Parliament finally voted by 274 to 12 on a motion that “believes that the government should recognise the state of Palestine, alongside the state of Israel, as a contribution to securing a negotiated two-state solution.” 

The motion itself is no more than that which 135 countries have already agreed to support, and is, unfortunately, not binding on the British government. 

Even this was too much for the Israeli government and pro-Israel lobby, who pushed for an amendment to delay any recognition vote until such time as a comprehensive peace agreement has been reached by Israel and the Palestinian Authority. 

In effect, they were asking that Parliament grant Israel the power of veto over our own decisions. 

At the end of over four hours of debate, it had become very obvious that the House was in a mood to pass this motion as a historic step forward. 

To try to minimise its effect, Israeli supporters began to absent themselves, and the few remaining declined to force a vote. 

In order to ensure that Parliament did have a recorded vote on this subject, a number of us were able to effect a parliamentary manoeuvre which ensured a vote actually took place. 

It is historic. The British Parliament in the House of Commons chamber voted overwhelmingly to recognise the state of Palestine, while only a few yards away the baleful statue of Arthur Balfour reminds us of the imperial chicanery of Britain. 

His infamous declaration of 1917 simultaneously promised a state of Israel and protection for the existing Palestinian population. 

The significance of this vote was not lost on the global media of the world, who recognised that the country that had not only endorsed the Balfour declaration but through the secret Sykes-Picot agreement of 1916 had carved up the Middle East. From the recognition of Israel in 1950 onwards, Britain had afforded it huge diplomatic, financial and military support despite the 1967 six day war and many subsequent wars. 

During the debate it was clear that a large number of MPs had been so appalled by the behaviour of the Israeli forces during Operation Cast Lead in 2009-10 and also the more recent 2,100-plus death toll this summer, that many had changed their position and felt the need to speak up. 

Perhaps of greater significance was the huge outpouring of public 

opinion in Britain, where there were many public meetings called at very short notice during August to protest against the bombing and several demonstrations including the unprecedented 150,000-strong march on August 9 — the biggest ever pro-Palestinian demonstration in Britain. 

Does this change things on the ground? 

At one level, no, because Israel is continuing its settlement policy all over the West Bank, the imprisonment of Palestinians, and to some extent, the siege of Gaza and all that this entails. 

However, in another sense, it does make an enormous difference in that the British government can no longer present itself as being uncritical of Israel and is forced to reckon with a parliamentary view that the state of Palestine deserves equal recognition. 

The technocratic government in Palestine at the moment is a product of the determination of all Palestinian groups to agree on a unity government, which prevents the US and EU-inspired policy of dividing Gaza from the West Bank. Western policy in effect refuses to recognise that Hamas and Fatah both have large amounts of support and both must be included in any process for the future. 

The people who so often get forgotten in this are the refugees, millions of old people and their descendants who were forced out of their homeland in 1948 and have had to survive in refugee camps in Jordan, Lebanon and Syria. They cannot be forgotten, they must not be ignored, and unless there is recognition of their needs and rights, along with the people of the West Bank and Gaza, then one cannot say there is full recognition of the Palestinian people. 

One name that wasn’t mentioned throughout the debate was the so-called Middle East peace envoy Tony Blair. 

For those with long memories you’ll recall that in 2007 he insisted on this appointment and was supported in it by Bush and Putin, as well as Gordon Brown. 

Having barely visited Gaza, and critically supported Israel at every stage, and called for military intervention in every other conflict, his utterances have assumed such total irrelevance that not even his erstwhile supporters in Parliament bothered to praise him in aid of their cause in the debate on Monday. 

Once again, the world has been asked to fund the reconstruction of Gaza and hundreds of millions have been pledged from Qatar, the EU, Britain and the US as well as many other countries. 

Israel has offered nothing despite for the second time in five years destroying Gaza’s infrastructure with its murderous bombing raids. 

The culmination of this debate and this significant vote is a credit to the very many organisations who worked so hard to achieve it, including the Palestinian Solidarity Campaign, Jews for Justice for Palestinians, the Israeli Committee Against House Demolitions (ICAHD) and so many more human rights and trade union groups. 

This shows that even the stone walls of the British Parliament are not immune to public pressure, as we have come to believe.

Ukip’s only offer is a return to ’809s Thatcherism

On Saturday, the TUC march against austerity will be supported by tens of thousands of people through central London. 

Interestingly, most of the media cannot move their obsession away from appeasing the xenophobia of Ukip and their nasty agenda of blaming all economic problems on the nearest minority. 

The answer to Ukip and its xenophobia is solidarity, such as on the picket lines outside the hospitals on Monday morning.

NHS workers have been denied a pay rise they are fully entitled to, as have other workers in the public sector. 

Since 2010 the strategy of the coalition has been to reduce the real living standards of the very poorest, by freezing and in some cases reducing access to benefits, and using the media to develop a hysteria that benefits are somehow or other no longer a right but something that can only be obtained by “scroungers.”

Ukip offers no alternative to anyone other than a return to 1980s Thatcherism, with more privatisation, tax breaks for the rich and further impoverishment of the most marginal in our society. 

Waving flags does not build houses, educate children, or care for those with significant needs. 

The Labour Party conference made some very good proposals on health and the commitment to the National Health Service is huge. 

I hope that a future Labour government does not fall into the same trap as the Blair-led governments of using private finance, which is ripping off the NHS. 

However, to mobilise people to get rid of the coalition government we have to challenge the whole austerity strategy, the proposed Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP), which is such a threat to all public services and working conditions, and say no to Ed Balls’s plan to freeze child benefit which he announced on the opening day of the Labour Party conference. 

This Saturday the anti-austerity march will provide the basis for unity to mobilise people around something positive, to improve lives and conditions and reject the political bankruptcy and nastiness of Ukip.