Sally Rooney can no longer sell books in UK due to Palestine Action support

Irish novelist Sally Rooney has said she can no longer receive royalties from UK sales and that her UK publisher will stop supplying her books there because she publicly pledged to support Palestine Action after it was proscribed under the UK Terrorism Act in July 2025. Rooney explained that she had declared an intention to funnel proceeds to the banned group, and legal advice and the producer of TV adaptations warned that fulfilling UK contracts or accepting payments could amount to an offence under section 15 of the Act, which criminalises providing money or property that may be used for terrorism and carries a maximum 14‑year sentence. Rooney cancelled a planned UK trip for fear of arrest, and Faber, after consultation with her, decided it could not sell her work in the UK where it would be unable to pass on earnings.

The move risks removing widely read books such as Normal People (over 1m copies sold) and Conversations With Friends and Beautiful World, Where Are You (each over 500,000) from UK shelves. A legal challenge to the proscription is proceeding toward the supreme court, with campaigners and rights groups warning of free‑speech harms; more than 3,700 people have been arrested and about 2,500 charged in relation to alleged support for Palestine Action, mostly under section 13. Faber will continue to sell Rooney’s work elsewhere, some shops are selling existing stock, and commentators and booksellers have expressed opposition to the effect of the law on artistic expression.