SIR KEIR STARMER threatened to further crack down on pro-Palestine protests yesterday by restricting chants.

The Prime Minister’s latest draconian move comes after students defied his calls to wind down Tuesday’s demonstrations demanding an end to Israel’s genocide in Gaza, on the second anniversary of October 7 2023.

An inter-university march urged students to walk out of class to protest against Britain’s complicity in Israel’s war crimes and call for their institutions to divest from firms linked to the genocide.

The march set off in the capital from King’s College before passing the London School of Economics, University College London and ending at the gates of SOAS near Russell Square.

Demonstrations also took place at universities in Sheffield, Edinburgh and Glasgow.

Sir Keir had warned against the rallies, writing in the Times that it was “un-British to have so little respect for others.”

Yesterday, during a trade mission to India, Sir Keir was asked what action he would take after the student protesters defied his calls.

He said: “I’ve asked the Home Secretary to look more broadly at what other powers are available, how they’re being used, and whether they should be changed in any way.

“I think we need to go further than that in relation to some of the chants that are going on at some of these protests.”

Over the weekend, Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood announced plans to amend sections 12 and 14 of the Public Order Act 1986 so that police can consider the “cumulative impact” of protests.

Under the changes, police could instruct organisers to hold protests elsewhere if a site has seen repeated demonstrations.

Existing legislation, including powers to ban demonstrations outright, will also be reviewed.

Ms Mahmood cited large and repeated demonstrations as causing “considerable fear” within the Jewish community.

The Home Secretary similarly warned that Palestine protests held following a terror attack on a synagogue in Manchester last week were “un-British.”

A Momentum spokesperson said: “This is an authoritarian and cynical overreach by a leader desperately out of step with his own party which stated clearly at conference: stop the genocide.

“Rather than using the police to crackdown on free speech, Starmer should listen to the labour movement and impose a full arms embargo on Israel.”

A Defend Our Juries spokesperson said: “Every day in Gaza, the equivalent of a classroom of children is being killed by Israeli forces — yet our Prime Minister is talking about banning chants. 

“That he’s only targeting pro-Palestinian chants, while saying nothing about those supporting Israel’s genocide or even far-right white supremacist slogans, makes the agenda painfully clear.”