WATCH Jeremy Corbyn demands MPs be given a say on Syria bombing
4 min read
Jeremy Corbyn has demanded that Parliament be given a vote on whether the UK takes part in military action against the Syrian regime.
The Labour leader said the "lessons of Iraq" showed that MPs must be allowed to debate the crisis before RAF jets are sent into the warzone.
Mr Corbyn's comments came as Theresa May faced growing calls for Parliament to be consulted on whether Britain should join with America and France in bombing the Assad regime following last weekend's chemical attack which left dozens of civilians dead.
The Prime Minister will today chair an emergency Cabinet meeting amid reports that she is ready to sanction military intervention without seeking Parliament's approval.
But Mr Corbyn said that "more bombing, more killing, more war will not save life, it will take lives and spawn the war elsewhere".
He said: "Parliament must be consulted on this. Surely the lessons of Iraq, the lessons that came there from the Chilcot report, have got to be - there has to be - a proper process of consultation.
"We elect Parliament, we elect Members of Parliament, they should have a voice on this. The Cabinet alone should not be making this decision."
The Labour leader added: "The dangers of bombing now, which could escalate the conflict beyond belief. Just imagine the scenario if an American missile shoots down a Russian plane or vice versa - where do we go from there? If we've learned nothing from the last 50 years of Cold War and the proxy wars since then, of the dangers of that.
"I'm not in favour if increasing military action in Syria, what I'm in favour of is a political solution to bring about peace."
Meanwhile Liberal Democrat leader Vince Cable - who has not ruled out giving his party's backing for military action - stressed the need for "prior scrutiny and a prior vote in the House of Commons".
He told Sky News: "The Cabinet has been assembled this morning to give approval. Parliament could be assembled very quickly within 24 hours if it is an emergency and that really is absolutely necessary."
Mr Cable joins the SNP, who earlier today made clear that Ms May "must consult with the other parties" and said there "must be a debate in the House of Commons" before stepping up UK involvement.
SNP Westminster leader Ian Blackford tweeted that parliament must be urgently recalled if Mrs May is planning to get the green light for strikes from her Cabinet today.
Prominent Conservative MPs - including influential Foreign Affairs Select Committee chairman Tom Tugendhat - have, however, urged Mrs May to go ahead and not be stalled by seeking the approval of Parliament, a custom that has developed since the 2003 invasion of Iraq.
"What we’re doing is dealing with a violation of the 1925 Geneva gas protocol, and exercising the 2005 responsibility to protect," Mr Tugenhat said.
'FACTS ON THE GROUND ARE DIFFERENT'
A number of Tories who rebelled against David Cameron's 2013 attempt to punish Syria for using chemical weapons have also signalled that they would be in favour of UK action this time around.
Andrew Percy told The Yorkshire Post that Mr Cameron had moved "too quickly" in his push for intervention, but said circumstances in Syria had now changed.
"Isis are obviously well in retreat and the facts on the ground are wholly different now," he said. "As such, we have a responsibility to work with the US and the French to respond.”
Fellow 2013-rebel Sarah Wollaston meanwhile said it was now "time to act to stop the use of these horrific weapons", and Brexit Secretary David Davis - one of four 2013 rebels who are now serving ministers - hinted at a change of heart.
"There were two reasons in 2013. We had not provided the evidence and the intelligence that we knew who it was, and secondly there was not a proper plan thought through properly. Those two things I’m assured we’re going to answer today," he said.
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