The Scottish National Party (SNP) threatened Sunday to present a bill to recognize the Palestinian State and “force a vote” in the British Parliament if Prime Minister Keir Starmer continues to oppose him.
The SNP, favorable to the independence of Scotland, said it would present a “bill on the recognition of Palestine” to the resumption of parliamentary work after summer holidays if Mr. Starmer does not change his mind.
24 hours after Emmaneul Macron’s announcement
The prime minister promised to recognize the Palestinian State, but said that this should be part of a peace process in the Middle East. SNP’s threat occurs after more than 220 British deputies, including dozens of the Labor Party in the power of Mr. Starmer, demanded that the British government recognize the Palestinian state on Friday.
This call, formulated in a letter signed by the deputies of nine British political parties, intervened less than 24 hours after the French president Emmanuel Macron said that his country would recognize during a United Nations meeting in September.
“Unless Keir Starmer stops blocking the recognition of Palestine by the United Kingdom, the SNP will present a bill on Palestine’s recognition when the Parliament will resume its work in September and will impose a vote if necessary,” said Stephen Flynn, SNP manager in the British Parliament.
“Keir Starmer must stop defending the indefensible, he must finally find the courage to do so and demand that Israel ended the war immediately,” he added.
If France recognizes the Palestinian State, it will be the first country in the G7, and the most powerful European nation to date, to make this decision.
Mr. Starmer is the object of a growing pressure at national and international level so that he recognizes the Palestinian State, while the opposition to the current war in Gaza intensifies, in a context of fear of a famine in the Palestinian territory.
On Saturday, the British leader spoke with his French and German counterparts and presented the plans of the United Kingdom aimed at sending air to the population of Gaza and evacuating sick and injured children, said his office.
The SNP has nine seats in the British Parliament, which is 650.
Source: BFM TV
