Wes Streeting says people are ‘upset and hurt’ by Labour’s initial reaction to Israel-Hamas war
Wes Streeting has acknowledged people have been “upset and hurt” by Labour’s initial reaction to the Israel-Hamas war.
The shadow health secretary told the Politics Hub with Sophy Ridge that people wanted his party to be “louder and clearer” about the humanitarian crisis unfolding in Gaza.
Politics Live: Starmer accused of ‘shying away’ from crisis in Gaza
There have been tensions in the Labour Party after leader Sir Keir Starmer appeared to suggest in an LBC interview that Israel had the right to cut off water and power to the besieged Gaza Strip following the deadly attack by Hamas on 7 October.
Although the Labour leader has sought to clarify his remarks, there is still anger in the Muslim community.
Asked if voters could be turned away from Labour, Mr Streeting said: “No, I think people have been upset and hurt and wanted us to be louder and clearer on the humanitarian crisis.”
He went on to say Sir Keir “doesn’t think it’s ok cut off power and water” and he misspoke in the interview.
“It was never Keir’s intention to give the impression that we support those measures,” he said.
“In interviews you have a sustained line of questioning – he was answering a previous question and not that one.”
In the interview with LBC’s Nick Ferrari, Sir Keir was asked what a “proportionate” response would look like to the surprise Hamas attacks, which killed at least 1,400 people.
He said that responsibility “lies with Hamas” and that Israel “has the right to defend herself”.
The presenter interjected, asking: “A siege is appropriate? Cutting off power, cutting off water?”
The Labour leader responded: “I think that Israel does have that right. It is an ongoing situation.”
The comments, which he has since rowed back on, prompted resignations among Labour councillors and angered the party’s MPs, even those on the frontbenches as shadow ministers.
Sir Keir sought to cool tensions by visiting a mosque on Sunday and holding a meeting with Muslim MPs today.
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But while sources described the meeting as “constructive”, Sir Keir did not back calls for a ceasefire, instead saying Labour supports “humanitarian pauses”.
This position was repeated by Mr Streeting, who said UK politicians need to prioritise supporting Israel in getting hostages back from Gaza “and making sure this sort of thing doesn’t happen again”.
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However, he said there is a “responsibility” to minimise the loss of civilian life and get humanitarian aid in to Gaza.
“That is why US secretary of state Antony Blinken, our allies in France and our government are right to call for a humanitarian pause to allow the safe flow of aid through,” he said.
Asked what the difference was between a “humanitarian pause” and a “ceasefire”, he said: “This is the difficulty with the concept of a ceasefire.
“We’re dealing with a terrorist organisation in Hamas.”
Asked if Israel has committed war crimes, as some MPs have suggested, Mr Streeting added: “I’m not qualified to make that judgement.”
The government wants councils to crush more vans used to fly-tip rubbish, as it announces a crackdown on the illegal dumping of waste.
No new funding is being given to local authorities for the initiatives, with ministers saying the seven percent raise announced in the budget can be used.
As part of the announcement, the government has also proposed that fly-tippers could face up to five years in prison, although this would require a change in the law.
Environment Secretary Steve Reed attacked the Conservatives’ record. Pic: PA
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Environment Secretary Steve Reed said: “Councils will get much more aggressive against fly-tippers and that includes using the latest technology, things like the new mobile CCTV cameras and drones to identify, track and then seize the vehicles that are being used for fly-tipping to a yard like this and crush them.
“That’s both as a punishment for those people who are dumping the rubbish but also as a deterrent for those who are thinking about doing it.”
He added: “We’re also looking to change the law so that those rogue operators who take rubbish from someone’s home and then dump it on a nearby road – they were getting away almost scot-free under the previous government – they will now be looking at potentially five-year prison sentences.”
The minister claimed the fly-tipping was “out of control” under the last government.
Data from the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) shows local authorities in England dealt with a record 1.15 million incidents last year – a 20% increase from 2018/19.
Environment Agency chief executive Philip Duffy said: “We’re determined to bring these criminals to justice through tough enforcement action and prosecutions.
“That’s why we support the government’s crackdown on waste criminals, which will ensure we have the right powers to shut rogue operators out of the waste industry.”
However, the Conservatives claimed that rubbish is “piling high” in areas like Birmingham as refuse workers strike against a pay and jobs offer from the Labour-run council.
