West Bank: Settler Activity
15 Jun 2026 · Commons Chamber · 24 speeches · Official record
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Last week I signed a letter to the Foreign Secretary, along with 140 colleagues, asking the Government to take further action in response to settler violence and the rhetoric used by two far-right Israeli Government Ministers. Over the last two years, I have heard from hundreds of my constituents expressing their deep concern about the Israeli Government’s actions in the west bank. Will the Secretary of State commit today to banning all trade with illegal settlements, and if not, why not? Full speech
The Secretary of State says she is looking at options and that she wishes to work in partnership in the international sphere. She must accept that the UK has significant history and responsibility in this region. Does she not listen to the words of her Back Benchers? It is incumbent on her to take action now-not simply to look at things and to seek partnership-to have real effect on this appalling, continuing outrage. Full speech
Let me add a few words about the murder of Jo Cox. I was a friend and colleague of Jo’s, and I still remember the numbness and shock that I felt on hearing the news. Quite simply, no Member of this House should fear for their life because they speak out on behalf of their constituents. The west bank is illegally occupied by Israel. The settlements are illegal and have been expanded through extreme violence by settlers, supported by the Israel Defence Forces. I do not know whether my right hon. F... Full speech
May I echo what hon. Members have said about Jo Cox? One Palestinian child has been killed every week in the west bank since January 2025. Hundreds remain in detention, and many more face significant disruption to their education. What steps are the Government taking with international partners to improve the safety of children in the west bank and to ensure that they can enjoy an education free from violence? Full speech
5. What diplomatic steps her Department is taking in response to settler activity in the west bank. Full speech
Let me respond to my hon. Friend’s important point. We are clear that action is needed, and we are acting. This Government have done more on this issue in the last two years than any Government have done for many decades, because we are so concerned about settlement expansion and settler violence. We have not only had the recent sanctions against settler violence but sanctioned two Israeli Cabinet Ministers, because we take this issue so seriously. However, I think my hon. Friend and I agree on ... Full speech
I welcome the Foreign Secretary’s use of the term “settler terrorism”. She is absolutely right; the phrase “settler violence” does not do justice to what is happening. She will be aware that settler terrorism is often enabled and encouraged, or at best a blind eye is turned, by both the Israeli police and the IDF. She will know the damage perpetrated by that terrorist activity. If Israel wishes to remain the villa in the jungle it has always wished to be, can she at least remind her Israeli Gove... Full speech
Last week, we did take further action and set out a new wave of sanctions. On Friday, I went to Paris for a meeting with other Foreign Ministers, and also met civil society organisations and community organisations from across Israel and Palestine. Last week, we launched the international peace fund with Australia and Canada in order to support the community-level building of the foundations of a two-state solution. Later this week, I will go to Egypt to have similar discussions. In the end, we ... Full speech
The settlements in the west bank are a fundamental barrier to peace, and a flagrant breach of international law. We condemn the rising and incredibly disturbing settler violence that we have seen over the past year. Last week I announced a new wave of sanctions to target the networks that are supporting this violence, which is the fourth package of sanctions against extremist Israeli settlers under this Government. Full speech
There have been over 760 incidents this year, resulting in casualties, property damage and 57 deaths, so it is clear that diplomacy and the action we have taken so far are not moving the dial. I appreciate that we are only one voice in the international community, but we clearly need to be seen to be doing absolutely everything we can to make a difference on this issue. What will it take for the Government to take further action, and to go further on sanctions and settlement trade? Full speech
I thank my hon. Friend for his question. The expansion of Israeli settlements and some of the violence circulating in them is a deliberate attempt by hardliners to undermine any possibility of a two-state solution and to pursue in many areas what is effectively illegal annexation-that is their intention. We agree on the principles that no one should be trading with illegal settlements. That is different from long-standing legitimate trade with businesses across Israel, which we continue to suppo... Full speech
9. What diplomatic steps her Department is taking in response to settler activity in the west bank. Full speech
I would point out to the hon. Gentleman that the action we have already taken has a stronger impact than many of the other measures he is talking about. That includes imposing sanctions on individual members of the Israeli Cabinet, which very many other Governments have not done. We encourage other Governments to do what we have done. It also includes the work internationally to seek to find new energy behind the two-state solution. That includes the 20-point peace plan in Gaza, but must include... Full speech
3. What steps she plans to take in response to increases in settler violence in the west bank. Full speech
I would like to start by joining you, Mr Speaker, and colleagues across the House in paying tribute to the memory of Jo Cox. Her words about seeking what we have in common, and working to counter the politics of division, are today more relevant than ever-for all of us. The Secretary of State set out piecemeal and entirely inadequate measures last week in relation to west bank settlement activity. It was raised with her then that the UK would be hosting the Great Israeli Real Estate Event at the... Full speech
Once again, I point out the strength of the action we have taken; we have brought together countries from across the world-and gone further than most countries. What is being driven here is deeply disturbing: both the level of violence, and the deliberate attempt-with the E1 settlements in particular-to undermine any possibility of a two-state solution. That is a long-term thing, and it has been supported by many people across the Israeli Government. It is a deep challenge for everyone, which is... Full speech
We have been very clear not only that no businesses should be engaging in trade or marketing around the illegal settlements, but that they certainly should not be doing so on UK soil. We take this issue so seriously, which is why the Minister for the Middle East and North Africa and the Department for Culture, Media and Sport have raised it directly with the Advertising Standards Authority. We have asked the authority to urgently look into the matter and reassure us that, if there is any evidenc... Full speech
I welcome the points made by the hon. Member. We continue to look at what further sanctions could be needed in order to address illegal settlements, the activity linked to them, and settler violence. We are also looking at whether and where we may need to strengthen our overall sanctions regime, as well as at individual sanctions issues. We support the reform measures around the Palestinian Authority, including the free and fair elections, which are crucial. We are also providing direct funding ... Full speech
We continually raise these issues with the Israeli Government, because we cannot have what we have seen: property damage, intimidation, farmers’ olive trees burnt down, families’ water disconnected and mobs rampaging. That is why we have introduced the scale of the breadth of sanctions, including on organisations such as the Farms Association which have been supporting them. It is also why we need to challenge any culture of impunity. There has to be accountability for what are, effectively, cri... Full speech
19. What diplomatic steps her Department is taking in response to settler activity in the west bank. Full speech
May I associate my party with your tribute to the life and work of Jo Cox, Mr Speaker, and extend our thoughts to her family and her many friends? The prospect of a two-state solution rests on at least two essential conditions: the protection of Palestine’s territorial integrity, and political reform within the Palestinian state. This weekend in London, we saw the selling of properties in illegal settlements. The expansion of such settlements must instead be reversed by cutting off their finance... Full speech
Last week Amnesty International published a report entitled “Erasing Anything Palestinian”, which shines a powerful light on Israel’s ethnic cleansing in the west bank. It makes clear that what is happening is not driven by rogue settlers or a few extremist Ministers; rather, it is state sanctioned and state financed. Yet to date the UK’s response has been largely performative and, unfortunately, fairly inconsequential. Do the Government accept that this is state-enabled ethnic cleansing? If the... Full speech
I call the Liberal Democrat spokesperson. Full speech
My hon. Friend is right to raise the plight of children in the west bank. I would add to that the terrible plight of children in Gaza, where there is still not sufficient humanitarian support-that has gone backwards too. He is also right to say that some of this is about the impact of violence. Some of the targeted and ideologically driven violence against Palestinians on their own land is settler terrorism, and we should call it that. We are continuing to provide support for children in Palesti... Full speech