Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories

Debate between Baroness Berger and Lord Collins of Highbury

Monday 9th June 2025 Lords Chamber

[Lord Collins of Highbury (Lab)]

Well, I think I gave in response to an earlier question an absolutely categorical reassurance that we are not arming Israel with bombs and ammunition that could be used in Gaza. We are faced with a situation here. Israel has the right to defend itself. What the Government of Israel do not have the right to do is deny humanitarian aid into Gaza. We have made that position absolutely clear. We are absolutely focused on ensuring that that aid gets in.

As we have debated many times, the real solution will come when we can create a situation of peace. I believe that is what the majority of Israeli citizens want: they want peace, they want to live with their neighbour and they want a secure state. But so do the Palestinians. The two-state solution is something we should be aiming towards. That is the condition for peace: living side by side with neighbours in a peaceful way.

[Baroness Berger (Lab)]

My Lords, I draw attention to my entry in the register of interests. The humanitarian situation in Gaza is desperate, with many thousands of civilians needing food and medical supplies. Access to aid must be safe and rapidly expanded. I discussed these issues in Israel with opposition leaders the week before last, and they are clear that this war must stop and that the hostages need to come home as a top priority. An election will take place in Israel next year, and every poll since 7 October points to Netanyahu and his right-wing coalition being ejected from office. What steps are this Government taking to strengthen Israelis and Palestinians who are serious about the compromises necessary for progress towards peace and the two-state solution that we all want to see?

[Lord Collins of Highbury (Lab)]

Of course, the Government of Israel is a matter for the people of Israel to decide. However, I am confident that the majority of people in Israel want peace and the things that my noble friend mentioned. The most important thing that our Government can do is to work with our allies, particularly in the Middle East, to ensure that the agenda for the conference on the two-state solution is absolutely focused on the means to deliver it, so that we can create the conditions that my noble friend described.

Middle East Update

Debate between Baroness Berger and Lord Collins of Highbury

Wednesday 7th May 2025 Lords Chamber

[Lord Collins of Highbury (Lab)]

I think I have made it clear to the House, and I repeat to the noble Lord, that we have been absolutely clear that the remaining hostages must be released, and the way to do that is through the deal that was agreed. That is really important. We have been speaking to all our allies and partners to ensure that they too are putting pressure on both parties to ensure a return to the negotiating table to stick to the ceasefire agreement so that we can get the hostages released. The noble Lord is absolutely right that that is the way forward; it is important that they are released, and they are a priority, but it is also a priority to ensure that we get that humanitarian aid in to support the people of Gaza as, after all, the women and children who have been killed are not responsible for holding the hostages.

[Baroness Berger (Lab)]

My Lords, the long-term path to peace in the Middle East and securing the two-state solution that my noble friend spoke so passionately about will come only from the bottom up in civil society by changing and supporting attitudes among Israelis and Palestinians towards coexistence. In this spirit, what update can my noble friend the Minister provide on UK support for the International Fund for Israeli-Palestinian Peace?

[Lord Collins of Highbury (Lab)]

I am afraid I cannot give my noble friend an up-to-date report but, as she knows, I have worked with a number of noble friends and across the House to ensure that community-building efforts that have been incredibly successful, particularly in terms of developing youth employment and developing enterprises, all help contribute to building that peaceful coexistence. But unless we address that fundamental issue about the situation in Gaza, we will be unable to make the sort of progress that she and I both desire.