On October 7, a horrified world condemned the appalling terrorist attack carried out by Hamas on Israel, which left 1,269 people dead and 253 kidnapped.

However, few predicted that the response to this outrage would unleash such death and destruction on Gaza’s Palestinian civilians with almost 30,000 fatalities, so far.

Only diplomacy and negotiation can secure a lasting peace. This can only happen with a bi-lateral ceasefire in place, for which the SNP has long called.

At Westminster we laid an amendment to the King’s Speech debate in November, our first opportunity to urge the House of Commons to back a ceasefire.

Labour Leader, Sir Keir Starmer, directed his MPs to abstain on this vote.  However, 11 of his frontbench team were sacked or forced to resign after supporting the SNP amendment amid a rebellion of 56 Labour MPs.

The SNP has only three Opposition Days a year in which to choose debating topics and votable motions. Labour has 17.

Since October, 7 Labour has never brought forward a debate or motion on Gaza. Instead, choosing such topics as ministerial severance pay!

At the first opportunity, the SNP brought forward a Gaza motion on our Opposition Day.

No one really cares about Westminster’s procedures. Suffice to say that the Labour leadership, according to some senior Labour MPs, threatened the Speaker of the House of Commons with losing his Speakership after the next election if he didn’t tear up established procedure and ensure the SNP motion wasn’t voted on. This allowed Sir Keir to avoid a rebellion by Labour MPs keen to back the SNP’s motion calling for “an immediate ceasefire” and an end to “collective punishment” of Gaza’s civilians.

Instead, Labour was permitted to table its own motion calling for a “humanitarian ceasefire” to allow aid into Gaza, after which war resumes. Sir Keir also refuses to accept that “collective punishment” is happening.

Bizarrely. the Speaker said his unprecedented break with convention would allow “the widest debate possible,” while excluding a Lib Dem motion.

Anger at the Speaker caving into intimidation from Labour’s leadership, meant he was twice forced to return to the Commons and apologise to the SNP when our Motion wasn’t voted on, something he was explicitly warned about by the Clerk of the House if he overturned established procedures for Opposition Day debates.

As the Commons simmered, the Speaker offered a new reason for his ruling; he had to select a motion on which Labour MPs could vote or they would be abused on social media!

The following day, his explanation escalated into fears of another MP being murdered.

If so, he would surely have spoken to each party leader and asked them to agree a motion everyone could support. SNP MPs, believing it crucial to support any motion encouraging peace in Gaza, vacated the Chamber to vote for Labour’s.

Ultimately, no vote was recorded on this vital issue. Are MPs safer as a result? I doubt it.

Because Sir Keir cannot accept “an immediate ceasefire” he prevented Westminster from expressing its view, leaving the Speaker, who must always be impartial, in an untenable position. 

This glimpse into a potential Starmer Government was chilling in its ruthlessness.

To read the full article, please visit: www.patriciagibson.org