Starmer to put Labour’s position on Israel-Hamas war to potential vote amid rebellion concerns
Labour will put forward an amendment to parliament on Wednesday that will give MPs a vote on the Israel-Hamas war, the party has said.
The amendment will condemn the Hamas attacks on Israel on October 7, call for the immediate release of all hostages and “reaffirm Israel’s right to defend its citizens from terrorism”.
But it will also say there has been “far too many deaths of innocent civilians and children” in Gaza and call on Israel to protect hospitals and lift its blockade of the 25-mile strip.
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The amendment will call for “longer humanitarian pauses” to deliver humanitarian assistance “on a scale that begins to meet the desperate needs of the people of Gaza”, calling this “a necessary step to an enduring cessation of fighting as soon as possible”.
It comes amid concerns some Labour MPs could be tempted to vote for a rival SNP amendment that would expose divisions within the party by going further and calling for a ceasefire.
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Why does SNP want a ceasefire?
So far, Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer has consistently called for a humanitarian pause in the war for aid to reach Palestinians, but has rejected calls for him to demand a ceasefire.
A Labour spokesperson said their amendment “reaffirms the position” set out by Sir Keir and reflected the party’s concerns regarding the status of Israeli hostages, the “insufficient” amount of aid and utilities entering and being distributed in Gaza, the scale of civilian casualties and the amount of violence on the West Bank.
The spokesperson hinted that if the House of Commons Speaker selects the party’s amendment, Labour MPs will be ordered to abstain on the SNP amendment.
“We’re not going to be engaging with the party political game-playing by the SNP in parliament,” they said.
Labour has been divided over its approach to the conflict, with numerous backbenchers and shadow ministers calling for a ceasefire.
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‘Is ceasefire issue tearing Labour apart?’
But the leadership has stood by its own calls for so-called humanitarian pauses to allow aid and supplies to get into the Gaza Strip – echoing the position of the government.
The discord within Labour has been ramped up by the prospect of the SNP amendment being presented to parliament on Wednesday, giving all MPs an opportunity to vote in favour of a ceasefire – if it is selected by the Speaker.
Such a vote could highlight the level of upset on Sir Keir’s backbenches, with rumours even shadow ministers could rebel against Labour’s official position.
Labour insiders made it clear to Sky News’ political editor Beth Rigby that if frontbenchers defied the party position and voted with the SNP, they would have to stand down.
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Shadow business secretary Jonathan Reynolds effectively confirmed this on Tuesday evening, telling the Politics Hub with Sophy Ridge: “We would expect people to vote for the Labour position. That’s why we’re putting the Labour position forward.
“Disciplinary issues are obviously for the chief whip and not for me to announce on television, but we would expect Labour frontbenchers to support the Labour position.”
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‘We would expect Labour frontbenchers to support the Labour position’
One Labour source also told Sky News: “The order at the moment is if you’re on the frontbench and you vote for [the SNP amendment] you won’t be on the frontbench anymore.”
Another party source said a number of shadow ministers may resign in advance, adding: “Maybe [a Labour amendment] will be enough for some, but it won’t be enough for a lot.”
But it doesn’t appear to be stopping backbenchers from offering their support to the SNP motion.
Former shadow chancellor John McDonnell told Sky News: “I will be voting along with several colleagues for a ceasefire and therefore for the SNP amendment if no other is called by the Speaker.
“I don’t think he will call any other but the SNP’s so I will be voting for that.”
SNP sources have said Wednesday’s vote would not be a one-off, and they would keep up the pressure on Sir Keir and his MPs to back a ceasefire – drawing a dividing line between the two parties.
Millionaire Tory donor Malcolm Offord has defected to Reform UK, saying he would be campaigning “tirelessly” to “remove this rotten SNP government”.
Nigel Farage announced the former Conservative life peer’s defection during a rally in the Scottish town of Falkirk, where regular anti-immigration protests have taken place outside the Cladhan Hotel – which is being used to house asylum seekers.
