At Foreign Office Questions today, several Labour MPs asked questions of ministers regarding the role of Hamas in a future Palestinian state, the fate of the remaining hostages, and progress towards a ceasefire in Gaza.
Luke Myer MP asked: “We all want to see an end to the suffering and progress towards a two-state solution, but what assurance can the Foreign Secretary provide that in the recognition of Palestine there can be no role for Hamas in the governance of a Palestinian state?”
To which the Foreign Secretary replied: “I am grateful to my hon. Friend for raising this issue. Let me be crystal clear. Hamas must never be rewarded, and we will not reward it by the UK’s recognition of Palestine if we reach that point. Our demands of Hamas are absolute and unchanged: it must immediately release all the hostages who were cruelly taken on 7 October 2023 and held in the most atrocious conditions, which we have already discussed in the Chamber this morning.”
Later, Rachel Blake MP asked: “I share the anguish and profound distress of my constituents over the conflict in Gaza. Many of them have friends and family in the region; they are living with that torment every day. The Minister will have seen hundreds of thousands of Israeli citizens marching for a release of the hostages and for a ceasefire. What are the UK Government doing to support those citizens and the Opposition parties in Israel, who are being so let down?”
To which the Middle East Minister replied: “I thank my hon. Friend for her sustained engagement in these issues. As the Foreign Secretary has said, we talk regularly to hostage families in Israel and to participants in Israeli politics right across the spectrum, and we will continue to do so. We make our disagreements with the Israeli Government clear, both in private and in public, and we will continue to do that, too.”
And finally, Watford MP Matt Turmaine asked: “My constituency of Watford is a richly ethnically diverse community. When I speak to residents there about the conflict in Gaza, the overwhelming desire is for the killing to stop, for the hostages to be released and for the people of Gaza to be able to live in peace. Will the Secretary of State further outline what steps the Government are taking to aid international efforts to broker the ceasefire and what is frustrating it?”
To which the Foreign Secretary replied: “I am very grateful to my hon. Friend for raising this issue. Diplomacy, not bloodshed, is how we get security for both Israelis and Palestinians, and getting to a ceasefire is the immediate priority. I will be in the region again in the coming days, discussing with them the Prime Minister’s framework for peace, which is the only plan, and how we govern Gaza and move forward once we get to that ceasefire, building a consensus around a sustainable end to the conflict.”
You can read the full session here.
