Original SNP motion:

That this House calls for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza and Israel; notes with shock and distress that the death toll has now risen beyond 28,000, the vast majority of whom were women and children; further notes that there are currently 1.5 million Palestinians sheltering in Rafah, 610,000 of whom are children; also notes that they have nowhere else to go; condemns any military assault on what is now the largest refugee camp in the world; further calls for the immediate release of all hostages taken by Hamas and an end to the collective punishment of the Palestinian people; and recognises that the only way to stop the slaughter of innocent civilians is to press for a ceasefire now.

All three of the proposed amendments delete everything after the first three words of the SNP motion, effectively replacing it in full.

Labour’s amendment reads:

That this House believes that an Israeli ground offensive in Rafah risks catastrophic humanitarian consequences and therefore must not take place; notes the intolerable loss of Palestinian life, the majority being women and children; condemns the terrorism of Hamas who continue to hold hostages; supports Australia, Canada and New Zealand’s calls for Hamas to release and return all hostages and for an immediate humanitarian ceasefire, which means an immediate stop to the fighting and a ceasefire that lasts and is observed by all sides, noting that Israel cannot be expected to cease fighting if Hamas continues with violence and that Israelis have the right to the assurance that the horror of 7 October 2023 cannot happen again; therefore supports diplomatic mediation efforts to achieve a lasting ceasefire; demands that rapid and unimpeded humanitarian relief is provided in Gaza; further demands an end to settlement expansion and violence; urges Israel to comply with the International Court of Justice’s provisional measures; calls for the UN Security Council to meet urgently; and urges all international partners to work together to establish a diplomatic process to deliver the peace of a two-state solution, with a safe and secure Israel alongside a viable Palestinian state, including working with international partners to recognise a Palestinian state as a contribution to rather than outcome of that process, because statehood is the inalienable right of the Palestinian people and not in the gift of any neighbour.

The Tory government’s amendment reads:

That this House supports Israel’s right to self-defence, in compliance with international humanitarian law, against the terror attacks perpetrated by Hamas; condemns the slaughter, abuse and gender-based violence perpetrated on 7 October 2023; further condemns the use of civilian areas by Hamas and others for terrorist operations; urges negotiations to agree an immediate humanitarian pause as the best way to stop the fighting and to get aid in and hostages out; supports moves towards a permanent sustainable ceasefire; acknowledges that achieving this will require all hostages to be released, the formation of a new Palestinian Government, Hamas to be unable to launch further attacks and to be no longer in charge in Gaza, and a credible pathway to a two-state solution which delivers peace, security and justice for both Israelis and Palestinians; expresses concern at the humanitarian crisis in Gaza and at the prospect of a military offensive in Rafah; reaffirms the urgent need to significantly scale up the flow of aid into Gaza, where too many innocent civilians have died; and calls on all parties to take immediate steps to stop the fighting and ensure unhindered humanitarian access.

And the LibDems’ amendment reads:

That this House expresses its devastation at the mounting humanitarian disaster in Gaza with tens of thousands of innocent Palestinians killed, millions displaced and thousands of homes destroyed; calls on the Prime Minister to oppose publicly and at the UN Security Council the proposed IDF offensive in Rafah; further urges Hamas to unconditionally and immediately release the over 100 hostages taken following the deplorable attacks on 7 October 2023; notes the unprecedented levels of illegal settler violence in the Occupied Palestinian Territories left unchecked by the Israeli Government; welcomes the recent sanctions by the UK Government against four extremist Israeli settlers who have committed human rights abuses against Palestinian communities in the West Bank; urges the UK Government to sanction all violent settlers and their connected entities; calls on the UK Government to uphold international law and the judgments of international courts under all circumstances; further notes that the only path to regional security is a two-state solution based on 1967 borders with Hamas not in power; condemns Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu’s repeated assertions that there is no future for a Palestinian state; and further urges the UK Government to call for an immediate bilateral ceasefire in Gaza, which will allow an end to the humanitarian devastation, get the hostages out and provide an opportunity for a political process leading to a two-state solution, providing security and dignity for all peoples in Palestine and Israel.

https://www.thenational.scot/news/24134333.read-snps-gaza-ceasefire-motion-labours-amendment—full

Comment:

The Labour amendment said that there can be no ceasefire until Hamas is defeated, at least that is the meaning of:

“This House […] supports Australia, Canada and New Zealand’s calls for Hamas to release and return all hostages and for an immediate humanitarian ceasefire, which means an immediate stop to the fighting and a ceasefire that lasts and is observed by all sides, noting that Israel cannot be expected to cease fighting if Hamas continues with violence and that Israelis have the right to the assurance that the horror of 7 October 2023 cannot happen again.”

The amended motion was in reality an entirely new motion, it was passed without a vote, that is, it was put by the Speaker and and accepted with a general hollering of ‘aye’. There was too much noise in the House for the Speaker to distinguish if there were any ‘no’.

The Speaker disgraced himself and his position in handling these motions. The whole point of an ‘Opposition Day’ in this case, an SNP opposition day, is that they can put a motion to the House. To ignore this elementary right is an outrage. It is breaking a precedent that is there for the very  good reason that it is simple fairness and not allowing it is sheer contempt for the opposition. The fact is that the Speaker did not allow this and instead allowed the different motion by the Labour Party to be voted on which saved a very embarrassing situation for Starmer when it was expected that up to a 100 labour MPs would vote for the SNP motion – almost double the number that voted for it last time. This would have been a disaster for Starmer, illustrating the division in his Party.  Party unity  took precedent over voting against genocide. There is no doubt that the Speaker was pressurised into acting as he did by Starmer’s Labour Party.

The Speaker compounded his disgraceful behaviour by claiming he was concerned for the safety of MPs from Islamist attacks.  So he would have you believe that Parliament and its MPs are operating under  the threat of terrorism.

More than 30 MPs signed a motion of no confidence in the Speaker and SNP MPs have tabled a motion of no confidence in his speakership. This destroys his authority.

The SNP will bring forward their motion again so Mr Starmer will have to deal with the same problem in trying to present a facade of Party unity which is clearly divided on a very basic issue – to vote for continuing genocide or not. What a Party!