A CABINET councillor has said Barclays bank has not given a “satisfactory answer” over investments with defence firms in Israel.

The Town Hall has been challenged by campaigners over its choice of bank and pension deposits, and is due to tender for a new banking contract next year. Gaza protesters held a demonstration outside a council meeting last month demanding that Islington withdraws from its current deal with Barclays.

Councillor Diarmaid Ward said during public questions at Thursday’s full council meeting: “I wholeheartedly share all of your concerns about Barclays investment practices. It is an issue that is especially important to me as someone who has lived and worked in the West Bank as an English teacher and a human rights advocate. Many of the children that I taught in Abu Dis in the East Jerusalem area are now grown up themselves. They’ve got families of their own, and yet another generation is living through military occupation, and that is absolutely awful.”

He added that Islington had been in talks with Barclays for three years and met with its “global chief executive”.

“We’ve challenged their positions on fossil fuel investments and their environmental record and their human rights record,” Cllr Ward said.

“There has been some positive change. For example, Barclays have committed to halting new investments in some of the most harmful, dirtiest fossil fuels like tar sands, but in relation to their complicity in human rights abuses and the occupation of the Palestinian territories in breach of international law, we have not had a satisfactory answer.”

Barclays said the nature of its share trading had been misconstrued, but added: “It is the role of government to decide foreign policy and laws which restrict the delivery of weapons to any one country. We have noted the UK and US governments’ concern with respect to civilian deaths and the targeting of aid workers, and will continue to monitor developments closely.”