For its supporters and the public at large, the UK Labour party’s looming decision on how the country recognises the state of Palestine is one of the biggest it faces.
Prime Minister Keir Starmer and Foreign Secretary David Lammy have a statesman-like stand on the issue, which says recognition will come as part of a peace process. But the party faithful gathered in Liverpool for the annual Labour conference this week hunger for something more, by and large seeking swifter action.
Mr Lammy’s job this week is to hold the line for now. “We have never lost sight of the end goal: an irreversible pathway towards a two-state solution,” he declared during his address at the opening of the meeting.
Short of taking the party down that pathway, Mr Lammy can offer smaller measures that set a particular direction. These include restoring funding to the UN Palestinian refugee agency and putting on the table sanctions against the West Bank settlers, including the movement’s leaders who are currently ministers in the Israeli government.
There, undoubtedly, are trade-offs for the world’s most influential countries in making the leap that Spain and Ireland made this summer to recognition. Just last weekend, the Palestinian envoy in Madrid presented his credentials to King Felipe. The governing Liberals in Canada have proposed a four-step move to recognition at the level of the Parliament’s foreign affairs committee.
But for the legally minded, there are certain obligations that the UN puts around state recognition, and these practical hurdles are likely to matter within a government that takes the legalese so seriously. The UK’s is one such government. Even when London’s position on arms exports to Israel was adjusted earlier this month, Mr Lammy and others said the policy was dictated by the legal position not informed by politics.
Starmer will have an opportunity to lead on the issue because of the UK’s historic responsibilities and the pressures within his party
The last time Labour was in power, the party was active on the Palestine-Israel issue. Across the span of developments from 1997 to 2010, it invested heavily in the practicalities of the two-state solution.
The subsequent Conservative government was energetic in how it reacted to the October 7 outbreak of fighting. By and large, however, its record in the region was increasingly sorry. It did not include the concept of normalisation in its Integrated Review, which outlines the government’s foreign and security policy. It was not even a bystander in the launch of the India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor last year, whereas Germany signed the launch memorandum.
Today, Tony Blair would not be able to recognise the UK’s demeanour over the Palestine-Israel issue. The former Labour prime minister wanted to make an impact by building trust on the ground and making incremental progress in bolstering the Palestinian Authority. Indeed, he ran something of an end game around the Foreign Office by appointing a personal envoy on the process.
He was also active at a time when the US slacked away. Following the collapse of the Camp David Accord, it was Mr Blair who provided the impetus for then US president George W Bush to issue the 2003 Roadmap for Peace.
When his successor, Gordon Brown, took over, he not only became the first UK prime minister to address the Knesset but was also a noted champion of the economic roadmap for Palestinian financial and business autonomy. It was a step towards proving that a Palestinian state could sustainably justify itself as an independent nation. Mr Brown was also a notable champion of the Annapolis Process. But his time in office was also marked by the rise of Iran’s threats to the region, not least when its president called for Israel to be wiped off the face of the map.
Mr Starmer will, in time, have an opportunity to lead on the issue because of the UK’s historic responsibilities and the pressures within his party for an active policy.
What is true about Mr Blair and Mr Brown is that they were able to hold together the party by taking a positive and internationally prominent role. For the most part, the policy was an important tool of party management. However, Mr Blair’s approach to the Lebanese offensive in 2006 was the moment his leadership ran out of road. Exhausted with the Labour membership, he was gone within a year.
A decade and a half later, the Labour bench retains deep expertise on Palestine and Israel. The realism allied with pragmatism that it has promised to bring to foreign policy means that Mr Starmer may be forced to deal with Donald Trump in the White House in ways that Mr Blair was tested by Mr Bush.
A poll released on Monday by the Tony Blair Institute for Global Change, the former leader’s think tank, in association with Zogby Research Services showed that even in the ravages of the current conflict, there is appetite for a fully functioning Palestinian government. Of those polled in Gaza, the biggest grouping (about 29 per cent) supported a Gazan administration of local representatives, with international oversight and linked to the Palestinian Authority.
Among all the Palestinians, there was strong agreement on the ground that reform in the PA is the only way forward, should a ceasefire come. In the West Bank, four fifths support moderate-to-deep reform if it is on the table. The respondents remain optimistic that the PA represents a future state in the making, with 69 per cent on average still backing it as the way forward.
The approach taken by Mr Starmer and Mr Lammy is not yet clear, but their government can reconcile the political and diplomatic importance of recognition with the deep engagement that would assist reforms to overcome the all-too-many reverses that Palestinians have suffered in recent years.
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2.0
Director: S Shankar
Producer: Lyca Productions; presented by Dharma Films
Cast: Rajnikanth, Akshay Kumar, Amy Jackson, Sudhanshu Pandey
Rating: 3.5/5 stars
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Labour dispute
The insured employee may still file an ILOE claim even if a labour dispute is ongoing post termination, but the insurer may suspend or reject payment, until the courts resolve the dispute, especially if the reason for termination is contested. The outcome of the labour court proceedings can directly affect eligibility.
- Abdullah Ishnaneh, Partner, BSA Law
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Sting & Shaggy
44/876
(Interscope)
MATCH INFO
Uefa Champions League semi-final, second leg result:
Ajax 2-3 Tottenham
Tottenham advance on away goals rule after tie ends 3-3 on aggregate
Final: June 1, Madrid
Tearful appearance
Chancellor Rachel Reeves set markets on edge as she appeared visibly distraught in parliament on Wednesday.
