Labour right backs Cameron on Syria

Submitted by Matthew on 14 October, 2015 - 11:36 Author: Henry Thompson

David Cameron had indicated that he will seek Parliament’s support for airstrikes on Syria. It remains unclear when a vote will take place.

In an interview with the BBC on 6 October, Cameron said he would go to for a parliamentary vote “at a time when there’s a greater consensus across the House of Commons for that action”. Some Tory MPs oppose military action in Syria, so the Prime Minister might have to rely on opposition MPs to pass a motion for airstrikes.

The vote will be a significant moment for the Labour Party and Jeremy Corbyn’s left-wing leadership. Corbyn has said that he is against airstrikes in Syria.

The bombing would help one or another reactionary faction, or more likely be a token to bolster the UK’s credit with the USA.

At Labour Party conference in September, delegates voted not to support airstrikes in Syria unless four conditions were first met: authorisation from the UN, a plan for humanitarian assistance for refugees displaced by the action, assurances that the bombing is only targeted at ISIS, and that any bombing is subordinated to international diplomatic efforts to end the war.

However, according to the Guardian, around fifty Labour MPs are planning to vote in favour of airstrikes. Labour MP Jo Cox and Tory ex-minister Andrew Mitchell co-wrote an article in the Observer in support of action.

This represents an undemocratic flouting of Labour Party conference policy.

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