Burnham under pressure to toughen stance on Israel and confirm arms embargo and genocide

Andy Burnham is facing mounting pressure from pro-Palestine groups and left-wing activists within the Labour Party to take a stronger stance on Israel.

They are urging him to announce a full arms embargo and to declare that the war in Gaza constitutes genocide.

Several groups—including Momentum, Labour & Palestine, the Campaign for Labour Party Democracy, and the Palestine Solidarity Campaign—have circulated a “model motion” for supporters to endorse ahead of the annual Labour conference next month.

While recent Labour conferences have seen party leadership maintain tight control over the agenda, some fear that the new Prime Minister’s promise to end factionalism could lead to what one insider calls “a return to the wild west” at this year’s gathering in Liverpool.

As a result, hardline motions on Israel may be more likely to reach the debate stage.

The “model motion” calls on the government to accept the findings of a UN commission that concluded Israel has committed genocide in Gaza, and to impose “comprehensive sanctions,” including a full arms embargo. It has been circulated to party members, trade unionists, and MPs.

Grassroots groups like Momentum and other pro-Palestine activists are now seeking to win support for an arms embargo from the soft-left MPs and party members who played a key role in Burnham’s ousting of former PM Keir Starmer.

They argue that Burnham needs to go further in condemning Israel than simply offering an apology for Labour’s previous position under Starmer.

Sasha Das Gupta, co-chair of Momentum, told the Guardian: “Burnham must not allow the same failures that alienated voters under Starmer to continue. He must listen to the majority of the Labour movement and take decisive action on Gaza.”

Dan Iley-Williamson, a political organiser at the Palestine Solidarity Campaign, added: “Burnham’s apology for Labour’s previous stance on Palestine will mean nothing if his government doesn’t decisively break with Keir Starmer’s complicity in Israel’s crimes.

“Burnham could use this Labour conference to show the country he’s willing to break with Starmer. If he doesn’t, he risks the same fate: plummeting support and a legacy of infamy.”

While Momentum is far less influential today than when it was formed to back Jeremy Corbyn, it still retains some support about Labour members and a small number of MPs, and within the trade unions.

Before taking office, Burnham claimed that the UK needed to increase pressure on the Israeli government and had been too slow to call for a ceasefire in Gaza.

Labour’s conference will take place from Sunday 27 to Wednesday 30 September.

Last year, under Starmer’s leadership, more than 30 hardline pro-Palestine motions were ruled out of order for debate in the International Affairs section.

However, this year a joint initiative calling for an arms embargo—backed by both hard- and soft-left pro-Palestine members, as well as the influential trade union bloc that controls 50 percent of the vote—stands a stronger chance of reaching the conference floor for debate.