A Transport for London (TfL) staff member refused to remove “Free Palestine” graffiti and told the passenger who reported it that there should be more of it.

The incident, which took place on 10 August 2025, occurred after a passenger tried to report  the graffiti at Bank Station. A “Service Information” board at the top of the Docklands Light Railway escalators had been defaced with the words “Free Palestine” written across it. However, this passenger was unable to find any staff at Bank Station.

The passenger asked her friend, who had travelled on to Liverpool Street Station, to report it there. The friend spoke to a member of staff near the ticket line at Liverpool Street Station, who said he would contact Bank Station. He went into an office or control room. The friend said she would wait so he could let her know to whom he had spoken and whether the sign would be removed.

However, instead of this member of staff returning, a different member of staff with a name badge describing him as “Customer Service Supervisor”, together with another member of staff, approached the friend They walked towards her in a manner which she described as “hostile and confrontational”.

The Supervisor was wearing a “Palestine Solidarity” badge featuring the Palestinian flag and RMT logo and told her there should be more signs like the one she was reporting. He described his own badge as “lovely” and having “beautiful colours”, and refused to take any action regarding the graffiti. The passenger reported feeling “harassed, intimidated and unsafe” by his behaviour.

UK Lawyers for Israel (UKLFI) reported this incident to TfL, pointing out that the “Customer Service Supervisor” had intentionally behaved in an inappropriate, rude, insulting and hateful manner to a customer.  Not only did he wear an intimidating badge, but he acted in an intimidating manner,  mocked the passenger, openly displayed support for the Palestinian cause and also voiced his support for more Free Palestine graffiti to be scrawled around the underground system.

UKLFI said that the incident amounted to harassment under Section 29 (3) of the Equality Act 2010, as the employee had created “an intimidating, hostile and offensive environment” for Jewish and Israeli passengers. UKLFI emphasised that public transport should be a neutral and safe space for all users, and that allowing staff to display politically charged symbols undermines this neutrality.

There have been other recent reports of TfL staff behaving inappropriately to Jewish members of the public.

UKLFI also reminded TfL that they had reported a similar incident earlier in October.

TfL has responded to UKLFI’s earlier complaint by confirming that Palestine flags and other non-TfL symbols are not allowed to be worn by staff.

“In October 2023, we issued guidance to all our customer-facing staff who are required to wear a uniform that they must not wear additional non-uniform garments – this includes non-TfL issued badges or other logos. Colleagues wishing to do so are permitted to display a single trade union affiliation badge which must not contain anything other than the trade union’s official name and logo .

TfL also contacted all of its recognised trade unions in November 2023 to remind them of these requirements.  TfL has said that staff are being reminded locally of our required uniform standards when booking on for duty and they are  also arranging for a network-wide reminder to be issued.

Caroline Turner, Director of UKLFI, said:   “It is unacceptable for public transport staff to bully and harass passengers, make them feel unsafe,  and for staff to fail to carry out their duties as a result of their political beliefs.  TfL must ensure that its policies of neutrality are properly enforced and that staff whose behaviour has been negatively affected by their political beliefs are suitably disciplined.”