LONDON: British lawmakers squeezed into parliament Tuesday with Labour ministers sitting on the government’s side of the chamber for the first time in 14 years following last week’s landslide election win.
Labour’s 400-plus MPs jostled for space on the ruling side of the House of Commons, with many having to stand, as parliament returned after being dissolved before Thursday’s vote.
New Prime Minister Keir Starmer addressed the house for the first time as Britain’s leader, vowing to “put an end to a politics that has too often seemed self-serving and self-obsessed.”
“We all have a duty to show that politics can be a force for good,” he added.
He also noted the new parliament was “the most diverse parliament by race and gender this country has ever seen.”
According to the House of Commons Library, a record 263 or 40 percent of the 650 MPs are women, up from 220 in 2019, while 90 are from minority ethnic backgrounds, an increase from 66 five years ago.
Rishi Sunak — Conservative prime minister until last week — made his first speech as leader of the opposition, and started by congratulating Starmer on his victory.
He described being an MP as the “greatest honor, privilege and responsibility,” in a congenial session that contrasted sharply with the usual arguing and shouting seen in the chamber.
The session started by re-electing Lindsay Hoyle as speaker of the house.
After the addresses by Starmer, Sunak, and other party leaders, parliament was to begin the lengthy process of swearing in all 650 MPs. Some 335 of them are new to parliament.
Labour won 411 seats, securing a majority of more than 170 as it returned to power for the first time since Gordon Brown was prime minister in 2010.
The Tories suffered their worst-ever electoral defeat, succumbing to just 121 MPs.
Sunak is due to stay in charge of the party until the Conservatives work out the timetable for his successor to be chosen.
The new parliamentary session will officially begin after Starmer’s government puts forward its priorities for the term in the King’s speech on Wednesday 17 July.
Labour ministers in government seats as UK parliament returns
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Labour ministers in government seats as UK parliament returns
- New Prime Minister Keir Starmer addressed the house for the first time as Britain’s leader
- He noted new parliament was “the most diverse parliament by race and gender this country has ever seen”
Minister walks out of film festival after accusations of German role in Gaza ‘genocide’
- Syrian-Palestinian director Abdallah Al-Khatib said the German government “are partners in the genocide in Gaza by Israel”
BERLIN: A German minister walked out of the awards ceremony of the Berlin Film Festival after a prize-winning director accused Germany of complicity in the “genocide” committed by Israel in Gaza.
Social Democratic Environment Minister Carsten Schneider left the ceremony on Saturday evening because of “unacceptable” remarks, his ministry said.
Syrian-Palestinian director Abdallah Al-Khatib, who picked up a prize for Best First Feature Award with his “Chronicles from the Siege,” said in his speech that the German government “are partners in the genocide in Gaza by Israel. I believe you are intelligent enough to recognize this truth.”
Schneider was the only member of the German government attending the ceremony though he was not representing it, his ministry told AFP.
The Ministry of Culture, contacted by AFP to find out the reason for the absence of its minister Wolfram Weimer, did not respond immediately.
A leading member of Chancellor Friedrich Merz’s conservative party, Alexander Hoffmann, denounced what he said were “repugnant scenes” of “antisemitic” during the ceremony.
“The accusations of genocide, the antisemitic outbursts, and the threats against Germany at the Berlinale are absolutely unacceptable,” Hoffmann, head of the Christian Social Union, the Bavarian party allied with Merz’s Christian Democratic Union, told the Bundestag.
The CDU mayor of Berlin Kai Wegner told newspaper Bild that “The open display of hatred toward Israel is in direct contradiction with what this festival represents.”
The backdrop of the conflict in the Middle East led to a tense 76th edition of the festival.
More than 80 film professionals criticized the Berlinale’s “silence” on the war in Gaza in an open letter, accusing the festival of censoring artists “who reject the genocide” they believe Israel has committed in Gaza.
Award-winning Indian writer Arundhati Roy withdrew from the festival after jury president Wim Wenders said cinema should “stay out of politics” when asked about Gaza.
