76% of Israelis aware of UK settlement trade ban, poll shows

Seventy-six percent of Israelis surveyed in October were aware of the United Kingdom government’s decision to impose a trade ban on goods from illegal settlements, according to a new poll released by the social research group aChord.

The survey conducted last month measured how this policy, announced in September by Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband, influenced voter behavior during the recent general election. The data indicates that the measure was not a decisive factor in the election outcome.

Among supporters of the political bloc backing Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, three-quarters stated that UK sanctions and the trade ban did not affect their vote at all. For the small number of voters whose choices shifted, the changes moved in both directions, resulting in no detectable net effect on the election results.

While the trade ban itself did not sway the election, a clear preference emerged regarding future policy adjustments. Overall, 50 percent of the public believes that settlement and construction policies in the West Bank should be adjusted to avoid an escalation of sanctions and international isolation.

This view is most common among supporters of the opposition Change bloc led by Gadi Eisenkot. Seventy-one percent of these voters said the government should adapt its settlements policy to avoid further sanctions. In contrast, only 14 percent of Netanyahu bloc voters agreed, with the majority preferring the government continue its policy regardless of the cost.

The poll also tested the link between personal financial impact and political support. Only 36 percent of all respondents agreed that the settlement policy should continue if sanctions on banks financing construction led to higher interest rates or difficulties transferring money abroad. The data suggests that as voters perceive a higher personal price, opposition to the current settlement policy increases.

Support for the specific mechanism of the UK trade ban remains limited. Sixty-three percent of all those surveyed opposed the ban on importing goods from illegal settlements. Twenty-six percent supported the measure or would support it if it were confirmed that the ban would not apply to goods from outside settlements.

Hannah Weisfeld, director of the British-Jewish organization Yachad, said the research shows the Israeli public recognizes that a policy shift is needed if the international community creates incentives for change from the outside. She noted that the findings emphasize the importance of UK and other allies taking targeted action against the occupation.