The leader of Britain’s left-wing party saw eight members of his own cabinet walk out and dozens of lawmakers rebel in a key vote Wednesday night over his cautious support for Israel, as the hardline elements of his party demand an immediate ceasefire.
Over a quarter of the UK Labour Party’s elected Members of Parliament rebelled against their leader in a vote calling for an immediate ceasefire in the Israel-Hamas conflict on Wednesday night. The Labour leadership, which has been attempting to detoxify the party after the repeated antisemitism scandals that tarnished its reputaiton under its previous leader has taken a position more in line with the European mainstream, emphasising Israel’s right to self-defence while calling for humanitarian pauses.
But this equanimous position has not found favour with some in the party, who have stayed loyal to their feelings for Palestine and bitterly resisted Labour leader Sir Kier Starmer’s position. With the news of the vote, an amendment called by the left-nationalist Scottish National Party (SNP), Starmer strictly instructed his members to abstain on the motion calling for an immediate ceasefire and said any senior member of his team, known as the shadow cabinet of politicians with quasi-ministerial briefs, who voted against him would be dismissed.
LONDON, ENGLAND – NOVEMBER 15: Activists shout into megaphones as thousands protest outside of Parliament to demand that there is a vote for a ceasefire at Parliament Square on November 15, 2023 in London, England. Parliamentarians are poised to vote on an SNP motion urging a ceasefire in the Middle East. (Photo by Guy Smallman/Getty Images)
56 Labour members of Parliament of a total caucus of 198 voted against Starmer including eight members of his shadow cabinet and two ministerial aides. Of those senior members who voted against him, a handful resigned pre-emptively and others were fired over the rebellion. Most senior of those who left their jobs — which would have seen them take on a government department in the case of the Labour Party winning the next election — was Jess Philips, who was until today in line for a job in the interior ministry.
Despite the rebellion, tonight’s motion failed overall, defeated 293 to 125 votes. As reported by the Daily Telegraph, the rebellion is the largest in UK politics since a group of government ministers jumped ship in the dying days of the Boris Johnson government in 2022.
This major rebellion is a considerable setback for Starmer’s attempts to detoxify the image of his party in the wake of the ouster of former leader Jeremy Corbyn, a hard-left radical of the old school who was accused of allowing antisemitism to fester within the party’s ranks. He has steadfastly denied these accusations and was expelled from the party after an independent report into the scandal found evidence of wrongdoing.
Corbyn, a spiritual leader for the rebels if not actual, given he now sits as an independent, grabbed headlines this week after he made a television appearance in which he angrily and repeatedly refused to engage in the question of whether Hamas is a terrorist organisation. In UK law, the military wing of Hamas is a terrorist organisation, although the political wing is considered separate.
Protests also took place around Parliament on Wednesday night, as pro-Palestine activists made their feelings known. At one point, two protesters were removed on from the public gallery of the Commons Chamber after holding up signs.