Where do the UK's political parties stand on a Gaza ceasefire?

Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer has said fighting in the Middle East must "stop now" as he called for a “ceasefire that lasts” in Gaza.

He made the call while addressing Scottish Labour’s conference in Glasgow on Sunday, in an apparent strengthening of his stance on the Israel-Hamas conflict.

Starmer notably avoided his previously used term of “sustainable ceasefire”, which critics have suggested was too vague. He said he wanted to see a "return of all the hostages taken on October 7th, an end to the killing of innocent Palestinians, a huge scaling up of humanitarian relief and an end to the fighting".

It comes just days before a vote led by the Scottish National Party (SNP) on an immediate cessation of fighting this week, which Labour has so far not ruled out backing amid fears the Commons motion could reopen deep divides among MPs.

Here, Yahoo News explains what the UK's main political parties have said about the prospect of a Gaza ceasefire.

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• David Lammy calls Gaza death toll ‘abominable’ as SNP tables ceasefire vote (The Guardian)

• US threatens to veto new Gaza ceasefire resolution at UN Security Council (CNN)

Labour

The Labour Party faced a crisis in November when nearly a third of its MPs defied Stamer by voting for an amendment, brought by the SNP, explicitly calling for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza.

Eight frontbenchers either resigned or were sacked after going against the party whip and backing the vote, including prominent Labour MP Jess Phillips.

In total 56 Labour MPs backed the SNP's position having been told to abstain from the vote. They were instead told to back Starmer's call for longer "humanitarian pauses" to allow the delivery of aid.

At the time, he stressed Israel's right to defend itself and said that supporting a ceasefire would be "inconsistent with saying it’s their right to try and get their hostages back".

In December, Starmer joined prime minister Rishi Sunak in calling for a "sustainable ceasefire" in Gaza, which would begin with a pause in fighting, the release of hostages, the distribution of aid and work towards setting up a two-state solution.

Some have suggested terms like this are ambiguous, with former State Department lawyer Brian Finucane telling POLITICO: “These are not terms of art with fixed, well-defined meanings, so the devil really is in the details.”

Now, with the death toll in Gaza nearing 29,000 people, according to Palestinian officials, and Scottish Labour unanimously backing a ceasefire motion on Saturday, Starmer has called for an immediate end to fighting.

Conservative Party

The Conservative government back a sustainable ceasefire, with foreign secretary David Cameron arguing in an article for the Sunday Times: "Only extremists like Hamas want us stuck in an endless cycle of violence, sacrificing more innocent lives for their fanatical ideology.

"But our goal cannot simply be an end to fighting today. It must be peace lasting for days, years, generations. We therefore support a ceasefire, but only if it is sustainable.

"We do not believe that calling right now for a general and immediate ceasefire, hoping it somehow becomes permanent, is the way forward. It ignores why Israel is forced to defend itself: Hamas barbarically attacked Israel and still fires rockets to kill Israeli citizens every day. Hamas must lay down its arms."

He added "leaving Hamas in power in Gaza would be a permanent roadblock on the path to a two-state solution". Cameron strikes a similar tone to US President Joe Biden, who has advocated a two-state solution under a revitalised Palestinian Authority, who partially govern the West Bank.

Some Tories have rebelled against the party line, including Paul Bristow, who was dismissed as a ministerial aide at the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology in October for publicly urging Rishi Sunak to back an immediate ceasefire.

Scottish National Party

Scotland's First Minister Humza Yousaf has urged Labour to back a ceasefire now with no caveats.

He added: "The SNP will bring forward another vote on an immediate ceasefire next week. Any political party that refuses to back it will be on the wrong side of history. I hope Keir Starmer does the right thing."

The SNP's motion warns that the 1.5 million Palestinians sheltering in the southern city of Rafah, including 610,000 children, have "nowhere else to go" – condemning "any military assault on what is now the largest refugee camp in the world".

It makes further calls for the immediate release of all hostages taken by Hamas and an "end to the collective punishment of the Palestinian people".

The SNP’s Westminster chief Stephen Flynn rejected a claim by Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar that Labour is in touch with his party’s whips about the wording of their Commons motion.

But he did offer to meet Starmer on Monday to discuss the vote, which is scheduled to take place on Wednesday.

Liberal Democrats

The Liberal Democrats are calling for an "immediate bilateral ceasefire in Israel and Gaza", adding that it has "always stood in support of a lasting peace and a two-state solution", says party leader Ed Davey.

However, the party adds that "Hamas cannot, for the security of Israelis nor the future of Palestinians, be allowed to continue in charge of Gaza".

Davey adds: "It is increasingly clear that a military solution to eliminate Hamas is not possible. Nor is it tenable for Israel to reoccupy Gaza. Only a sustained political and diplomatic solution will resolve this conflict and deliver a lasting peace. We urgently need movement towards that solution now. But how? The answer is via an immediate bilateral ceasefire.

"It is important to be clear. Some who call for a ceasefire really seem to mean freezing the conflict. But that’s not acceptable. It leaves Hamas in place in Gaza.

"Maximum pressure now needs to be applied on all parties, with tough conditions carefully monitored and verified. That will require a huge and sustained effort from the international community and the UN, with a particular role to be played by Arab neighbours."

Green Party

The Green Party called for an immediate ceasefire on 9 October, but this week the party called for a scaling up of sanctions against Israel and accused the UK government of "complicity" in killing.

In a statement on 12 February, it called for an "end to all arms sales to Israel, prosecutions of war criminals and targeted sanctions on Israel’s leaders".

Green Party co-leader Carla Denyer said: "It is clear that the Israeli government is refusing to heed warnings about the catastrophic implications of an all-out attack on Rafah. The UK government must now demand that Israel stop the killing, calling for an immediate ceasefire. Hamas must also agree to this ceasefire of course, and release all hostages.

“Decisions made by the UK government - above all its failure, month after month, to call for an immediate ceasefire - have made them complicit in the killing of almost 28,000 people to date, 12,000 of whom are children."

Denyer said the UK "must also cease all military collaboration with Israel, including allowing Israeli use of British bases and RAF intelligence flights over Gaza". She said the Green Party would also implement requirements of the controversial Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) campaign across the UK economy.

Plaid Cymru

Plaid Cymru put forward a motion in the Senedd in November calling for an immediate ceasefire in the Gaza Strip.

Party leader Rhun ap Iorweth told members: “I feel the need to speak today as a member of humanity. We are human. The pain of loss is felt equally by an Israeli and a Palestinian mother. Today we speak up for peace for all mothers, fathers, brothers, sisters, sons and daughters.

“We speak today in pursuit of unity. We reject division. We take a stand against those seeking to encourage division. The motion today, condemning as it does the horrifying attacks, calling for the immediate release of hostages, notes clearly that Israel has a duty to ensure the protection, security and welfare of its citizens.

“But in the war that ensued after October 7, the response that ensued – inevitable as a response was going to be, so there has to be a duty to be proportionate; international law is clear on that. There can never be justification for the collective punishment of an entire population.”