International Fund for Israeli-Palestinian Peace

Conor McGinn Excerpts

Tuesday 17th November 2020 Westminster Hall

[Conor McGinn (St Helens North) (Lab)]

It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Mr Efford, and I congratulate my hon. Friend the Member for Newcastle upon Tyne North (Catherine McKinnell) on securing the debate. It is a particular pleasure to follow the right hon. Member for Chipping Barnet (Theresa Villiers). I knew her before coming to the House and I have worked closely with her on Northern Ireland matters since being in the House.

It is poignant that the debate is taking place so soon after the death of Saeb Erekat, Secretary General of the Palestine Liberation Organisation. He was firmly committed to his people’s rights, unwavering in his pursuit of a just peace, and committed to a two-state solution.

It is cause for optimism that the debate is taking place in the shadow of the election across the Atlantic. We cannot underestimate the significance of that, and if, like me, you believe in the ability of the United States to lead and be a force for progress in the world, you will share the hope that this will mark a new approach to its role in the middle east, particularly in using its influence to re-establish the basis for a lasting peace between Israel and Palestine.

If the last four years show anything, it is that you can be a friend to a country and its people without supporting its Government. I have felt like that about the United States and Israel. In fact, I have felt that, to be a good friend, you have had to oppose their respective Administrations, while continuing to advocate the development of strong links and co-operation between our countries and peoples.

The dire state of political relations and the breakdown of relations—the unilateralism and illegality of occupation, settlements and annexation and its effect on the Palestinian people, and the continued terror, threats and denial of Israel’s very right to exist—should not mean that we allow inertia, let the UK’s response and involvement be set by the recalcitrant, or abandon our role in the historic mission to find a just and lasting two-state solution.

A fund for Israeli-Palestinian peace is one such way in which the world can provide tangible support for advancing the cause of peace and improving the lives of Israelis and Palestinians. As the Alliance for Middle East Peace says,

“With the suspension of coordination between the Palestinian Authority and Israel, civil society is one of the only remaining channels for cross-border contact between Israelis and Palestinians. This places an undue burden on peacebuilding organisations”.

This work is vital and dangerous. Earlier this year Hamas arrested Rami Aman, a peace activist in Gaza, and seven other Palestinians for taking part in a Zoom call with Israelis. Hamas said that it amounted to a

“betrayal of our people and their sacrifices”,

and that any joint activities, co-operation or dialogue with Israelis is unacceptable—just because ordinary people wanted to talk to each other about their lives. I am pleased that Rami Aman was released from prison a few weeks ago, after spending six months there awaiting trial. It is another example of how Hamas, far from advancing the cause of Palestine, is through its violence and intransigence, hindering it.

The peace fund proposal is to increase public and private contributions worldwide, funding joint economic initiatives and civil society projects that improve social and economic conditions in Israel and Palestine. Following a successful campaign spearheaded by Labour Friends of Israel—I pay tribute to them for the work they do alongside colleagues in Labour Friends of Palestine and the Middle East—the UK Government provided £3 million of funding for a project that ran from May 2017 to March 2020, as outlined by my hon. Friend the Member for Newcastle upon Tyne North. It is a shame that the funding has ceased and that the Government have stopped that support for people-to-people work.

I hope the Minister will recognise that consistent investment to enable programmes to achieve long-term results is vital to the success of coexistence work. It cannot be a tap that is turned on and off; it must be sustainable, because without sufficient funding, from either Governments or private philanthropy, coexistence projects can currently have only a limited impact. Operating at scale and properly funded, however, they could help to build powerful constituencies for peace in Israel and Palestine, forcing leaders in both countries to return to meaningful negotiations and provide the vital civic society underpinnings for any future agreement.

The main inspiration for that is, of course, the International Fund for Ireland, which was put in place by the Irish and British Governments after the 1985 Anglo-Irish agreement, which, as has been said, celebrates its 35th anniversary this week. The objective of the IFI is to promote economic and social advance in Northern Ireland and the border counties and to encourage contact, dialogue and reconciliation between nationalists and Unionists throughout the island. The fund has done enormous work across Northern Ireland and in border areas for over 40 years, evolving its activities over time, but always focused on cross-community reconciliation, with over £750 million in funding being generated over the last 44 years.

The fund effectively resides with the Irish and British Governments, but crucially it has an independent board. People on all sides trust it. It has no political agenda; its only agenda is peace and reconciliation. It was originally funded by the United States, the European Union, Canada, Australia and New Zealand. That international support gave it further credibility, and all those countries still have observer positions on the fund’s board. The Irish and British Governments have also re-dedicated themselves to continuing the funding through the “New Decade, New Approach” agreement. Importantly, the board of the fund is scrupulously objective in how it decides which project to support. Its composition is evenly divided between the nationalist and Unionist communities and includes members from border counties in the south. These symbols of balance and even-handedness matter.

The lessons to be learned for any Israel-Palestine fund are almost all good; the even-handedness dimension is the most important. In that spirit, the International Fund for Ireland has for some years now made itself available to share experience and knowledge with organisations promoting reconciliation in other locations, including in Israel and Palestine. I know that Paddy Harte, the new IFI chair, is committed to this work, and I urge the Government to use his expertise and that of the board.

For me, peace must fundamentally be built on equality, opportunity and partnership. The international community cannot do all of those things, but it can help to create the conditions for them. I hope that we will be able to play our part.

--- Later in debate ---

[Conor McGinn]

It is very good to hear about the UK Government’s financial commitment to this work. Given that the role of global Britain is enhanced not just by the strength of its arguments and values but by the fact that it puts its money where its mouth is, does the Minister worry that continuing speculation about draconian cuts to the aid budget undermines the good work that is being done and gives rise to concerns about the sustainability of that work in the future?

[James Duddridge]

The UK is committed to spending its money on global Britain force for good development work across the board. I will not be led into a debate just before a fiscal event. We maintain a commitment and we want to be known as a force for good in the world. We want to punch great weight as global Britain, and the cash in the development budget is important to that.

Talking of cash, the £51 million provided through UNRWA has helped to educate about 500,000 girls and boys so far. It will pay to access healthcare for 3.5 million Palestinian refugees and create a social security net for more than 250,000 of the most vulnerable people across the region. In 2019, we also provided more than £16 million in humanitarian assistance to Gaza, supporting the health system, trauma care and emergency food supplies to more than 1.2 million people.

On the people-to-people programmes, hon. Members will intuitively know how civic activism and connections work. With other Members, I compliment the hon. Member for Strangford—you were very liberal with him, Mr Efford, for which we were all grateful—on the strong personal stories that he told about how one goes through pathways over time. I was amused to think that while the hon. Gentleman was on the streets, I was sitting my O-levels. It is good that he is passing on the baton of experience.

The people-to-people programme ended recently. It was a £3 million programme that brought together Israelis and Palestinians to co-operate to have a positive impact on communities and improve understanding between people on both sides of the conflict, and so build a basis for peaceful negotiation and resolution. The programme was also planned to have a research component that would inform any future work in the area. I will certainly speak to the Minister for Middle East and North Africa about contextualising that review with the requests from this debate and the opportunities through UNRWA.

We shall remain in close consultation with the United States and our international partners to encourage all parties to reverse negative developments on the ground, including by working regionally for peace and encouraging meaningful bilateral relationships. Ultimately, we shall succeed only when these are conducted by Israelis and Palestinians and supported by the international community.