With no end to the war in sight, expect the theme over Labour splits on Israel to be a constant one
Ten of Sir Keir Starmer’s frontbenchers have tonight left their posts after backing an SNP motion calling for a ceasefire in Gaza. Jess Phillips, Afzal Khan, Paula Barker and Yasmin Qureshi were among 56 Labour MPs who defied their party’s whips to abstain tonight. Sarah Owen, Andy Slaughter, Naz Shah and Rachel Hopkins also left their briefs, as did two parliamentary private secretaries: Dan Carden and Mary Foy. They follow Imran Hussain’s departure last week in protest at Labour’s unwillingness to differ from the government in his support for Israel. The SNP motion was heavily defeated, with 125 ayes for a ceasefire and 293 noes against.
Publicly, Starmer is unrepentant about suffering the biggest rebellion of his leadership. In a press release issued straight after the vote he reiterated that Israel had suffered ‘its worst terrorist attack in a single day’ at the hands of Hamas on 7 October.
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