Labour Party leader Sir Keir Starmer suffered a major revolt among his own MPs on Wednesday evening when no fewer than 56, including 10 of his frontbenchers, defied the whip to back a Scottish National Party (SNP) amendment to the King’s Speech in the House of Commons calling for an “immediate ceasefire” in the Israel-Hamas war.
Labour had tabled its own motion, making a more moderate appeal for a “humanitarian pause” in the conflict and ordered its representatives to support that stance rather than endorse the more drastic position adopted by Stephen Flynn, the SNP’s leader in Westminster.
Sir Keir’s position places him in lockstep with Rishi Sunak’s government and the United States, European Union and United Nations by prioritising Israel’s duty to defend itself in response to the horrific atrocities it suffered in Hamas’s terror attack of 7 October over backing immediate intervention to address the humanitarian crisis unfolding in Gaza.
It also puts him at odds with many members of his own party, including the Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar, as well as many others, including the hundreds of protesters who gathered in Parliament Square on Wednesday to lobby for a ceasefire.
The SNP’s amendment was ultimately voted down by 294 to 125, in large part thanks to the Conservative’s majority in the Commons but the rebellion leaves the opposition leader facing a major headache and needing to replace eight members of his shadow cabinet after they left their roles over the dispute.
“I regret that some colleagues felt unable to support the position tonight,” Sir Keir said after the count.
“But I wanted to be clear about where I stood, and where I will stand. Leadership is about doing the right thing. That is the least the public deserves.”
A complete list of the Labour rebels who defied the whip follows below.
Frontbench resignations
Paula Barker
Shadow minister for devolution and the English regions and MP for Liverpool Wavertree
Rachel Hopkins
Shadow minister for veterans and MP for Luton South
Afzal Khan
Shadow minister for legal aid of the United Kingdom and MP for Manchester, Gorton
Sarah Owen
Shadow minister for local government and faith and MP for Luton North
Jess Phillips
Shadow minister for domestic violence and safeguarding and MP for Birmingham, Yardley
Yasmin Qureshi
Shadow minister for international development and MP for Bolton South East
Naz Shah
Shadow minister for crime reduction and MP for Bradford West
Andy Slaughter
Shadow solicitor general and MP for Hammersmith
Dan Carden
Parliamentary private secretary and MP for Liverpool, Walton
Mary Kelly Foy
Parliamentary private secretary and MP for City of Durham
Backbench resignations
Tahir Ali
MP for Birmingham, Hall Green
Rosena Allin-Khan
MP for Tooting
Apsana Begum
MP for Poplar and Limehouse
Clive Betts
MP for Sheffield South East
Paul Blomfield
MP for Sheffield Central
Karen Buck
MP for Westminster North
Richard Burgon
MP for Leeds East
Dawn Butler
MP for Brent Central
Ian Byrne
MP for Liverpool, West Derby
Liam Byrne
MP for Birmingham, Hodge Hill
Sarah Champion
MP for Rotherham
Stella Creasy
MP for Walthamstow
Jon Cruddas
MP for Dagenham and Rainham
Judith Cummins
MP for Bradford South
Marsha De Cordova
MP for Battersea
Peter Dowd
MP for Bootle
Julie Elliott
MP for Sunderland Central
Barry Gardiner
MP for Brent North
Margaret Greenwood
MP for Wirral West
Fabian Hamilton
MP for Leeds North East
Kate Hollern
MP for Blackburn
Rupa Huq
MP for Ealing Central and Acton
Imran Hussain
Mp for Bradford East
Ian Lavery
MP for Wansbeck
Emma Lewell-Buck
MP for South Shields
Clive Lewis
MP for Norwich South
Rebecca Long-Bailey
MP for Salford and Eccles
Khalid Mahmood
MP for Birmingham, Perry Barr
Rachael Maskell
MP for York Central
John McDonnell
MP for Hayes and Harlington
Ian Mearns
MP for Gateshead
Grahame Morris
MP for Easington
Kate Osamor
MP for Edmonton
Kate Osborne
MP for Jarrow
Bell Ribeiro-Addy
MP for Streatham
Lloyd Russell-Moyle
MP for Brighton, Kemptown
Cat Smith
MP for Lancaster and Fleetwood
Alex Sobel
MP for Leeds North West
Zarah Sultana
MP for Coventry South
Sam Tarry
MP for Ilford South
Stephen Timms
MP for East Ham
Jon Trickett
MP for Hemsworth
Valerie Vaz
MP for Walsall South
Nadia Whittome
MP for Nottingham East
Beth Winter
MP for Cynon Valley
Mohammad Yasin
MP for Bedford
