All 1 Debates between Ivan Lewis and Richard Ottaway

UK Policy on the Middle East

Debate between Ivan Lewis and Richard Ottaway
Monday 14th June 2010

(14 years, 5 months ago)

Commons Chamber
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Ivan Lewis Portrait Mr Lewis
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I agree entirely with the hon. Gentleman. One lesson we should have learned from a long history of conflicts all over the world is that preventive work, both at a political and a people level, is far more effective than intervening when things go wrong.

Richard Ottaway Portrait Richard Ottaway (Croydon South) (Con)
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Does the hon. Gentleman accept that he would not achieve his fifth point unless he got a resolution on his first four points? There can be no overall settlement unless the aspirations on both sides of the argument can be met at the same time.

Ivan Lewis Portrait Mr Lewis
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The hon. Gentleman has a perfectly common-sense perspective. As all hon. Members know, although setting out the parameters is important, in a negotiation of such complexity, when the stakes are so high and when public opinion on both sides matters, there must be the necessary compromise. If non-negotiable matters are not resolved, no lasting and just settlement will be accepted by the people on both sides.