Israel and Palestine

Lord Collins of Highbury Excerpts

Tuesday 7th March 2023 Lords Chamber

[Lord Collins of Highbury (Lab)]

My Lords, I, too, would like to thank the noble Lord, Lord Harries, for initiating this debate and for setting the scene, and highlighting the real difficulties that are being faced. I thought it was really important that he stressed the need for hope, because it is not just hope in Palestine and Israel but hope within this House, which will motivate us to pursue the efforts for peace. I support the Government’s efforts and those of the noble Lord, Lord Ahmad, the Minister responsible, who has been working with our international partners, particularly the US, to promote peace in the region and de-escalate tensions. I know that the noble Lord has reinforced that message in his meetings with Israeli Government officials and the Palestinian Authority. Last month’s joint statement by the UK, the US, France, Germany and Italy, in reaction to Israeli plans to expand settlements in the occupied Palestinian territories, was a really important move to reflect that sort of strategy.

Of course, that statement strongly opposed these unilateral actions, which will serve only to exacerbate tensions between Israelis and Palestinians, and undermine efforts to achieve a negotiated two-state solution, which I think the whole House is united behind.

Our efforts should not just be limited to international government actions or negotiations between states. Peace between the Israelis and the Palestinians will be achieved only through direct negotiations between those parties. I echo my noble friend Lord Turnberg and other noble Lords; as the Prime Minister acknowledged, the expansion of the Arab-Israeli peace in the region also provides a valuable route to Israeli-Palestinian peace. It is an incredibly important achievement.

Building peace also means improving lives. I do not think we should underestimate the importance of civil society and intercommunity activity. Through most of my working life, I developed very strong relationships with Histadrut, the Israeli trade union movement. That has been very important in how you can build a social movement. Building that sort of peace means backing economic development and supporting people-to-people coexisting projects, which we have heard noble Lords refer to—bringing everyday Israelis and Palestinians together.

I was particularly pleased that, at the end of last year, the Prime Minister committed to explore the US joining the international fund for Israeli-Palestinian peace, an effort that actually has cross-party support—support from the leader of the Labour Party, as well as the Prime Minister. Like my noble friend Lady Ramsay, I hope the Minister can tell us what progress has been made in backing that fund, particularly with the US. It is five years since the UK officially supported and endorsed the concept; I think it is about time we heard some positive news on it.