A cross-party group of British MPs has written to UK banks and financial institutions urging them to avoid investing in Israel's planned E1 settlement in the West Bank, even though legislation formally banning such trade is still months away from taking effect. The warning comes after Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband announced plans for a complete ban on trade with illegal Israeli settlements, but complex secondary legislation required to enforce the measures is not expected to pass through parliament for six to nine months. The E1 project, which involves tenders for up to 3,400 homes with a key deadline on 25 October, has long been considered particularly sensitive as Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich has himself stated that the settlement would effectively eliminate the possibility of a viable Palestinian state, making it a flashpoint in international efforts to preserve a two-state solution.