Starmer accuses PM of “complacency and poor judgement” over Afghanistan

Keir Starmer has accused Boris Johnson of “complacency and poor judgement” over the UK government’s response to the situation in Afghanistan as MPs were recalled to parliament today for an emergency debate.

Addressing the House of Commons, the Labour leader criticised the Prime Minister for failing to prepare for the US withdrawal of troops from the country and called for a “generous and welcoming” refugee resettlement scheme.

Starmer described the last week as “disastrous” and an “unfolding tragedy”. He said the democracy in Afghanistan was “by no means perfect” but argued that there had been achievements since the invasion of the country in 2001.

He said there had been no international terrorist attack launched from the country, women “gained liberty and won office”, schools and clinics were built and “Afghans have allowed themselves to dream of a better future”.

The Labour leader argued that those achievements were “born of sacrifice”. In a message to military personnel, he said: “We are all proud of what you did. Your sacrifice deserves better than this, and so do the Afghan people.”

Starmer highlighted that the US agreement to withdraw troops from the country by May 2021 was made in 2020, leaving the Prime Minister and the government with 18 months to “plan and prepare for the consequences of what followed”.

“The very problems we’re confronting today were all known problems in the last 18 months and there’s been a failure of preparation. The lack of planning is unforgivable and the Prime Minister bears a heavy responsibility,” he said.

“He mutters today – he was in a position to lead, but didn’t. Britain holds a seat at the UN security council. We’re a key player in NATO. We’re chair of the G7. Every one of these platforms could and should have been used. Did he use those platforms in the 18 months? No, he didn’t.”

Johnson was heckled as he told MPs that the collapse of the government in Afghanistan was “faster than I think even the Taliban predicted” but claimed: “What is not true is that UK government was unprepared or did not foresee this”.

Starmer pointed out that both Labour and Tory MPs had warned that the government was underestimating the threat of the Taliban, and that Johnson told parliament in July that the group was not capable of victory “by military means”.

“The Prime Minister has no plan how to handle the situation. Just like he had no plan to prevent it. What we won through 20 years of sacrifice could all be lost. That’s the cost of careless leadership,” Starmer told MPs.

The Labour leader also criticised the Prime Minister for going on holiday last week, despite “the Taliban arriving at the gates of Kabul”. He accused Johnson of having “no sense of the gravity of the situation”.

He similarly attacked Dominic Raab for going on holiday “while our mission in Afghanistan was disintegrating”, telling MPs that the Foreign Secretary “didn’t even speak to ambassadors in the region as Kabul fell to the Taliban”.

“You cannot coordinate an international response from the beach – dereliction of duty by the Prime Minister and the Foreign Secretary, a government totally unprepared for the scenario that it had 18 months to prepare for,” Starmer said.

The Labour leader criticised the commitment from Home Secretary Priti Patel this morning to accept 20,000 refugees overall, but only 5,000 this year. He made the case that “we owe an obligation to the people of Afghanistan”.

“Many Afghans bravely sought to rebuild their country. They did so on a promise of democratic freedoms and liberty for the oppressed. They are our friends and that was our promise. They are now fearing for their lives. We do not turn our backs on friends at their time of need,” Starmer told parliament.

“There should be a resettlement scheme for people to rebuild their lives here; safe and legal routes. It must be a resettlement scheme that meets the scale of the enormous challenge.

“But what the government has announced this morning does not do that. It is vague. It will support just 5,000 in the first year – a number without rationale. Was that based on a risk assessment of those most at need or just plucked out the air?

“The offer to others is in the long term, in the long term. But for those desperately needing our help now, there is no long term, Mr Speaker, just day-to-day survival.”

Starmer argued that the most urgent task is the protection of diplomatic staff still working in Kabul and the evacuation of British nationals and refugees, saying: “The Labour Party fully supports the deployment of troops to this end.”

“The [resettlement] scheme must be generous and welcoming – if it’s not, we know the consequences,” he added. “Violent reprisals in Afghanistan, people tragically fleeing into the arms of human traffickers. We know this is what will happen.”

The Taliban seized power over the weekend almost 20 years after the invasion of Afghanistan launched by the West, with the objective of ousting the group and preventing it from harbouring al-Qaeda, following the 9/11 attack in the US.

“The situation has stabilised since the weekend but it remains precarious,” Johnson told MPs today as he opened the debate, adding that UK officials are “doing everything that they can to expedite the movement of people”.

Starmer said the Prime Minister was right not to recognise the Taliban regime but argued there must be a “wider strategy” with NATO allies, neighbouring countries and the UN to ensure there is “consistent pressure” on the group.

“There must be a UN-backed plan to ensure our aid budget is used to support humanitarian causes in Afghanistan, not fund the Taliban,” Starmer said.

“This is a difficult task with no guarantee of success, so it should concern us all that the Prime Minister’s judgement on Afghanistan has been appalling.”

Put to him by Ian Duncan Smith that President Joe Biden’s speech was shameful in putting blame on Afghan forces, Starmer said: “The US is an important ally, but to overlook the fighting of the Afghan troops and forces in recent years is wrong.”