Police Take No Further Action Against National Security Adviser's Wife Over Social Media Post
Metropolitan Police assessed Sarah Helm's post referencing Palestine Action and found it did not meet the criminal threshold.
No further police action will be taken against Sarah Helm, wife of the government's national security adviser Jonathan Powell, after she posted on social media referencing Palestine Action. The Metropolitan Police announced on Saturday that Helm's post, made on X (formerly Twitter) on Thursday, was assessed by specialist officers and determined not to meet the criminal threshold.
On Friday, the Met Police had stated it was assessing an X post made on Thursday, October 15, referencing Palestine Action to determine if further investigation was required. Helm, responding to a discussion about author Sally Rooney, wrote on X, "God help us authors who support Palestine and Palestine Action."
Rooney had announced her intention to donate royalties from her books to Palestine Action, a group proscribed as a terrorist organization by the UK government in July 2025. Support for the group is a criminal offense with a potential penalty of up to 14 years in prison. Rooney's publisher, Faber, subsequently announced it would not sell her novels, including "Normal People" and "Conversations with Friends," in the UK due to her decision.
Palestine Action's stated goal is "ending global participation in Israel's genocidal and apartheid regime."