LONDON: The UK Labour Party has ruled out dozens of motions on Palestine from being debated at its annual conference in Liverpool, prompting criticism from grassroots members and campaign groups who accused party officials of stifling debate, it was revealed on Saturday.
The party’s Conference Arrangements Committee, or CAC, said that more than 30 motions submitted by local constituency Labour parties and affiliated organizations were ruled out of order because the issue had already been substantially addressed in the National Policy Framework, or NPF, report published in August.
Under party rules, only contemporary motions on subjects not covered by the NPF are eligible for debate.
Delegates have until Sunday evening to appeal against the CAC’s decisions, with hearings due on Monday. The conference begins on Sept. 28.
Labour leader and prime minister, Keir Starmer, is preparing to recognize Palestine as an independent state, a move expected this weekend. However, many Labour members and MPs argue that the government should go further by ceasing all arms trade and military cooperation with Israel, and by introducing comprehensive sanctions.
The Palestine Solidarity Campaign, or PSC, which has the backing of several Labour MPs, strongly criticized the decision, saying many of the motions related to developments that took place after the NPF report was published. These include the Israeli government’s announcement of its militarily offensive in Gaza City on Aug. 8 and the killing of five Al Jazeera journalists in Gaza City on Aug. 10.
PSC Director Ben Jamal said: “Just days after a UN Commission of Inquiry confirmed that Israel has committed and is committing genocide in Gaza, it is shocking that Labour officials are trying to block a large influx of motions in solidarity with Palestine from being debated at this year’s party conference.”
He continued: “By continuing to deny that Israel is committing genocide, the government seems determined to ignore the overwhelming evidence as well as growing public outrage at its ongoing failure to take meaningful action to end British complicity with Israel’s crimes against the Palestinian people.
“Labour Party members must be allowed to debate these issues in Liverpool.”
The surge in motions this year reflects the growing pressure inside Labour over its stance on Israel and Palestine. More than 30 motions were submitted this year compared with just three in 2024, a ten-fold increase. Campaigners say that this reflects rising anger among party members and the wider public, pointing to polling which found that 72 percent of Labour’s 2024 voters supported a full arms embargo on Israel.
Former Shadow Chancellor John McDonnell, a long-standing supporter of the PSC, said that the conference must not ignore the issue.
“With more than 30 motions on Palestine submitted to this year’s Labour Party conference, it is clear that party members see Israel’s genocide against the Palestinian people as a major issue that needs to be raised on the conference floor,” he said.
“The government should join those, including London Mayor Sadiq Khan, who have spoken out this week to make clear that what we are witnessing in Gaza is genocide and urgently implement sanctions, including a full arms embargo and a ban on all trade that aids or assists Israel’s crimes against the Palestinian people,” McDonnell added.
