Mr Hamish Falconer
MP for Lincoln · Labour · United Kingdom
“I want to be really clear with the House, as the Prime Minister has been repeatedly: despite the anxious desire of Opposition Members, we are not rerunning the arguments of 2016 once again.”
“Let me start by paying tribute to my hon. Friend for his work on this issue. This Government are absolutely clear that nothing like the Hillsborough disaster must ever happen again.”
“My hon. Friend is right to highlight the shared challenges that we face with the European Union, including the very rapid developments in artificial intelligence. I am proud to sit next to my right hon.”
“This Government are committed to deepening our ties with the European Union. It is right at the centre of everything that we are trying to do on the cost of living and energy, as well as the security of our continent.”
“I can hear that there is outrage behind me. I have many responsibilities, but writing the next Labour party manifesto is not one of them. We are committed to the red lines. We were all elected on that manifesto. We want to go further and faster—we have inherited a poor deal with the European Union, and it is my job to improve it.”
“Obviously, we will need to agree timing with our friends in Europe and announce it in the usual way, but I want to be clear to the House that I am ambitious to move quickly and I would like to see progress within the coming months. There was much else upon which I could touch.”
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“As he knows, it is to deliver the internal security assistance programme in Lebanon to support Lebanon’s internal security forces, and to help them become more trusted, professional and better able to address Lebanon’s internal security challenges. I have seen some of our work in Lebanon. It is precisely aimed at the issues he alluded to. We must see in Lebanon the security forces of Lebanon in control of the whole country, not Lebanese Hezbollah, a group that he rightly identifies as a terrorist group proscribed in this country. The programme supports better planning, stronger police operations, improved co-ordination with the Lebanese armed forces, including in the South Litani Sector, which the hon. Member will know is the area that has been the subject of so much discussion in recent months.”
“Let me turn to some of the substantive questions he raised in relation to the contract. I was pleased to see the hon. Member briefly earlier today and I am happy to discuss some of his questions in person, which may be easier. I agree with the hon. Member that of course the Government must spend money diligently in support of UK interests and in a way that delivers value for taxpayers. I disagree with his assertion that the award of the contract under discussion does not align with those principles, so I will say a little about the contract and about Lebanon, and then I will seek to wind up. The Foreign Office currently has one contract with Siren Associates and it is subject to formal commercial oversight. As the hon. Member says, it is part of the overall ISF programme.”
“I am grateful to the hon. Member for Boston and Skegness (Richard Tice) for securing the debate and for providing me with an opportunity to talk about the Lincolnshire police, which is where he started and so where I shall start as well. The hon. Member will be pleased to know that after years and years of underfunding for Lincolnshire police, we have secured a further £12 million a year in the first multi-year Lincolnshire police funding arrangement starting in January. I know that he will share my gladness in that arrangement. The hon. Member referred to a range of issues about which I will not pass comment, unless Madam Deputy Speaker wishes to instruct me otherwise, including the conduct of other hon. Members in this House and what sounds like a private law dispute with the company in question.”
“It is only through a negotiated two-state solution, not unilateral action, that a viable path to long-term peace can be achieved. That path must guarantee security to Israelis and Palestinians alike.”
“I have written to the Advertising Standards Authority and spoken to the Charity Commission about these issues, but I want to reassure the House that while these trends in the west bank continue to worsen, we will continue to take steps to ensure that no one can profit from the sale of land that has been taken unlawfully, that violent settlers are held to account, and that the British Government stand up for the rule of law, for the right of Palestinians to self-determination, and for the prospects for peace and security through a two-state solution. We are in discussion with partners, including those few countries who have explored how a ban on settlement trade might work. We are looking at further concrete steps to counter settlement expansion and promote peace and security.”
“That is the fourth package under this Government. We welcome the condemnation of settler violence at the highest levels of Israeli society. Now Israel must conduct swift and transparent investigations into these attacks, and ensure accountability. The Foreign Secretary also announced that we had updated our business guidance to clearly advise British businesses and citizens not to engage in economic and financial activity in settlements. We have been concerned by efforts to advertise settlement property in the UK and by reports of charitable links between the UK and settlements.”
“The British Government firmly oppose the E1 settlement plan. It would divide the west bank in two and mark a serious breach of international law. The Prime Minister led 11 other world leaders in a joint statement last month. That condemned the E1 plans, urged the Israeli Government to end settlement expansion, and warned businesses of legal and reputational consequences of participating in construction in E1 and other settlements. We are clear: businesses should not bid for construction tenders in E1 or other settlements. We are deeply alarmed by the situation in the west bank: illegal settlements continue to expand; settler violence remains at record levels; and the Israeli Government have further entrenched their control. Last month, the Foreign Secretary announced further sanctions in response to that violence in the west bank.”
