Georgia Pickering, a Labour Party councillor and managing director of CMS Strategic, has been embroiled in controversy following allegations that she claimed involvement in placing a story in *The Times* suggesting Iran was funding Palestine Action. The claims, reported by *Private Eye*, were vehemently denied by both CMS Strategic and the Labour Party. The article, published in June 2025, coincided with the UK government’s decision to proscribe Palestine Action as a terrorist organization after activists targeted an RAF base and CMS Strategic’s office. Pickering, who chairs the Bracknell Forest Council’s Overview & Scrutiny Commission and co-chairs the Labour in Communications’ defence and aerospace policy network, has been a Labour councillor since May 2023. The controversy has raised questions about potential conflicts of interest, given CMS Strategic’s ties to Israeli arms firm Elbit, a frequent target of Palestine Action protests. A Labour Party spokesperson dismissed the allegations as “categorically untrue,” emphasizing that all relevant declarations had been made in accordance with council rules. Meanwhile, Palestine Action dismissed the *Times* article as “baseless” and “ridiculous,” while three prisoners linked to the group launched a hunger strike over alleged mistreatment in custody.