Award-winning Irish novelist Sally Rooney has seen her books withdrawn from sale in the United Kingdom due to her public backing of the direct action group Palestine Action, her publisher Faber announced this week.
The British government banned Palestine Action as a terrorist organisation in July 2025. The activist group remains entirely legal in the Republic of Ireland, where Rooney lives. Following the British proscription, the best-selling author of Normal People and Intermezzo publicly stated that she intended to donate royalties from her book sales and BBC television adaptations to the organisation.
Under United Kingdom counter-terrorism legislation, providing financial support to a proscribed entity is treated as a severe criminal offence. In an official statement published on its website, British publisher Faber explained that existing UK laws created conditions where it could not transfer UK sales revenue to the novelist.
Faber stated that “circumstances where Faber cannot pass on UK earnings to Sally Rooney” made continuing book distribution impossible. The publisher remarked: “To sell a writer's work and not be able to pass on earnings is an unconscionable situation for a publisher.” Consequently, Faber confirmed that in full agreement with Rooney, it decided to halt supplying her work in the UK across any format, though it will continue selling her books in other countries and territories.
Rooney addressed the withdrawal in a statement shared with AFP, explaining that fulfilling commercial publishing agreements in Britain had become legally hazardous. “I wrote an opinion piece expressing my intention to go on supporting Palestine Action, which is not a proscribed or otherwise prohibited group here in the Republic of Ireland,” she said.
Rooney added: “As a result, the fulfilment of contracts to publish my work in the UK could now constitute a serious criminal offence.” The author said the measure followed deliberate consultations with Faber, stating: “I have made every effort to be honest with the public about my beliefs and intentions, and I am wholly prepared to accept the consequences.”
The novelist had previously addressed the High Court in London, cautioning that proscribing Palestine Action would severely undermine freedom of expression. To avert potential arrest under British terrorism laws, Rooney has avoided travelling to the United Kingdom.
The withdrawal of her books prompted immediate criticism from British lawmakers. Member of Parliament Ian Byrne called on the government to lift the ban on Palestine Action, describing the punitive impact on Rooney as an injustice. Writing on social media platform X, Byrne noted that when he voted against the proscription, he and other parliamentarians “warned of the draconian consequences it would bring.”
Byrne reported that thousands of individuals have been arrested and criminalised “simply for holding a sign” since the legislation came into force. Denouncing the ban as “an utterly disgraceful attack on freedom of expression,” Byrne demanded that British authorities overturn the proscription.