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Shadow environment secretary Victoria Atkins said: “Wherever Labour is in charge, waste is piling high – like in Birmingham, where Labour’s inability to stand up to their union paymasters has left rat-infested rubbish littered across the street.
“And with statistics showing that of the 50 worst local areas for fly-tipping, 72% are Labour controlled, it is clear that voting Labour gets you rubbish and rats.
“So the British public deserve real action, not this series of reheated announcements and policies already introduced by previous governments that Labour is peddling.”
Liberal Democrat deputy leader Daisy Cooper said: “Under the Conservatives’ watch, local communities have been plagued by a fly-tipping epidemic.
“From overflowing bins to piles of hazardous waste, fly-tipping is blighting our landscapes, poisoning livestock on farming land and causing misery for residents.
“Enough is enough.
“The Liberal Democrats are calling for a fly-tipping fighting fund, to push for stronger local enforcement and tougher penalties for offenders.”
US Senate Majority Leader John Thune reportedly told Republican lawmakers that the chamber would address a bill on stablecoin regulation before the May 26 Memorial Day holiday.
According to an April 29 Politico report, Thune made the comments in a closed-door meeting with Republican senators, who hold a slim majority in the chamber. The Guiding and Establishing National Innovation for US Stablecoins, or GENIUS Act, was introduced by Senator Bill Hagerty in February and passed the Senate Banking Committee in March.
Thune did not mention any crypto or blockchain-related bills in his public comments on US President Donald Trump’s first 100 days in office. Since his Jan. 20 inauguration, Trump has signed several executive orders with the potential to affect US crypto policy, including one affecting stablecoins. Still, many of the actions do not carry the force of law without an act of Congress.
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The proposed GENIUS bill could essentially restrict any entity other than a “permitted payment stablecoin issuer” from issuing a payment stablecoin in the United States. The House of Representatives, also controlled by Republicans, has proposed a companion bill to the legislation: the Stablecoin Transparency and Accountability for a Better Ledger Economy, or STABLE Act.
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The president’s executive order, signed on Jan. 23, established a working group to study the potential creation and maintenance of a national crypto stockpile and a regulatory framework for stablecoins. Republican lawmakers followed by introducing the STABLE and GENIUS acts.
Trump also introduced the order before World Liberty Financial, a crypto firm backed by the president’s family, launched its US-dollar pegged USD1 stablecoin. Many Democratic lawmakers said that Trump’s ties to the firm, coupled with his political influence and position, could present an “extraordinary conflict of interest that could create unprecedented risks to our financial system” as Congress considers the two stablecoin bills.
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A court in India has ordered the encrypted email service Proton Mail blocked in the country for refusing to share information with authorities.
In an April 29 hearing of the High Court of Karnataka, Justice M Nagaprasanna ordered the government to “block forthwith” domain names associated with Proton Mail, citing authority under the country’s Information Technology Act of 2008. The order stemmed from a complaint filed in January by a New Delhi-based design firm, alleging that some of its employees received offensive emails through the service.
It’s unclear whether the ban will take effect or face other possible challenges in court. The Proton team reported in March 2024 that Indian authorities had similarly proposed ordering the service blocked in response to alleged “hoax bomb threats,” but it continued to operate in the country.
The crackdown on Proton Mail appeared to be part of a larger global trend to pursue action against platforms based on users’ activities, such as the arrest of Telegram founder Pavel Durov in France in part for allegedly failing to moderate illicit content. Cointelegraph reached out to Proton for comment but did not receive any response at the time of publication.
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In Spain, Proton AG — the Swiss company behind the platform — provided information to the authorities about one of its users in 2024. The move had many privacy advocates questioning the security of their data with the centralized service.
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Cryptocurrency exchanges are no stranger to legally sanctioned crackdowns attempting to curtail their activities in a country, or in some cases, face blocks or bans. US authorities imposed sanctions on crypto mixing services like Tornado Cash in 2022, facing swift backlash from the industry and legal challenges, while South Korea reportedly blocked 14 exchanges on the Apple store for allegedly operating without the proper registration.
In India, users face a 30% tax on profits from crypto trading, which has been in effect since April 2022. Though crypto firms operating in the country endure increasing regulatory oversight, India is estimated to have more than 100 million digital asset holders out of its roughly 1.4 billion people.
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