Sally Rooney has said she is withdrawing her books from sale in the UK because of her support for Palestine Action, the direct-action group banned under terrorism law last year.

The Irish novelist, whose books include Normal People and Conversations With Friends, said her public backing for the group meant she could no longer receive royalties from UK sales without the risk of committing an offence.

Her publisher, Faber, has agreed to stop supplying her work within the UK.

The statement

In a statement, Rooney said: "In July 2025, the direct-action protest group Palestine Action was proscribed as a terrorist organisation in the UK. The following month, I wrote an opinion piece expressing my intention to go on supporting Palestine Action, which is not a proscribed or otherwise prohibited group here in the Republic of Ireland.

"As a result, the fulfilment of contracts to publish my work in the UK could now constitute a serious criminal offence. After a process of consultation and deliberation, and with my full agreement, my publisher Faber has therefore determined that it can no longer supply my work within the UK. I have made every effort to be honest with the public about my beliefs and intentions, and I am wholly prepared to accept the consequences."

After the ban, Rooney said she would use proceeds from her sales to support Palestine Action. She later cancelled a trip to the UK to collect an award, for fear of arrest.

What the law says

Section 15 of the Terrorism Act makes it an offence to provide money or property while knowing, or having reasonable cause to suspect, that it will or may be used for the purposes of terrorism. It carries a maximum sentence of 14 years in prison.

Rooney said last year she had been advised that any payment to her by the independent producer of the TV adaptations of her novels could breach terrorism laws if it knew or suspected she would use the royalties to fund Palestine Action.

Faber said: "Current legislation in the UK has led to circumstances where Faber cannot pass on UK earnings to Sally Rooney for her work. To sell a writer's work and not be able to pass on earnings is an unconscionable situation for a publisher."

A huge commercial loss

Rooney is one of the most successful literary novelists of her generation and has been described as its voice. Normal People has sold more than one million copies in the UK, while Conversations With Friends and Beautiful World, Where Are You have each sold more than 500,000.

The BBC adaptation of Normal People was watched 62.7 million times on iPlayer, making it the broadcaster's most-streamed series of 2020.

The wider row

The government proscribed Palestine Action after members broke into RAF Brize Norton and damaged aircraft. Ministers argue the group's campaign of criminal damage against defence-related sites justified the ban and that national security must come first.

Opponents of the ban – including Rooney, who gave a statement to the High Court in support of a legal challenge – say proscribing a protest group under terrorism law has had a chilling effect on freedom of expression. Rooney warned at the time that her books could disappear from UK shops and that new work might be prevented from being published here. That warning has now come true.

Supporters of the law say that no one is above it, however famous, and that publicly pledging money to a banned organisation carries obvious consequences.

What happens next

It is not yet clear whether existing stock will remain in bookshops or how the decision will affect library copies, e-books and audiobooks. Copies will remain available in Ireland and elsewhere.

For readers in Scotland and the rest of the UK, the immediate effect is simple: one of the most popular novelists of the century is, by her own choice and by the force of British law, about to vanish from the shelves.