Sónar festival hit with artist boycott over alleged links to Israel
Sónar, one of Europe’s leading electronic music festivals, is under threat after dozens of musicians and DJs announced a boycott over the event’s parent company KKR’s alleged links to Israel.More than 70 artists signed an open letter to the festival, which is due to take place in Barcelona from 12-14 June, stating that “we oppose any affiliation between the cultural sector and entities complicit in war crimes”.The boycott from artists such as Kode9, Lolo & Sosaku, Juliana Huxtable and Sunny Graves comes amid claims that KKR is linked to housing developments in the illegally occupied West Bank, in addition to other business interests in Israel.This claim is based on the fact that KKR is a major investor in the German media company Axel Springer, which runs ads for developments in the occupied territories on Israel’s Yad2 classified ad site, owned by Springer.In June 2024, KKR, a US investment company with an estimated $710bn (£526bn) in assets, paid €1.
3bn (£1,09bn) to acquire the entertainment company Superstruct and with it a controlling interest in 80 music festivals across 10 European countries and Australia,KKR’s portfolio includes energy companies, the US publisher Simon & Schuster and Thames Water,Spain’s culture minister Ernest Urtasun said that KKR is “not welcome in Spain”, adding that “for many years it’s been policy that companies with economic interests in illegal settlements in Palestine cannot operate normally in the European Union”,Sónar issued a statement in which it dissociated itself from KKR’s financial activities, over which it has no control, and reaffirmed its commitment to diversity and human rights.
KKR declined to comment on the allegations of its links to Israel and referred the Guardian to Superstruct’s statement in which the latter company says it is “horrified by the scale of suffering” in Gaza, adding that, despite KKR’s acquisition, Superstruct remains “independently run, making its own decisions based on what is in the best interests of our fans, artists and colleagues”.Asked what more Sónar could do, given that it didn’t choose its owner, Lolo of Lolo & Sosaku, said: “What I don’t get is people who defend Sónar saying it isn’t KKR when in some sense it is, because Sónar was a family and now it isn’t.When you sell yourself to something like Superstruct you know what’s going to happen and you’ve lost touch with the essence of what you were about to begin with.”The Netherlands-based Animistic Beliefs cancelled their Sónar show because they claim KKR profits from “war, climate destruction and systems of oppression”, adding that “we know no space is free from contradiction but somewhere the line has to be drawn”.The band La Élite say they are boycotting the FIB festival in July which is held in Benicassìm, near Valencia, because of its association with KKR.
“People are frustrated and feel a need to dissociate themselves from these festivals and obviously no one wants their money to go directly to these bastards,” the band told the Guardian.“The ways things stand, the mere fact of calling things by their name, that is, genocide, amounts to making a stand,” they said.“Beyond that, it’s up to everyone and their conscience to do what they can.”At least 15 artists have also pulled out of this weekend’s Field Day festival in London, also owned by Superstruct.In a statement, Field Day, which says it had no say in the KKR takeover, said: “We would like to say, clearly and directly, that we stand with the people of Gaza and support the peaceful aims of the Palestinian civil organisations and everyone working tirelessly to give them a voice.
”Last year Sónar+D, a programme that runs alongside the festival dedicated to innovation and technology, received around €880,000 (£740,000) in subsidies from the Catalan government, Barcelona city council and the EU.Neither the regional government nor the city council subsidises the music festival.
Thames Water boss ordered to tell MPs if executives received bonus payments
The chief executive of Thames Water has been ordered to tell MPs whether any executives have received payments from a controversial bonus package taken from a £3bn loan.Britain’s biggest water company admitted last week that senior managers were in line for “substantial” bonuses linked to an emergency £3bn loan. Thames claimed the payouts were vital to retain staff and prevent rival companies from “picking off” its best employees. The disclosure provoked fury as the company has said its finances are “hair-raising” and that it came “very close to running out of money entirely” last year.On Tuesday, the environment secretary, Steve Reed, announced the bonuses had been withdrawn by the water company after the Guardian revealed the chair of Thames Water had wrongly claimed they were insisted upon by creditors
M&S contractor ‘investigating whether it was gateway for cyber-attack’
An Indian company that operates Marks & Spencer’s IT helpdesk is reportedly investigating whether it was used by cybercriminals to gain access to systems at the retailer, which is battling a devastating hack.M&S said this week that “threat actors” had gained access to the retailer’s systems through one of its contractors – understood to be Tata Consultancy Services (TCS).The clothing, food and homeware retailer confirmed the hackers used “social engineering” techniques to attack them, such as posing as a staff member to fool a helpdesk into giving away passwords.TCS, which has worked with M&S for more than a decade, has been helping the retailer with its inquiries into the cyber-attack, which began over the Easter weekend. The retailer said the attack could cost it up to £300m in profit
Sunny spring drives biggest jump in retail sales in Great Britain in four years
Sunny spring weather sent shoppers flocking to supermarkets and specialists such as butchers, bakers and alcohol outlets last month, fuelling the strongest quarterly jump in retail sales in Great Britain in almost four years.Retail sales volumes rose by 1.2% in April, well above City forecasts of an increase of between 0.2% and 0.4%, marking the fourth straight month of sales growth
UK private sector shrinking as firms cut jobs; pressure to raise taxes as government borrowing jumps – as it happened
Britain’s private sector is shrinking for the second month running as factory output falls at the fastest rate in a year and a half, a new survey shows.The latest poll of purchasing managers at UK companies found that private sector output is decreasing in May, although at a slower rate than in April.Manufacturing production fell at the fastest rate since October 2023, although this was moderated by a “fractional rise” in service sector output.UK firms reported that clients were cautious this month, due to business uncertainty, leading to a drop in new orders. However, worries about US tariffs have dropped this month, after Donald Trump delayed tariffs on America’s trading partners and agreed a trade deal with the UK
UK petrol prices poised to fall further as oil prices tumble
Global oil prices have tumbled by more than $1 a barrel in a sign that pressure on households at the petrol pumps could ease further.The price of Brent crude fell to $63.86 a barrel on Thursday following reports that the Opec oil cartel and its allies may increase their production for July, despite weaker global demand for fossil fuels.The price of crude is now well below the $80.53 a barrel average recorded last year, a fall that has helped to put pump prices at their lowest level in almost four years
Ministers said to be considering bill to wipe out British Steel’s debts
Ministers are reportedly considering legislation to relieve British Steel of debts that have risen to nearly £1bn, as the government considers how best to prepare the Scunthorpe steelworks for sale.The government took control of the business last month after it said its Chinese owner, Jingye Steel, planned to close the plant within days. The move required emergency legislation that was passed in a historic recall of parliament.Jingye remains the legal owner of British Steel, despite the takeover, and is owed money by the company. Those debts would probably have been wiped out in a liquidation
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