Britain’s top trade envoy flew to the country to promote ties with Britain after the Foreign Secretary stopped formal trade talks, threatening to weaken the government’s tough stance on Gaza.
David Lammy suspended trade talks with Israel last week in protest of its expansion of its ground operations in Gaza, which he called an “insult to the values of the British people”.
In an enthusiastic speech to MPs, he said that Israel’s “serious” policies in Gaza and the West Bank “damaged” Britain’s relations with the country.
But seven days later, Lord Austin, the UK’s trade envoy to Israel, traveled to the country to “promote trade.”
It has the potential to undermine the tough message Lammy sent last week, marking Sir Keir Starmer’s strongest rebuke against Israel, as it suspended dozens of weapons exports in September.
“We will review cooperation with them in accordance with the 2030 bilateral roadmap. The actions of the Netanyahu government make this necessary,” the Foreign Minister announced the decision to hold trade talks on May 20.
David Lammy told the House of Commons on May 20 through Getty Images
But on Tuesday night, Lord Austin, the former Minister of Labor, announced his arrival in Israel and published a post on X.
He wrote: “Greetings from Israel! I meet with businesses and officials here to promote trade with the UK. Trade with Israel provides thousands of good jobs in the UK and brings people together in the great multicultural democracy of Israel.”
The government defended the trip, telling the Financial Times that Lord Austin was there to promote British relations with Israeli businesses.
A spokesman said: “We have suspended negotiations with Israel on the new FTA because it is impossible to discuss with the Netanyahu government, which adopts such serious policies in Gaza and the West Bank.
“Lord Austin is in Israel this week as a trade envoy to maintain our relationship with Israeli businesses.”
The UK has begun negotiations to strengthen the existing free trade agreement with Israel in 2022. Last year, Labor confirmed its plans to deepen Britain’s £5.8 billion trade ties, a move that caused a rift among the party’s backseaters.
The decision to stop trade negotiations on Gaza offensive sparked an angry response from the Israeli Foreign Ministry, which said: “If the British government is willing to damage the British economy due to anti-Israel obsession and domestic political considerations, that is its own privilege.”
Lord Austin is now a non-affiliated peer in the House of Lords and has served as the UK’s trade envoy since 2019.
He told the Jewish Chronicle: “Hundreds of businesses in the UK and thousands of jobs depend on trade and investment with Israel and I will do my best to help our excellent team at the British Embassy in Tel Aviv strengthen the relationship between our two great nations.”
“Economic growth is the government’s first mission and I look forward to supporting this important effort.”
Lord Austin resigned in the anti-Semitism crisis in 2019, accusing then-party leader Jeremy Corbyn of presided over the “culture of extremism.” A few months later, he was appointed as the trade envoy by Baroness May.
