Conflict in Gaza

Debate between Polly Billington and David Lammy

Thursday 20th March 2025 Commons Chamber

[Mr Lammy]

I know my hon. Friend’s constituency well, and I can imagine that her constituents are reacting with real horror to what they are seeing at this time.

There was a lot of comment about humanitarian aid —the inability to get aid in and the barriers to getting aid in—that I heard from some colleagues in Israel, but when we got that ceasefire, the number of trucks crossing exceeded expectations and the aid suddenly got in. It has now been, I think, 16 or 17 days since the aid stopped, and there will be tremendous suffering as a result. Aid should never be used as a tool in any conflict, and that is why we want to see the resumption of aid. We now know how many trucks can get in, so let us get back to those numbers.

[Ms Polly Billington (East Thanet) (Lab)]

I would like to commend my right hon. Friend for all the hard work he has been doing to secure a ceasefire in Gaza, and indeed for maintaining accountability to this House, as he has done today, in so much detail. It is devastating that Israel has resumed the indiscriminate bombing of Palestinian civilians. While the ceasefire held, there were comments from those on the Treasury Bench about the possibility of a trade deal between the UK and Israel. Does the Foreign Secretary agree—surely he does—that a trade deal between the UK and Israel must be completely out of the question now that the ceasefire is over?

[Mr Lammy]

My hon. Friend has made her views known. There have not been any ministerial meetings on any such trade deal. I always want to keep in mind the Israeli people—such a deal is not, as it were, for the Government; it would be done on behalf of the people of Israel—but Ministers will have heard, and the whole House will have heard, her remarks this afternoon.

Middle East

Debate between Polly Billington and David Lammy

Thursday 16th January 2025 Commons Chamber

[Mr Lammy]

I am grateful to my hon. Friend. For the reasons I have set out, security will be essential if the aid is to get in and if international partners are to be reassured, so that the reconstruction of hospitals can properly begin.

[Ms Polly Billington (East Thanet) (Lab)]

I pay tribute to my right hon. Friend, and indeed to the Under-Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, my hon. Friend the Member for Lincoln (Mr Falconer), who has played such an important role in working tirelessly for justice. Following on from the question from my hon. Friend the Member for Liverpool Wavertree (Paula Barker) about recognition of the state of Palestine, what role will the British Government play in creating the conditions that mean a two-state solution is finally in reach and we could declare that we recognise the state of Palestine?

[Mr Lammy]

I am very grateful to my hon. Friend for the question. The role that we must play is the critical juncture between phase 2 and then phase 3. We will only really get to phase 3 if there is a proper political solution. I think the United Kingdom has a particular role to play because of our relationship with all the parties, and our unique role on the United Nations Security Council alongside France. She is absolutely right that there must be a process, that we must engage in that process and that recognition is a key part of the process. Ultimately, however, that must lead to a two-state solution.

Let me say, finally, that in my discussions at the weekend in Saudi Arabia, it was very clear to me that we are no longer in a place where Gulf colleagues would satisfy themselves with some promise that feels years and years away, or generations away. We are really talking about the immediate lifetime of many parliamentarians in this House at this time, and this is therefore a very critical issue.

Middle East

Debate between Polly Billington and David Lammy

Monday 28th October 2024 Commons Chamber

[Mr Lammy]

When I raised this issue with Foreign Minister Katz yesterday, he was at pains to explain that, although the Knesset could pass its Bill today, that does not mean that it has to be implemented. We must hope that the Israeli Government do not implement this legislation, because it is not in their interests. It cannot be in their interests to prevent the only aid organisation in the region from working, because UNRWA provides not just healthcare but schools for young people, and it works not just in Gaza but in the occupied territories. It simply cannot be in the Israeli Government’s interests to do that, because they would then have to provide help themselves.

[Ms Polly Billington (East Thanet) (Lab)]

I welcome the Foreign Secretary’s statement today, and I strongly support the Government’s efforts to achieve a ceasefire, secure the release of the remaining hostages, and restart the negotiations for a two-state solution. I also welcome the Government’s decision several weeks ago to suspend a number of arms export licences to Israel where there was a risk that they would be used to violate international law. Will my right hon. Friend confirm that the UK is working hard to persuade our allies, particularly the United States, to adopt our position on arms exports to Israel, to ensure that no weapons are being exported from any country where there is a risk that they could be used to commit war crimes in Gaza?

[Mr Lammy]

We have one of the most robust export licensing regimes in the world. It is our legislation, so it is not the case that I have been proselytising to other countries to do what we have done. I did it because I believed that there was a clear risk that international humanitarian law was being breached in relation to our legislation. That is why I made the decision. It must be for others to reflect on their own laws and rules.