Key takeaways
- The UK Home Office cancelled Swedish academic Andreas Malm's Electronic Travel Authorisation on October 28, 2026, saying his presence was not conducive to the public good.
- Malm was due to speak in London alongside Palestine Action co-founder Huda Ammori, though the Home Office had not publicly explained the decision when Al Jazeera published its report.
- Because a standard visitor visa takes about three weeks to process, Malm could not reach the London panel in time even if he were approved.
- The case lands one week before the UK Supreme Court hears the challenge to the Palestine Action ban on November 4 and 5, 2026.
Andreas Malm, the Swedish climate scholar and author, has been barred from travelling to the United Kingdom after the Home Office cancelled his Electronic Travel Authorisation (ETA). According to Al Jazeera, the cancellation was dated Wednesday, October 28, 2026, and came a week before he was due to join a London panel with a co-founder of the proscribed group Palestine Action. The decision matters beyond the individual case because it tests how Britain applies entry rules to European visitors who need no visa.
The Home Office told Malm that his presence was “not conducive to the public good”, according to Al Jazeera. An ETA is a digital permit, required of visitors from countries whose nationals do not need a visa, that allows short stays in the UK. Malm was told he must now apply for a standard visitor, transit or temporary work visa, Tribune reported.
What exactly happened to Andreas Malm?
Malm is the author of How to Blow Up a Pipeline. According to Tribune, he had been set to appear at the launch of the magazine’s “Empire Now” issue, attend an academic conference and take part in a BBC programme. Al Jazeera reported that the Tribune panel would include Huda Ammori, a co-founder of Palestine Action, and would be chaired by Hala Hanina of Palestine Deep Dive.
Malm told Al Jazeera that he had travelled to the UK in May on an ETA and received no warning that it was at risk. The Home Office email said that if he applied for a visa, officials would examine his circumstances in more detail. Al Jazeera noted that the government website gives a processing time of three weeks for a standard visitor visa, so he could not attend next week’s panel even if approved.
Al Jazeera said the Home Office had not answered its request for clarification at the time of publication. Malm said he had contacted the department for an explanation and had received no reply. No official justification beyond the standard public-good wording has been published.
Why is the decision being contested?
Critics describe the move as a restriction on speech. Verso Books, Malm’s publisher, said in a statement that no British government had revoked an author’s right of entry in its more than 55 years of publishing. Verso also said it could only assume his positions on Palestine were the cause, since no reasons had been given. That is the publisher’s inference, not a government finding.
Irish novelist Sally Rooney, quoted by Al Jazeera, called Malm a “brilliant and influential” intellectual and described the decision as an attack on a respected climate expert. Tribune also cited the historian Adam Tooze and the Cambridge academic Priyamvada Gopal among those who criticised the move. Gareth Dale, a reader in political economy at Brunel University of London, told Al Jazeera that the decision pointed to continued suppression of speech under Prime Minister Andy Burnham.
Malm said the episode reflected “a drift towards authoritarianism” that did not begin with him, according to Al Jazeera. The UK government’s side of the argument has not yet been published, so the stated rationale remains the only official position on record.
Is the Andreas Malm ban part of a wider pattern?
Al Jazeera described the cancellation as part of a broader crackdown on pro-Palestine activists that began under former Prime Minister Keir Starmer. It noted that Sally Rooney’s books were withdrawn from sale in the UK this month because of her public support for Palestine Action. Tribune reported that the Home Office used the same wording as in June, when the American commentators Hasan Piker and Cenk Uygur also had their ETAs cancelled.
The legal setting is the proscription of Palestine Action under the Terrorism Act 2000. The Jerusalem Post reported that the Home Secretary banned the group in July 2025. The High Court later found the ban unlawful, but the Court of Appeal overturned that ruling in June, according to the Jewish Chronicle. The Jewish Chronicle added that Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood has defended the ban, saying the group’s conduct still meets the legal threshold.
There is a historical comparison. In 2009, Britain barred the Dutch lawmaker Geert Wilders over his anti-Islamic views, a decision that NBC News reported set off a wide debate on the limits of free speech. The same public-good test has been applied to figures from very different political positions, which is why applying it consistently is a recurring point of contention.
What does the case mean for UK relations with Europe?
No government has publicly protested the decision, and no statement from Sweden’s foreign ministry appears in the available reporting. The practical consequence is therefore reputational and administrative rather than diplomatic so far. ETAs are used by travellers from Europe, Australia, Canada and other countries, per Tribune, so the precedent applies to a large group of visitors who are used to visa-free entry.
The wider question is whether Britain will explain such cancellations more fully. Without published reasons, affected individuals cannot easily contest the decision, and universities and publishers cannot judge the risk of inviting foreign speakers.
What to watch
- Home Office response: whether the department gives a fuller reason for the cancellation, or confirms that it was linked to the Tribune panel.
- The Tribune panel: scheduled for next week, and whether Malm takes part remotely.
- November 4 and 5, 2026: the UK Supreme Court hearing on Huda Ammori’s challenge to the Palestine Action ban, as reported by the Jerusalem Post and the Jewish Chronicle.
- Any visa application: whether Malm applies, and how long a decision takes.
- Further ETA cancellations: whether other European or international speakers report similar notices.
Frequently asked questions
Why was Andreas Malm denied entry to the UK?
The Home Office cancelled his Electronic Travel Authorisation on October 28, 2026, saying his presence was not conducive to the public good. No further reason has been published. Malm believes the cause was a planned London panel with Palestine Action co-founder Huda Ammori, according to Al Jazeera.
What is an Electronic Travel Authorisation for the UK?
An ETA is a digital permit that visitors from countries whose nationals do not need a visa generally must hold to enter the UK. It is used by travellers from Europe, Australia, Canada and other countries. When one is cancelled, the traveller must apply for a standard visa instead.
Can Andreas Malm still travel to the UK?
He can apply for a standard visitor, transit or temporary work visa, and the Home Office says it would then review his circumstances. Al Jazeera reported that processing takes about three weeks, so he could not reach next week's London panel even if approved.
Sources
- UK denies entry to Swedish academic due to speak at Palestine event
- Andreas Malm Denied Entry to the UK to Speak at Tribune Event
- A statement in response to Andreas Malm being denied entry into the United Kingdom
- Reversing Palestine Action ban would threaten British national security
- UK's top court sets November hearing on Palestine Action ban
- UK bars anti-Islamic Dutch lawmaker
Top image: Steve Cadman / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 2.0)
This article was produced by the Intelligence Report Desk. Sources are linked below.
