‘Not much difference’ between Scotland and UK Labour’s ceasefire position, says Anas Sarwar

Published

2 months ago

February 18, 2024

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Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar has insisted there is “not much difference” between his and Sir Keir Starmer’s position on a ceasefire in Gaza.

Mr Sarwar has been calling for the ceasefire for months – unlike the UK Labour leader who says he wants a “sustainable” end to the Israel-Hamas conflict.

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However, the Glasgow MSP dismissed the suggestion there was a clear difference between the two positions, telling Sunday Morning With Trevor Philips (SMTP) that the pair were in “absolute agreement” on most issues relating to the Middle East.

He said Scottish Labour’s motion calling for an end to the conflict, which passed at the party’s conference on Saturday, was not calling for Israel to “unilaterally” stop their actions in Gaza but rather, “an to end violence both ways”.

He said: “A ceasefire means the end of violence and rocket fire in Gaza, but also absolutely has to mean an end to rocket fire coming out of Gaza.

“It also includes the immediate release of hostages… alongside humanitarian aid needing to get in and the pathway to a two-state solution.

“In terms of where the position relates to the UK Labour Party and the Scottish Labour Party, I actually don’t think there’s much difference.”

He pointed to a speech made by Sir Keir on Saturday at the Munich Security Conference, in which he said “the fighting must stop now”.

However, Sir Keir has been coming under pressure to explicitly back a ceasefire, with several members of his shadow cabinet resigning over his position last year.

There are fears of a fresh crisis on Wednesday when the SNP will force another vote on the matter in the House of Commons.

In the previous vote in November, Sir Keir’s decision to favour “humanitarian pauses” led to the departure of 10 shadow ministers and parliamentary aides who rebelled to vote for a full ceasefire.

Mr Sarwar, who has signalled support for the SNP motion, said rather than focus on the position of two opposition parties, next week’s debate should focus on how to get parliament to find an agreement as a majority.

He said: “The Conservatives still have a majority in parliament.

“How do we get a majority that sends a unified message to Israel and in Palestine that we need the violence to stop right now? That should be our ambition rather than making this a debate about two opposition parties.”

Following his remarks, shadow foreign secretary David Lammy said he understands the position of Scottish Labour – but stressed he wanted to make sure any pause in fighting was “sustainable”.

He told the BBC’s Sunday With Laura Kuenssberg: “I fully understand that Scottish colleagues want the fighting to stop now, we’ve been saying that for weeks, so we agree with them.”

But he added: “I’m not sure that what’s flying around on Twitter says anything about it being sustainable.

“You can have a ceasefire that lasts for a few days. We want the ceasefire to last and to be permanent and to move towards the diplomatic solution. It will only be a political solution that brings an end to this.”

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Politics

Humza Yousaf resigns as Scotland’s first minister

Published

2 hours ago

April 29, 2024

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Humza Yousaf resigns as Scotland's first minister

Humza Yousaf has resigned as Scotland’s first minister after cutting ties with his government’s power-sharing partners.

The leader of the SNP, who only took on the role in March last year, has been at the centre of a chaotic few days in Holyrood after he made the surprise announcement to end his power-sharing deal with the Scottish Green Party on Thursday.

Mr Yousaf cut ties following a bitter row over the SNP’s climbdown on climate targets as he said the agreement between the parties had “served its purpose”.

But as a result, his former Green allies teamed up with the Conservatives, Labour and Liberal Democrats to get behind two no-confidence motio ns, one in himself as leader of Scotland and another regarding the entire Scottish government.

Ahead of any of those votes taking place, Mr Yousaf stepped down as Scotland’s first minister just after midday on Monday as he said he was “not willing to treat my values and principles or do deals with whomever simply for retaining power”.

He said he will remain in post until a replacement first minister is chosen.

Over the weekend, Mr Yousaf insisted he would not resign but by Monday morning his tune had changed and Sky News was told he was considering resigning.

He was due to meet the Alba Party’s sole MSP, Ash Regan, who was set to make demands in exchange for her support during a confidence vote. Her vote could have been the decider but he chose to step down before it came to that.

Announcing he was quitting, Mr Yousaf said he “clearly underestimated the level of heart and upset” he caused the Greens when he cut ties with them.

“To my colleagues in opposition, regardless of political party, genuinely, I bear no ill will and certainly no grudge against anyone,” he said as his voice broke while thanking his wife, children and family for “putting up with me over the years”.

Mr Yousaf said it had been “an honour” to serve as first minister of Scotland and it was a role he “could never have dreamt” of as a young boy growing up there.

The politician, whose parents are Pakistani and Kenyan, also said he is evidence multiculturalism has flourished in the UK.

“People who looked like me were not in positions of political influence, let alone leading governments, when I was younger,” he said.

“We now live in a UK that has a British Hindu prime minister, a Muslim mayor of London, a black Welsh first minister, and for a little while longer a Scottish Asian first minister of this country.

“So for those who decry that multiculturalism has failed across the UK, I would suggest that the evidence is quite to the contrary and that is something we should all celebrate.”

Mr Yousaf said he was proud to have overseen “the most progressive” tax system in the UK and played a part in lifting an expected 100,000 children out of poverty this year.

He added that he will continue to campaign for independence, which he said “feels frustratingly close” and he is “absolutely certain” his successor will achieve it.

The race to replace Mr Yousaf has now commenced, with several names in the fray, although none have officially declared they have thrown their hats in the ring.

Close ally of Mr Yousaf, John Swinney, former deputy leader under Nicola Sturgeon, is being touted as the favourite.

Stephen Flynn, the SNP’s Westminster leader, has also been mentioned as has Kate Forbes who lost out to Mr Yousaf during last year’s leadership contest.

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