Gaza: Ceasefire

Lord Singh of Wimbledon Excerpts

Tuesday 18th March 2025 Lords Chamber

[Lord Collins of Highbury (Lab)]

I think my noble friend knows that we have considered the risk of breach of humanitarian law and have taken action to mitigate that risk. I also want to stress how we have worked with allies. On 5 March, together with France and Germany, we expressed our deep concern at Israel’s halt on aid to Gaza and urged it to lift restrictions. The Foreign Secretary also made this clear to the Israeli Foreign Minister during their call on 5 March. On 28 January, the then Minister for Development announced a further £17 million of healthcare aid. The situation is no doubt dire. We cannot see the return to the violence we have seen before. We want this ceasefire to hold. We want to see the return of hostages and we are doing everything we can with our allies to ensure that that is the case.

[Lord Singh of Wimbledon (CB)]

My Lords—

[Baroness Morris of Bolton (Con)]

My Lords—

--- Later in debate ---

[Lord Turnberg (Lab)]

My Lords—

[Lord Singh of Wimbledon (CB)]

My Lords—

[Lord Kennedy of Southwark (Lab Co-op)]

My Lords, we will hear from the noble Lord, Lord Turnberg, next and then from the noble Lord, Lord Singh.

[Lord Collins of Highbury (Lab)]

I agree with my noble friend. I must sound like I am constantly repeating myself, but I think this is worth repeating. We had on the table an agreement that provided for the release of hostages and for there to be a return to full aid going into Gaza. That is the solution: get back to the table and implement the ceasefire agreement. I stress that we are in diplomatic contact with all our allies in the region and we are certainly urging them to ensure that all sides, particularly Hamas, deliver on their commitments in that ceasefire agreement.

[Lord Singh of Wimbledon (CB)]

My Lords, with all the reservations we have heard about the excesses of Israel in Gaza in this House, from the Foreign Secretary and in many other parts of the world, why are we still supplying arms to Israel?

[Lord Collins of Highbury (Lab)]

I think the noble Lord knows full well that we took decisive actions in terms of arms supplies to the IDF that might be used in Gaza. We followed our own international humanitarian guidelines in that respect. We took decisive action when we felt that there was a risk to international humanitarian law being applied. So the simple answer to the noble Lord is that we have acted.