Israeli Settlements: Trade Ban Debate
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Peter Swallow
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Israeli Settlements: Trade Ban
Peter Swallow Excerpts(1 month ago)
Commons ChamberRead Full debate Read Hansard Text Read Debate Ministerial Extracts
Gareth Davies
The hon. Lady is wrong to suggest that we are saying we should do nothing. If Members remember, it was a Conservative Foreign Secretary in 2024 who imposed sanctions on the settlements. The House has heard me say from this Dispatch Box that the expansion of settlements is wrong. She is being unfair. What I am talking about is a point of execution. We have to engage with our allies—Israel is a critical ally of the United Kingdom—and that is not done by banning trade with Israel.
Peter Swallow (Bracknell) (Lab)
The shadow Minister says that Israel is a critical ally. Is it not possible ever to be critical of one’s allies in return?
Gareth Davies
We can be critical of our allies and we can be critical friends—of course we can—but what I am saying is that disengagement is not a solution to achieving what the House wants, which is peace in the middle east.