Opposition motion on Yemen

On 26 October 2016, the second subject of Labour’s Opposition Day Debate focused on the current conflict and humanitarian crisis in Yemen.

I was not in Parliament for the debate due to a prior commitment, arranged well in advance of the agreement of the subject of the debate, which on some occasions happens just the evening before,

with authorisation from the whips. My absence did not however affect the outcome of the vote, as I was paired with a Conservative MP. Pairing is an arrangement between two MPs of opposing parties to not vote in a particular division. This enables an MP to be absent without affecting the result of the vote as they effectively cancel each other out.

I join my Labour colleagues in urging the Government to back calls for a full, independent, UN-led investigation into airstrikes in Yemen against civilians. All sides engaged in this conflict need to bring a halt the violence, so that desperately-needed humanitarian relief can be delivered.

You can read the debate in full here.