I, like many MPs, am deeply disappointed and upset about the spectacle that unfolded and I will seek to explain my understanding of what occurred. I, like very many of my constituents, am deeply worried about the humanitarian situation in the region and the division and deep despair this is causing us here and around the globe.
Last week's Opposition Day led by the SNP in Westminster has been in the news for all the wrong reasons. Their motion called for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza. On an Opposition Day, the longstanding convention is that the first question to be considered by the House is the text of the original motion put forward - in this case, the SNP’s motion calling for an immediate ceasefire.
However, as reported, the Speaker broke this convention by selecting a Labour amendment which was then voted on and this then leapt ahead of the SNP motion due to the process of the House. The Speaker, Sir Lindsay Hoyle, carries a heavy responsibility for what occurred for which he has now apologised. It is his job, entrusted by MPs and the powers it gives, to rise above party politics and stand strong in the face of adversity and always put the rules and conventions of The House and his role’s impartiality ahead of everything.
It appeared he had, in this case, capitulated to pressure from the Official Opposition and a divided Labour Party on this matter. This reflects poorly on the House itself, the position of Speaker and the belief by many that undue pressures from both within and outside Parliament can be brought to bear. This is exactly the reason for strong conventions and rules to make sure we are not in this invidious position.
The Government also put forward its own amendment which called for negotiations to agree an immediate humanitarian pause to allow further aid and support for innocent civilians and their terrified families to be focused on. This would also be in order to see the hostages returned and placed an onus on Hamas to leave the scene paving the way for moves towards a permanent sustainable ceasefire.
The full text of the Government’s amendment can be found below.
Our amendment states that the House,
“supports Israel’s right to self-defence, in compliance with international humanitarian law, against the terror attacks perpetrated by Hamas; condemns the slaughter, abuse and gender-based violence perpetrated on 7 October 2023; further condemns the use of civilian areas by Hamas and others for terrorist operations; urges negotiations to agree an immediate humanitarian pause as the best way to stop the fighting and to get aid in and hostages out; supports moves towards a permanent sustainable ceasefire; acknowledges that achieving this will require all hostages to be released, the formation of a new Palestinian Government, Hamas to be unable to launch further attacks and to be no longer in charge in Gaza, and a credible pathway to a two-state solution which delivers peace, security and justice for both Israelis and Palestinians; expresses concern at the humanitarian crisis in Gaza and at the prospect of a military offensive in Rafah; reaffirms the urgent need to significantly scale up the flow of aid into Gaza, where too many innocent civilians have died; and calls on all parties to take immediate steps to stop the fighting and ensure unhindered humanitarian access.”
All three amendments showed that the three main parties all support some kind of ceasefire in Gaza.
Ultimately, the Government withdrew its amendment, and the Labour amendment was voted on whilst the House was sitting in private.
The behaviour by the Labour party, at the expense of smaller parties and their opportunity to have their motions brought forward, shows that they are willing to overturn existing rules and conventions to suit their own party-political agenda at any cost and to the detriment of Parliament and its procedures which protect debate, and above all allow liberal democracy to thrive.
A link to the full debate can be found here: Ceasefire in Gaza - Hansard - UK Parliament
Meanwhile, the Leader of The House, the Rt Hon Penny Mordaunt MP said, reflecting on the scenes on behalf of the Government, in Business Questions last Thursday:
“I want to say that this House will never bow to extremists, threats or intimidation. It has not, it will not, it must not. I ask all Members not to do this House a further disservice by suggesting that the shameful events that took place yesterday were anything other than party politics on behalf of the Labour party.
Let me bring the House up to date. Two significant things happened yesterday, and I am not sure all hon. Members have clocked them. First, it fell to those on the Government Benches to defend the rights of a minority party in this House. If the hon. Lady cannot bring herself to reflect on the appalling consequences of her party’s actions yesterday—if she cannot rise above the narrow and immediate needs of her weak and fickle leader to fulfil her duties to this House as its shadow Leader—perhaps she might like to reflect on the damage her party has done to the office of the Speaker.
I would never have done to him what the Labour party has done to him.
Secondly, we have seen into the heart of Labour’s leadership. Nothing is more important than the interests of the Labour party. The Labour party before principle; the Labour party before individual rights; the Labour party before the reputation and honour of the decent man who sits in the Speaker’s Chair; the Labour party before fairness, integrity and democracy; in Rochdale, the Labour party before a zero-tolerance policy on antisemitism; and—many of us knew this about the Labour leader; I saw it in his frustration at our country getting the best deal possible when we left the EU—the Labour party before country.
I must tell the hon. Lady that the people of this country do not have a copy of the Standing Orders of this House lying around their home, and they have not been chatting about parliamentary procedure over their cornflakes this morning, but they value fairness and they want the rights of all to be protected. They cannot abide bullies and cheats. They cannot abide people who trash our nation or fail to defend its interests, or the institutions that protect them. Government Members often rightly criticise the former leader of the Labour party, the right hon. Member for Islington North (Jeremy Corbyn), for the things he stood for and for being wrong on matters, but I will say one thing about him: at least he thought he was right on them. The current leader of the Labour party is quite happy to do what he knows to be wrong. He puts the interests of the Labour party before the interests of the British people. It is the Labour leader who does not get Britain, and the past week has shown that he is not fit to lead it.”
I hope this gives you an insight into what occurred, why it matters that everyone involved takes responsibility for their part and I, as your Member of Parliament, will always seek to uphold the standards and behaviour we would all want to see in the Mother of all Parliaments where I have the privilege to serve on your behalf.