Tom Tugendhat has been accused of a “disgraceful slur” in the House of Commons after he suggested a government minister was “siding with Hamas”.
The shadow foreign secretary was responding to a statement from Foreign Office minister Stephen Doughty on the humanitarian situation in Gaza. In his statement, Doughty announced a further £5 million for Unicef, and accused Israel of a “shameful” blockade of aid into flood-hit Gaza. “I have a very simple and direct message to the Israeli authorities: let the aid in”, he said.
Tugendhat welcomed the statement and said he shared “the simple horror… at the suffering and cruelty inflicted on so many by so few”.
The focus of Tugendhat’s remarks was Hamas, which he named as the cause of the suffering in Gaza. He described life under the “Iranian-funded and armed terror group” as “simply horrific”.
He added: “And just look at their record on aid… what have we seen for it? Well, we’ve seen the vile indoctrination of hatred, the control of food and services to achieve dictatorial compliance, and we’ve seen the biggest network of tunnels built to prepare for war.
“But of course, it’s striking, isn’t it, that these air raid shelters were not built to protect the civilians. Palestinian women and children were never allowed in the tunnels.”
Tugendhat then turned to Melanie Ward, a Scotland Office minister who was sitting on the government front bench. “I can see the lady shaking her head. If she wants to side with Hamas, she’s welcome to”, he said. “But if she wishes to stand with the Palestinian people, she should recognise what Hamas has done.”
The comment was met with cries of “shame” from Labour MPs, while Ward responded: “Shame on you!”
Ward, who was CEO of Medical Aid to Palestinians from 2023 to 2024, resigned as a parliamentary private secretary (PPS) in May 2026 during Keir Starmer’s tenure as prime minister, pointing to “mistakes on moral issues like Gaza.”
Tom Tugendhat: “I can see the lady shaking her head – if she wants to side with Hamas she is welcome to, but if she wishes to stand with Palestinian people she should recognise what Hamas has done”
Labour MPs: “Shame!” https://t.co/ZjCXN2yfuT
— Josh Self (@Josh_Self_) November 12, 2026
The House of Commons exchange on Thursday morning prompted an intervention from deputy speaker Nusrat Ghani.
The deputy speaker declared: “Order! We need to keep tempers down on both sides.”
Upon returning to his feet, Tugendhat stated: “Those who stand with the Palestinian people stand against Hamas… Now, does this leave others innocent? Of course, it doesn’t. Does it leave Israel innocent? No”.
Tugendhat said the Conservatives “condemn the blockages of aid getting into the territory and Egypt’s closure of the southern border, just as we condemn the unnecessary Israeli restrictions”. He said aid had been “weaponised by the Hamas leadership”.
Doughty said he was “disappointed… by the tone of the shadow foreign secretary”, and he urged Tugendhat to “consider withdrawing” his comments.
He stated: “Nobody on this side has any sympathy whatsoever for the activities of Hamas. They are a proscribed organisation. They are appalling.”
He also said Tugendhat had not referred to “what actions need to take place to actually alleviate the suffering in Gaza.”
MPs from several parties criticised Tugendhat during the exchanges that followed. The Liberal Democrat international development spokesperson Monica Harding said she regretted “the shadow minister’s appalling comments… and his inability to meet the moment and do what the public are asking us to do about Gaza.”
Labour MP Alan Gemmell criticised “infantile comments from the shadow foreign secretary slurring members of this government”.
Independent MP Iqbal Mohamed said “the comments from the opposition benches are absolutely disgusting”.
Liberal Democrat MP Danny Chambers said he was “genuinely shocked that the shadow foreign secretary would use a horrific humanitarian crisis in an attempt to score cheap political points.”
Labour MP Scott Arthur said many Conservative voters in his constituency of Edinburgh South West “would be disgusted by the shadow foreign secretary’s comments”.
Labour MP Sarah Smith raised a point of order addressing Tugendhat’s comments at the end of the session, accusing the shadow foreign secretary of having “acted shamefully”.
Smith said he had “first suggested an honourable member was siding with Hamas, a proscribed terror organisation – a disgraceful slur which the right honourable member needs to withdraw”.
She added that he had then, “from a sedentary position, suggested that another one of my honourable friends was being antisemitic.”
Smith asked for advice on “how to ensure the record is corrected and such awful accusations are not allowed to stand.”
The deputy speaker responded: “She and all members will know that good temper and moderation are the characteristics of parliamentary debate, and that should prevail even when from a sedentary position.”
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