Palestine Statehood (Recognition) Bill [HL]

Baroness Janke Excerpts

Friday 14th March 2025 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Janke (LD)]

My Lords, I, too, rise in support of my noble friend Lady Northover and her Bill on the recognition of a Palestinian state. As of 28 May 2024, the state of Palestine was recognised by 146 of the 193 member states of the United Nations. The Bill requires the UK Government to formally recognise Palestine as a sovereign and independent state. It would send a powerful signal that the UK supports both the State of Israel and the state of Palestine entering peace negotiations on an equal footing, and demonstrate our commitment to the two-state solution and peace and security for both nations.

The illegal occupation of Gaza and the West Bank since 1967 is the longest military occupation in history. The Palestinian people continue, under occupation, to be deprived of the civil and human rights enjoyed by Israeli citizens. ICJ rulings have recognised the illegality of this occupation and called for Israel to end it. Those who seek to bring peace and security to the region know that this will certainly not be achieved through the brutal subjugation of 5 million Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank. Extremist settlers, many in the Government, will not achieve peace and security by savagely driving out Palestinians from the West Bank and destroying their homes.

Since the Hamas atrocities of 7 October, at least 1,860 incidents of settler violence in the occupied West Bank have been recorded. There is impunity for the perpetrators. Since 2005, only 3% of investigations into ideologically motivated crimes against Palestinians in the West Bank have led to a full or partial conviction. The repeated, sustained bombardments and destruction of Gaza have deprived generations of Palestinians of family members, homes, healthcare, food and shelter, with vital aid still being denied and blocked. We all deplore the atrocities of Hamas on 7 October and call for all the hostages to be released immediately, but the disproportionate retribution that has resulted in more than 60,000 people in Gaza being killed, including large numbers of civilians, women and children, has sickened the world.

By immediately recognising the state of Palestine, the UK is standing in solidarity with other UN members and against the grotesque Trump plans for ethnic cleansing, but recognition is not enough. We must work with international partners to support democratic leadership in Palestine, and the UK should lead efforts to bring together Israeli and Palestinian peacebuilders who are dedicated to a future of co-existence and mutual security. As other noble Lords have said, we must seize the moment and take a stand to work for peace, justice and security for both states through the two-state solution.