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A court has ruled that the UK government acted illegally with a last-minute block of funding for Kneecap.
The Belfast trio originally accused the government of attempting to “silence” them, following a last-minute block in February of funds from the British Phonographic Industry (BPI) funding award – issued under the Music Export Growth Scheme (MEGS) to support the expansion of bands in global markets.
Kneecap alleged that the government had stopped the funding due to their provocative 2019 anti-DUP tour poster, which they claimed “pissed off the Tories”.
Then, in June, the band revealed that they had been granted permission to challenge the block, with a court appearance scheduled for November 14. They argued that the government’s denial of the grant unlawfully discriminated against them based on their nationality and political opinion.
Now, a court has ruled that the move was in fact illegal, and Kneecap have received the £14,250 prize, which they revealed they have distributed to two charities in Belfast.
In a statement shared today (November 29), the band wrote: “Today, unsurprisingly the British government’s own courts ruled that they acted illegally in stopping funding to Kneecap.
“For us this action was never about £14,250, it could have been 50 pence. The motivation was equality. This was an attack on artistic culture, an attack on the Good Friday Agreement itself and an attack on Kneecap and our way of expressing ourselves,” they continued.
Kneecap have sent “the full amount awarded” to two youth organisations in their native Belfast – both of which “work with the two communities to create a better future for our young people”.
Half of the funding (£7,125) will go to Glór Na Móna, an organisation that promotes the Irish language in Ballymurphy, and the other half will go to RCity Belfast, an organisation that provides leadership opportunities to young people on the Shankill Road.
They went on to say: “The former Secretary of State Kemi Badenoch and her Department acted unlawfully, this is now a fact. They don’t like that we oppose British rule, that we don’t believe that England serves anyone in Ireland and the working classes on both sides of the community deserve better; deserve funding, deserve appropriate mental health services, deserve to celebrate music and art and deserve the freedom to express our culture.
“They broke their own laws in trying to silence Kneecap. The reason for this was they didn’t like our art, in particular our beautiful 2019 tour poster of Boris Johnson on a rocket.
“They didn’t like our views, in particular our opposition to the ‘United Kingdom’ itself and our belief in a United Ireland which is our right to do. They didn’t like the fact that we are totally opposed to all they represent, embodied right now by their arming of genocide in Gaza,” they wrote.
“What they did was a fascist type action, attempt to block art that does not agree with their views after an independent body made a decision. Their own courts has now found in Kneecap’s favour, as we knew they would. They have tried to silence us and they have failed.”
The band then thanked their lawyer Darragh Mackin and their barristers Joe Brolly
and Ronan Lavery. “They told us at the outset ‘This was a penalty kick with no
goalkeeper’…and it sure was, back of the net!” they continued. “Free Palestine! – Kneecap x”
Mackin added: “Today is not only a victory for Kneecap, but a victory for the arts,
for culture, for the freedom of expression. Kneecap continue to lead by example in practicing that they preach. Not only do they sing about CEARTA (rights), but today they have shown they will even hold the British Government itself to account to protect them.”
In response to the donation from Kneecap, Conchúr Ó Muadaigh, Chairperson of Glór na Móna said: “On behalf of everyone at Glór na Móna, we want to say a huge Go raibh míle maith agaibh to Kneecap for your incredibly generous donation. This donation will go a long way in supporting our ambitious plans for the future and ensuring a new generation of Gaels have access to youth services through the medium of Irish. Your support will have a lasting impact on our work with young people and the Irish language revival here in West Belfast.”
Sarah Jane Waite, Director of RCITY Belfast added: “We would like to express our thanks to the generosity and support from Kneecap to RCITY Youth. We will be using the donation towards a number of themes within our projects. At this time of the year our groups focus on social action projects that positively impact the communities across North Belfast supporting some of the most vulnerable groups.” Waite shared that the donation will partly be used to fund their ongoing soup kitchen “which feeds 200 children daily in the most deprived area of the community.”
NME spoke to Kneecap about the funding block earlier this year, where they shared their initial reaction upon hearing about the news.
“I think we actually ended up getting some money out of Culture Ireland for flights,” said Mo Chara. “We’re lucky because we’re touring band playing spaces where we could make a few bob, but the other Irish bands were in more of an up and coming position. It was a lot harder on them because they had to sacrifice a lot more.”
Kneecap’s debut album ‘Fine Art’ was released this year, with NME hailing it worthy of five stars: “An ode to the abandon and unity that come from chain-smoking with your mates and getting lost in the rave, ‘Parful’ perhaps best captures ‘Fine Art’ and the spirit of Kneecap.
“In the dark of the night out, the moment is all that matters and the rave will set you free. To shout that in a ‘dying’ language on a record that couldn’t sound any more alive? That’s power – and Kneecap have it.”