Legislative setbacks for the government have blown a new hole in the budgetary calculations at a time when the deficit is stubbornly large and the economy is struggling to grow.
She appeared with Keir Starmer on Thursday and the pair embraced, but he had failed to give her his backing as she cried a day earlier.
A spokesman said her upset demeanour was due to a personal matter.
Hydrogen: Market potential
Hydrogen has an estimated $11 trillion market potential, according to Bank of America Securities and is expected to generate $2.5tn in direct revenues and $11tn of indirect infrastructure by 2050 as its production increases six-fold.
"We believe we are reaching the point of harnessing the element that comprises 90 per cent of the universe, effectively and economically,” the bank said in a recent report.
Falling costs of renewable energy and electrolysers used in green hydrogen production is one of the main catalysts for the increasingly bullish sentiment over the element.
The cost of electrolysers used in green hydrogen production has halved over the last five years and will fall to 60 to 90 per cent by the end of the decade, acceding to Haim Israel, equity strategist at Merrill Lynch. A global focus on decarbonisation and sustainability is also a big driver in its development.
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
Company profile
Company name: Suraasa
Started: 2018
Founders: Rishabh Khanna, Ankit Khanna and Sahil Makker
Based: India, UAE and the UK
Industry: EdTech
Initial investment: More than $200,000 in seed funding
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Dubai Bling season three
Cast: Loujain Adada, Zeina Khoury, Farhana Bodi, Ebraheem Al Samadi, Mona Kattan, and couples Safa & Fahad Siddiqui and DJ Bliss & Danya Mohammed
Rating: 1/5
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
More on animal trafficking
The specs
Engine: Dual 180kW and 300kW front and rear motors
Power: 480kW
Torque: 850Nm
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
Price: From Dh359,900 ($98,000)
On sale: Now
Who has been sanctioned?
Daniella Weiss and Nachala
Described as 'the grandmother of the settler movement', she has encouraged the expansion of settlements for decades. The 79 year old leads radical settler movement Nachala, whose aim is for Israel to annex Gaza and the occupied West Bank, where it helps settlers built outposts.
Harel Libi & Libi Construction and Infrastructure
Libi has been involved in threatening and perpetuating acts of aggression and violence against Palestinians. His firm has provided logistical and financial support for the establishment of illegal outposts.
Zohar Sabah
Runs a settler outpost named Zohar’s Farm and has previously faced charges of violence against Palestinians. He was indicted by Israel’s State Attorney’s Office in September for allegedly participating in a violent attack against Palestinians and activists in the West Bank village of Muarrajat.
Coco’s Farm and Neria’s Farm
These are illegal outposts in the West Bank, which are at the vanguard of the settler movement. According to the UK, they are associated with people who have been involved in enabling, inciting, promoting or providing support for activities that amount to “serious abuse”.
'Cheb%20Khaled'
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EArtist%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EKhaled%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ELabel%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EBelieve%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ERating%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%204%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Global state-owned investor ranking by size
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China
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UAE
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Japan
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Norway
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Canada
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Singapore
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Australia
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Saudi Arabia
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South Korea
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RESULTS
5pm: Maiden (PA) Dh80,000 1,600m
Winner: Omania, Saif Al Balushi (jockey), Ibrahim Al Hadhrami (trainer)
5.30pm: Conditions (PA) Dh85,000 1,600m
Winner: Brehaan, Richard Mullen, Ana Mendez
6pm: Handicap (TB) Dh100,000 1,600m
Winner: Craving, Connor Beasley, Simon Crisford
6.30pm: The President’s Cup Prep (PA) Dh100,000 2,200m
Winner: Rmmas, Tadhg O’Shea, Jean de Roualle
7pm: Wathba Stallions Cup (PA) Dh70,000 1,200m
Winner: Dahess D’Arabie, Connor Beasley, Helal Al Alawi
7.30pm: Handicap (PA) Dh80,000 1,400m
Winner: Fertile De Croate, Sam Hitchcott, Ibrahim Aseel
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Sole survivors
- Cecelia Crocker was on board Northwest Airlines Flight 255 in 1987 when it crashed in Detroit, killing 154 people, including her parents and brother. The plane had hit a light pole on take off
- George Lamson Jr, from Minnesota, was on a Galaxy Airlines flight that crashed in Reno in 1985, killing 68 people. His entire seat was launched out of the plane
- Bahia Bakari, then 12, survived when a Yemenia Airways flight crashed near the Comoros in 2009, killing 152. She was found clinging to wreckage after floating in the ocean for 13 hours.
- Jim Polehinke was the co-pilot and sole survivor of a 2006 Comair flight that crashed in Lexington, Kentucky, killing 49.
FIXTURES
December 28
Stan Wawrinka v Pablo Carreno Busta, 5pm
Milos Raonic v Dominic Thiem, no earlier then 7pm
December 29 - semi-finals
Rafael Nadal v Stan Wawrinka / Pablo Carreno Busta, 5pm
Novak Djokovic v Milos Raonic / Dominic Thiem, no earlier then 7pm
December 30
3rd/4th place play-off, 5pm
Final, 7pm
Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
- Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
- Flexible payment plans from developers
- Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
- DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
