Gaza City

Lord Hain Excerpts

Monday 8th September 2025 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Chapman of Darlington (Lab)]

I have not read the piece that the noble Lord is referring to, but I would be very happy to. It is absolutely the case that, in order for a two-state solution to succeed and to last, Israel must be safe, secure and prosperous, and so must Palestine. That is the outcome that the person he is referring to and very many others, including those in Israel, would wish to see.

[Lord Hain (Lab)]

I welcome what my noble friend has said, but ask her to what extent the two-state solution, which we all—the international community as well—have supported for decades is now viable, given that Gaza has been reduced to rubble; given what my friend, the noble Lord, Lord Carlile, said; given that the Israeli Prime Minister has expressly said that he does not want a two-state solution any more; and given that the West Bank is now full of settlements, making that increasingly less likely, and there is no governance in either part of the state. How viable is it?

[Baroness Chapman of Darlington (Lab)]

I, like many others, ask myself this more and more frequently, but I come back to everything that my noble friend mentioned making it harder and less viable, which is one of the reasons we are taking the decisions we are, but what else is there? We have to hold on to the prospect of a two-state solution because there is no other outcome that would lead to lasting peace.