Labour conference 2025: Delegates lock horns over competing Palestine motions

Labour delegates clashed over two competing emergency motions on Palestine at the 2025 Labour party conference in Liverpool today.

The two motions, which were debated on the conference floor this morning, both outlined points of action for the government to address the ongoing humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza.

While both called for urgent action to end the crisis, delegates locked horns over crucial differences between them.

Both called for a halt to arms sales to Israel, but the Momentum-backed Motion 2, which was passed by delegates, called for a full suspension while Motion 1 more specifically backed a moratorium on those “could be used in the conflict”.

Read the latest news, analysis and commentary on the 2025 Labour party conference in Liverpool here on LabourList.

Motion 2, which was proposed by UNISON and seconded by ASLEF, also drew criticism from delegates for including no reference to Hamas or the attacks of October 7, 2023.

The first motion was put forward by Hackney North and Stoke Newington CLP, whose delegate Sudenaz Top told conference that the “people of Gaza have endured horrors that none of us should endure”.

“Israel has a right to defend itself, but that can’t be in the manner that kills 20,000 children,” she added. “Let us send a message of hope that the world is watching.”

Speaking to propose Motion 2, UNISON’s Christina McAnea said the government’s move to recognise a Palestinian state is a “critical contribution towards achieving peace in the Middle East”.

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This motion also more explicitly described Israel’s actions in Gaza as a genocide. “Let’s not play with semantics, let’s use the word,” McAnea said.

“We cannot continue to watch from the sidelines in horror,” she added. “I don’t want to be standing here this time next year with nothing to have changed in Gaza.”

But Motion 2 came under fire from delegates for containing no reference to Hamas or the October 7 massacre, with South Cotswolds CLP delegate Josh Littler-Jennings supporting Motion 1 – emphasising that the only way to ensure peace is to “deliver a two-state solution”.

Councillor Jennifer Hemingway of Smethwick CLP said: “Language matters. The October 7 atrocious were the worst terrorist attack in Israel’s history. Hamas must never play a part in a future Palestine, and Motion 2 fails to recognise this.”

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Other speakers reflected on the day of October 7, 2023 – which happened at the time of that year’s Labour Party Conference.

“In terms of foreign policy, the grown ups are not just back in the room, but back on the international stage,” Councillor Margaret Pinder of Beverley and Holderness CLP added.

The Palestine Solidarity Campaign bemoaned the lack of speakers in favour of Motion 2, accusing the Labour leadership of trying to “silence their own members”.

But Motion 2 was passed by delegates this afternoon, while Motion 1 was voted down as the weight of the affiliate vote saw the motion fall.

Sasha Das Gupta, Momentum Co-Chair, said: “Labour Conference voting for the government to employ all means to end Israel’s genocide is a huge feat, marking a watershed moment in the Party since Israel began its genocide in Gaza.”

But a Labour Friends of Israel (LFI) spokesperson said: “As we approach the second anniversary of the worst massacre of Jews since the Holocaust, it is shameful, shocking and inexplicable for conference to have passed a motion, proposed by trade unions, about the tragic conflict in Gaza which makes no reference to the 7 October Hamas atrocities that sparked it.

“This motion does absolutely nothing to further the Labour government’s agenda of an end to the war, the release of the hostages, and a path to a two-state solution.”

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What you need to know: 

• SPEECHES: Where is conference and when are Keir Starmer, Rachel Reeves and Angela Rayner speaking?
• VOTES: Revealed: The party rule changes Labour conference could vote on

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