3 Apr: Labour says the government must suspend arms sales to Israel if lawyers have found clear risk of serious breaches of international law

Labour’s Shadow Foreign Secretary David Lammy, has called on the government to publish its advice regarding UK arms exports to Israel. David Lammy accused the Foreign Secretary Lord Cameron of ‘going silent’ after failing to get a response to his request to publish the legal advice surrounding UK arms sales to Israel on 22 March.

On 8 March, David Cameron said he would get new advice on Israel’s compliance with international law “in the coming days,” but nothing has materialised.

David Lammy said:

“Our deepest sympathies go out to the families of the three heroic Brits who put their lives on the line to get Palestinian civilians the aid they desperately need. But Israel must face serious consequences, not just tough rhetoric, for their appalling deaths.

“Labour’s message to the government is equally clear. Publish the legal advice now. If it says there is a clear risk that UK arms might be used in a serious breach of international humanitarian law, it’s time to suspend the sale of those arms.”

26 Mar: Labour says UNSC call for ceasefire is vital

My colleague, Labour’s Shadow Foreign Secretary has said “The UN Security Council’s call for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza is vital and must be a turning point. The British government must urgently apply diplomatic pressure for it to be implemented in full.”

You can watch his comments here.

10 Mar: Labour calls for resuming funding to the UNRWA

In a letter to the Foreign Secretary, my colleague the Shadow Foreign Secretary David Lammy urged the UK government to:

• Call for an immediate humanitarian ceasefire
• Pursue all available means to deliver aid to Gaza, including resuming funding to UNRWA
• Insist that Israel preserve the status quo at the Holy Sites in Jerusalem

You can read the entire letter here.

21 Feb: I voted for an immediate humanitarian ceasefire in Gaza

This week I tabled a motion in Parliament with my Labour colleagues calling for an immediate humanitarian ceasefire in Gaza, one that lasts and is observed by all sides. It was unanimously agreed and passed.

In Bristol we always stand up for the most vulnerable whether at home or overseas. That’s what I did on the night of 21st Feb and what I will always do as your Member of Parliament.

The fighting and unimaginable suffering of the Palestinian people must stop. I’m particularly concerned about an Israeli ground offensive in Rafah. Around 1.4 million displaced Palestinians are sheltering there with nowhere safe to go, having previously been told to flee there by the Israeli military. Rafah is also the gateway for aid to Gaza, at a time when the humanitarian situation is already dire, and the UN says hundreds of thousands of people face starvation. Any intensive military offensive in Rafah risks catastrophic consequences for the civilian population and fatal disruption to the humanitarian operation. That’s why the motion I tabled made it clear that it must not take place.

I also called for rapid and unimpeded humanitarian relief, an end to settlement expansion and settler violence and a political process towards a two-state solution. A safe and secure Israel alongside a sovereign and viable Palestinian state is the only path to a just and lasting peace. A ceasefire with no political horizon will not be sustainable.

Labour’s motion also called on Hamas to release and return all hostages. The families of the remaining hostages are frozen in uncertainty, anguish and pain and their continued detention is prolonging this war. They should be released and returned immediately. Also, for a ceasefire to hold, all parties must comply with its terms. One sided demands that do not recognise the need to ensure that an attack like October 7th cannot happen again or do not condemn Hamas terrorism will not succeed. A lasting ceasefire is what’s needed and in the best interests of all people.

I will continue to call for an immediate humanitarian ceasefire and urge the Government to do the same. I would like to see them convene an urgent session of the UN Security Council to press for this and to call for rapid and unimpeded humanitarian relief to be provided in Gaza.