“So far we have had word from the Israeli Government about their plans; clearly, businesses in the region will want to consider carefully the warning in the statement last week and the clear commitment from the Dispatch Box in the UK that we will take further measures if the violent action to increase settlements continues in the west bank.”
“I thank my hon. Friend for his attention to these issues, and I know that he recently travelled to the Occupied Palestinian Territories to see it with his own eyes. As I have said many times, I will not comment on sanctions from this Dispatch Box, but I have been clear, and the Prime Minister has led 11 other world leaders in being crystal clear, on the implications and consequences if the E1 settlement continues. He and his colleagues were clear in that statement that there would be implications for the businesses themselves.”
“Lady could not have failed to hear the groans from behind her on the Conservative Benches. I know, in recognising a Palestinian state, that I was of course supported by Labour Members behind me, but I think I was also supported by Conservative Members behind her.”
“I will deal first with the latter points raised by the Opposition spokesman. Yes, we continue to talk to the Palestinian Authority, including on the reform agenda and the need for elections. It is an undeniable fact that I am the middle east Minister who during my time recognised a Palestinian state, and sanctioned Israeli Ministers who now regularly take to the airwaves to issue in the most bloodthirsty terms encouragement for some of the activity that I am being asked about today. I am afraid that an inevitable consequence of the actions announced from this Dispatch Box is that the warmth of my relationship with my counterparts in Israel has indeed suffered, but this Government will not hesitate to stand up for principles, which I think are supported right across this House. The right hon.”
“I dislike disagreeing with my right hon. Friend. Slovenia introduced and then repealed the measures it took. In our discussions with our counterparts—particularly those in the European Union—we hear of a number of technical difficulties that people are encountering. But let me be clear to the House, as I was in my statement, that I am confirming today that we are in discussions about such measures.”
“I have been as clear as I can be from the Dispatch Box that we are watching very carefully who bids for those tenders. We have been clear repeatedly with the Israeli Government about our view on the E1 expansion; I have repeated it today. The question before us is whether, in the run-up to the Israeli election, commercial entities choose to bid for those tenders. That is what we will be watching carefully and taking action in response to.”
“I think that I have already addressed most of those questions. I have just confirmed again, as I did in the statement, that we are in discussions about further measures in relation to west bank goods. We have set out business guidance, and the Foreign Secretary announced the fourth round of sanctions in June. The hon. Lady referred to speed. I think she will acknowledge that we have moved rather more quickly than some of our partners and allies. I am pleased to see many of them taking some of the measures that I announced in the House in 2025, including sanctions on the Ministers that I mentioned. We are moving with alacrity in response to what we see. The question at issue in the urgent question is about the E1 settlement expansion. It is rumoured that there is now a timetable for those tenders.”
“I would not want there to be any ambiguity about the force of our views about what is going on in the west bank. That is why we have done four rounds of sanctions and why I am setting out clearly today what the likely consequences are, should that action continue. The advisory opinion of the ICJ is important, but it is a non-binding opinion of an international court. We do not need to make a judgment on that opinion in order to take action. Indeed, we have taken considerable action over the last two years in the way in which I have set out.”
“We are playing our full role behind the scenes to try to make progress on those questions, but the situation is becoming urgent indeed, both in the west bank and in Gaza.”
“I thank the right hon. Gentleman for the question. We are clearly speaking in the run-up to an Israeli election campaign. Elections are likely in October, and there is, as in any democratic country, a particularly heavy amount of policy positioning by various parties. We are calling on all Israeli politicians to abide by the basic principles of both international law and the very important 20-point plan to which he alluded. I have spoken to officials at the board of peace and the National Committee for the Administration of Gaza as well as the Palestinian Authority. It is vital that we make progress on that plan. There are still insufficient quantities of aid getting into Gaza and unresolved questions about the disarmament of Hamas.”
“I am hesitant; I do not want to end up talking about, at the Dispatch Box, what the Israeli Government’s plans may or may not be; they will speak about those themselves, through their own channels. As I understand it, there is an intent to have a tender, as was mentioned by the Liberal Democrat spokesperson, which would end in October. We will work to that timetable, which clearly runs right up to the Israeli election. It is deeply inappropriate to proceed, so close to an Israeli election, with a programme that has such grave consequences internationally.”
“The Foreign Secretary, other Ministers in the Government and I discuss those questions with the American Administration. It is obvious, as the President of the United States has said, that the Israeli Government are alienating even some of their closest allies through their conduct, both on the west bank and in Gaza.”