Mr Farage, Reform UK’s leader, said he was “delighted” to welcome Greenock-born Lord Offord to Reform, describing his defection as “a brave and historic act”.
He added: “He will take Reform UK Scotland to a new level.”
During a speech, Lord Offord, who previously donated nearly £150,000 to the Tories, said he would be quitting the Conservative Party and giving up his place in the House of Lords as he prepares to campaign for a seat in Holyrood in May.
The 61-year-old said he wanted to restore Scotland to a “prosperous, happy, healthy country”.
“Scotland needs Reform and Reform is coming to Scotland,” he told the rally.
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“Today I can announce that I am resigning from the Conservative Party. Today I am joining Reform UK and today I announce my intention to stand for Reform in the Holyrood election in May next year.
“And that means that from today, for the next five months, day and night, I shall be campaigning with all of you tirelessly for two objectives.
“The first objective is to remove this rotten SNP government after 18 years, and the second is to present a positive vision for Scotland inside the UK, to restore Scotland to being a prosperous, proud, healthy and happy country.”
The latest defection comes as Mr Farage finds himself at the centre of allegations of racism dating back to his time in school.
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Claims made against Nigel Farage
Sky News reported on Saturday that a former schoolfriend of Mr Farage claimed he sang antisemitic songs to Jewish schoolmates – and had a “big issue with anyone called Patel”.
Jean-Pierre Lihou, 61, was initially friends with the Reform UK leader when he arrived at Dulwich College in the 1970s, at the time when Mr Farage is accused of saying antisemitic and other racist remarks by more than a dozen pupils.
Mr Farage has said he “never directly racially abused anybody” at Dulwich and said there is a “strong political element” to the allegations coming out 49 years later.
Reform’s deputy leader Richard Tice has called the ex-classmates “liars”.
A Reform UK spokesman accused Sky News of “scraping the barrel” and being “desperate to stop us winning the next election”.
The European Commission’s proposal to expand the powers of the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) is raising concerns about the centralization of the bloc’s licensing regime, despite signaling deeper institutional ambitions for its capital markets structure.
On Thursday, the Commission published a package proposing to “direct supervisory competences” for key pieces of market infrastructure, including crypto-asset service providers (CASPs), trading venues and central counterparties to ESMA, Cointelegraph reported.
Concerningly, the ESMA’s jurisdiction would extend to both the supervision and licensing of all European crypto and financial technology (fintech) firms, potentially leading to slower licensing regimes and hindering startup development, according to Faustine Fleuret, head of public affairs at decentralized lending protocol Morpho.
“I am even more concerned that the proposal makes ESMA responsible for both the authorisation and the supervision of CASPs, not only the supervision,” she told Cointelegraph.
The proposal still requires approval from the European Parliament and the Council, which are currently under negotiation.
If adopted, ESMA’s role in overseeing EU capital markets would more closely resemble the centralized framework of the US Securities and Exchange Commission, a concept first proposed by European Central Bank (ECB) President Christine Lagarde in 2023.
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EU plan to centralize licensing under ESMA creates crypto and fintech slowdown concerns
The proposal to “centralize” this oversight under a single regulatory body seeks to address the differences in national supervisory practices and uneven licensing regimes, but risks slowing down overall crypto industry development, Elisenda Fabrega, general counsel at Brickken asset tokenization platform, told Cointelegraph.
“Without adequate resources, this mandate may become unmanageable, leading to delays or overly cautious assessments that could disproportionately affect smaller or innovative firms.”
“Ultimately, the effectiveness of this reform will depend less on its legal form and more on its institutional execution,” including ESMA’s operational capacity, independence and cooperation “channels” with member states, she said.
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The broader package aims to boost wealth creation for EU citizens by making the bloc’s capital markets more competitive with those of the US.
The US stock market is worth approximately $62 trillion, or 48% of the global equity market, while the EU stock market’s cumulative value sits around $11 trillion, representing 9% of the global share, according to data from Visual Capitalist.
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