Jewish people—Labour should honour its word and ban it immediately.
Shadow Home Secretary Yvette Cooper said that if her party won power, it would introduce legislation to ban dangerous, state-sponsored organisations, including the IRGC. Under Labour’s pledge, it would become a criminal offence to belong to the IRGC, attend its meetings, or encourage support for it.
Yvette Cooper is no longer the ‘Shadow’ Home Secretary—she is now the Home Secretary. Likewise, the then Shadow Foreign Secretary, David Lammy, is now Foreign Secretary. And the then Leader of the Opposition, Keir Starmer, now holds the keys to Number 10 as Prime Minister.
Labour must keep its pledge.
At the time, Jewish leadership in Britain welcomed the announcement. The Board of Deputies said, “The far-reaching influence of the IRGC poses a significant threat to our community, to wider British society, and the people of Iran itself.”
Claudia Mendoza, co-CEO of the Jewish Leadership Council, said she remained “concerned by the threat posed by the IRGC,” adding: “We are pleased that the Labour Party recognises the danger of its continued activity and welcome its pledge to proscribe it.”
Labour must honour its pledge—not only for the integrity of the commitment itself, but for the sake of the Jewish community that welcomed and appreciated the decisive stance. This is a matter of ensuring the protection of the Jewish community in the UK, and standing up to Iranian-sponsored terror at home.
Speaking at the Royal United Services Institute in July 2023, Cooper said:
“As part of the strategy, Labour will bring forward new changes to legislation to allow the government to ban hostile state-sponsored organisations who undermine our national security.
So instead of trying and failing to use counter-terror legislation to proscribe organisations like Wagner or the IRGC, we will introduce a bespoke proscribing mechanism to address state-sponsored threats.
We will work with the security and intelligence agencies, public and private sector businesses, universities, and partners here and abroad to ensure this strategy is comprehensive, collaborative, and fit for the challenges we face.”
Earlier that year, in January 2023, both Yvette Cooper and Shadow Foreign Secretary David Lammy urged immediate proscription under existing terrorism laws. Speaking in Parliament, Lammy challenged the Conservative government to act:
“The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps is responsible for 10 kidnap and death plots on British soil, the execution of Alireza Akbari, the unjust imprisonment of British nationals, supporting violent militia across the Middle East, and the brutal crackdown on courageous Iranian protesters. Labour has been clear … We would proscribe the IRGC, either by using existing terrorism legislation or by creating a new process of proscription for hostile state actors. When will the Foreign Secretary act?”
The IRGC represents a serious threat to UK citizens—particularly members of the British Jewish community, UK nationals connected to Israel, and broader UK interests across the Middle East and Gulf region. It provides weapons, funding, and training to terrorist groups such as Hamas, Hezbollah, Palestinian Islamic Jihad, and the Houthis. The IRGC’s Quds Force actively promotes Iran’s revolutionary ideology and seeks Israel’s destruction, referring to it as a “cancerous tumour” that must be “eradicated.”
It is vital that the Labour government fulfils its pledge to proscribe the IRGC. CUFI has an active campaign, Lions Together, calling on the UK government to ban the IRGC without delay.