“As I said, questions of justice and accountability are foremost in our mind. We raise them with the Israeli Government regularly, particularly in relation to cases that involve British nationals. We are still awaiting justice and accountability for the World Central Kitchen incident, which killed a number of British aid workers. I know of so many stories like the one my hon. Friend refers to. I remember visiting Ramallah before I was a Minister; children had been killed on the streets as we drove in to see the Palestinian Authority. There are far, far too many such cases, and we continue to make that point with force, both to the Israelis and in multilateral settings.”
“For obvious reasons, I will not disclose the full details of diplomatic talks, but I am sure the hon. Gentleman can see the number of things that we have done jointly, including the E1 statement that I referred to last month. We think we have more impact and influence when we work in concert with our friends, and that is what we will always seek to do.”
“It gives me no particular pleasure to be talking about the fourth round of sanctions. One would wish that diplomatic activity could have been enough to prevent the kind of incidents that so many Members are talking about this afternoon, but while they continue, so will we.”
“I gently disagree. I feel that there is some force in what the right hon. Gentleman says about insanity being doing the same thing again and again. We have had many exchanges of that nature. Over the course of two years, the British Government have taken a whole range of steps. We have talked about recognition and sanctions—”
“Returning to the question about the consequences for the Israeli Government, we could not have been clearer, alongside 11 other world leaders, about what they would look like. I say gently to the right hon. Gentleman that the range of actions taken by the Government that I am a part of was absolutely unthinkable to him when he was sitting on the Government Benches. Recognition, suspension of— [ Interruption. ] We have done it; you did not.”
“I have set out as clearly as I can our position on the E1 settlement. I have also been clear that no one should be profiting from unlawfully seized land.”
“I gently push back on the suggestion that what we do has no consequences. I have been pleased to see, as I said to the Liberal Democrat spokesperson, that other partners and allies have taken the actions that we have. There are consequences for Israel, in terms of its position in the world, when it alienates as many of its friends and allies as it has. We have set out as clearly as we can, both for companies and for the Israeli Government, what our views on the E1 settlement are. We did that at head-of-Government level last month. That statement has been seen widely around the world. I cannot guarantee to this House that people will take heed of the statement, but we have set out our position in exactly the way that the hon. Gentleman requests.”
“I will not speak for the American Government; they have set out their position on their concerns about annexation quite clearly. We have discussed throughout this afternoon just how significant the E1 development would be, and I think that that is understood in Washington DC.”
“I thank the right hon. Gentleman, my predecessor, for his question, and for the opportunity to comment on antisemitism. Before I do, I just want to say that this is a delicate period in Israeli politics. I hope the result of the Israeli election will be a set of Israeli policies that are much closer to the wishes of this House. He is, of course, right to say that my ability to influence developments on the ground is finite—if it were not, we would not be in this situation—but we will continue to use all our leverage to try to ensure change. During this period, we can perhaps hope that the Israeli political process will deliver results more akin to a policy that this House would like to see.”
“I do not think the policy of settlements is supported across the whole of Israel. That is very clear in the discussions about the coming elections. There are many voices in Israel who recognise the terrible harm being done to the state of Israel by the expansion of settlements. I hope you will forgive me, Madam Deputy Speaker, if I come back to the point about antisemitism. We must be really careful in our language. There are many, many Israelis—and indeed many, many British Jews—who can see the terrible damage being done by violent settlement, and we must not tar communities in this country or the whole nation of Israel with the same brush. I am grateful for the opportunity to return to the point raised by the right hon. Member for South West Wiltshire (Dr Murrison).”
“I do agree, and I pay tribute to my hon. Friend’s work. I know he has been an active voice on these questions and that he sought to visit Israel to engage with those progressive voices. More fool Israel that it did not allow him in.”
“My hon. Friend has been a doughty advocate on these questions for many years, and I was pleased to join her to meet students from Gaza earlier this week. We will take steps to ensure that the UK is not in any way involved. Legitimate trade with green line Israel is, of course, permissible, but when businesses in this country trade with the occupied territories and seek to make a profit from land that has been unlawfully procured, we will take action.”
“I thank the hon. Lady for the question. I can reassure her that I am very conscious of the electoral timeline and the rumoured timeline for the tenders as well. That is one reason we have set out the statements that we have on the timeline that we have.”
“I have set out the statement we made last year and the intensity of focus we have on these issues. I wrote to the Advertising Standards Authority following concerns raised in many places, including in this House, about an event some weeks ago, and have indeed engaged with the Charity Commission following concerns being raised.”
“The hon. Lady is right: we have had many exchanges across the Dispatch Box. I gently remind her that over the course of these exchanges, I have recognised the Palestinian state; I have sanctioned Israeli Ministers; we have restricted arms sales; and we have led statements repeatedly on these issues. I understand that we are all appalled by the violence that continues, but that does not mean we are not taking the action that we can—”
“Madam Deputy Speaker, let me beg your forgiveness for forgetting the customs of the House—you would think that practice would make perfect. I thank my hon. Friend for the question. All of us, particularly in election year, need to be reminding all our friends in Israel and all the politicians of the importance of the points that he makes.”
“The statement was signed by 11 countries. We all have different arrangements and different tools at our disposal. The British Government’s position is that we oppose any involvement of any kind in the E1 settlement. Given the magnitude of the consequences of the E1 settlement, we would consider that in a broad way, not a narrow way.”
“It is obviously not appropriate for me to set out who should win an election in a fellow democracy. What I can set out is British Government policy and what we would wish to see from Israel. We have been very clear over an incredibly long period of time about our views on a two-state solution, about the conduct of the war in Gaza. It is not for us to set out who should win the Israeli election. It is perfectly reasonable for us to set out what we would wish the policy of the Israeli Government to be in relation to these questions after October.”
“I thank my hon. Friend for the question, and I know that she has been a doughty supporter of some of the Gaza students who were relocated to her constituency. She is right to raise the financial pressure that the Palestinian Authority—and the whole of the economy of Palestine—are under as a result of this dispute about correspondent banking. We have raised this repeatedly and will continue to do so. The economic viability of Palestine is vital.”
“I am pleased to confirm to the House that the unit was not closed—it was moved. The function remains within the Foreign Office and we still receive assessments. There has been some reorganisation within the Department—I was surprised that excited as much interest as it did—but I can confirm that the function remains and the unit was not closed.”
“I do not think I can go further in response to my hon. Friend than I have already. We have been clear at the highest possible level, in the voice of our Prime Minister, about the seriousness with which we take this issue, the breadth of concern that we have and the consequences that are likely to follow. I cannot spell out those consequences for reasons I have already alluded to, but I reassure him that we treat this with the seriousness that it deserves.”
“I have spoken myself to schoolgirls impeded in their day-to-day lives. We have taken four waves of sanctions sanctions against settlers, recognising the severity of the situation, and I have been clear that while the situation continues to get worse, we will continue to act.”
“Goods produced in illegal settlements should not be traded with the United Kingdom. We distinguish them clearly from goods produced in green line Israel. I have said repeatedly that no one should benefit from a profit made on land that has been unlawfully procured.”
“The hon. Gentleman makes an important point and raises a concern that many across the House have raised about the huge disruption to long-standing agricultural practices caused by the expansion of settlements.”
“My hon. Friend asks me about the use of the Sanctions and Anti-Money Laundering Act 2018. That is obviously the basis on which all the Foreign Office sanctions are made. For the reasons that I have set out, I will not say anything further about sanctions from the Dispatch Box. We have done four waves and we have been clear today, as we were last month. In relation to the expo he refers to, I can clarify that it is legitimate to sell real estate within green line Israel in the UK and to advertise that, but it is not legitimate to advertise illegal settlements. That is why I wrote to the Advertising Standards Authority following that expo.”
“I hesitate to commit the Government to primary legislation. The Sanctions and Anti-Money Laundering Act has been sufficient for the four waves so far, but I have heard my hon. Friend’s important points.”
“I thank my hon. Friend for his commitment to these issues. I know that the people of Uxbridge have raised them with him many times and he has not failed to reflect that to me. We are taking actions in the way that I have set out, and I expressed the range of concern that we have about financing for the settlements in my answer to my right hon. Friend the Member for Oxford East (Anneliese Dodds).”
“I agree with my hon. Friend about the response of the Opposition. This is a particularly critical year. It is critical for us all to engage with the full breadth of Israeli politics and society to encourage Israelis, alongside our allies, that there is a better way for the state of Israel and the state of Palestine, and that will be a focus until that election.”
“We will do everything we can. I have set out some of the steps taken so far, and I will not hesitate to return to this House as and when required.”
“That was one of the reasons why we set out even clearer business guidance to our own businesses, and I am sure that many others will have taken notice.”
“It is important to say that at the moment, the E1 is going through a tendering process. There are not yet spades in the ground, but that is what we must seek to avert. That will be a focus of our diplomacy, as it has been since the most recent announcements by Prime Minister Netanyahu in September 2025 of his intention to go ahead. As many Members have said over the course of this afternoon, we have a window before October, and we intend to use it.”