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The UK \u201cstands ready to play our part\u201d in implementing the Gaza peace plan, foreign secretary Yvette Cooper has said.<\/strong><\/p>\n Speaking to reporters at Hillsborough Castle, PA Media report she said: \u201cWork will continue as nations across the world come together to support a just and lasting peace and security for Palestinians and Israelis alike. We have seen some of the images of relief and hope on the streets of Gaza and on the streets of Israel overnight, and all nations will want to make sure that that is turned into reality.\u201d<\/p>\n The Board of Deputies of British Jews has also welcomed the news, saying it is \u201ctime for peace.\u201d<\/p>\n Board of Deputies President Phil Rosenberg<\/strong> said:<\/p>\n We can dare to hope for the release of all the hostages, and the conclusion of this terrible war.<\/p>\n We convey our deep appreciation to President Trump, the mediators, and most of all, the indefatigable campaigning of the hostage families whose courage, resilience, and determination has been a beacon to the world.<\/p>\n We will celebrate the return of those living and praying for their swift recovery and care, and we will mourn the returning dead, thinking of their loved ones in their time of grief. It is time for healing. It is time for peace.<\/p>\n Share<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n Key events<\/p>\n <\/span>Show key events only<\/p>\n Please turn on JavaScript to use this feature<\/span><\/p>\n <\/span><\/p>\n SNP leader John Swinney has said that \u201cScotland is on a pathway to independence\u201d, in response to criticism at FMQs of yesterday\u2019s published paper A Fresh Start with Independence.<\/strong><\/p>\n PA Media quotes Swinney saying that the problem opponents of the paper had were that their arguments \u201cfor the status quo are now completely and utterly threadbare.\u201d<\/p>\n The SNP leader said that in 2014, opponents of independence, told Scots that bills would come down, the country\u2019s place in Europe would be assured and there would be financial security \u2013 none of which, he argued, happened.<\/p>\n \u201cThe arguments against Scottish independence have collapsed since 2014 and Scotland is on a pathway to independence,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n The Conservatives leader in Holyrood, Russell Findlay<\/strong>, had hit out at the use of civil servants to produce the paper and accompanying technical document.<\/p>\n Share<\/p>\n I am expecting the prime minister to be holding a press conference in the not too distant future. Keir Starmer<\/strong> will be speaking in Mumbai on the second day of his trip to India. I will bring you any key lines that emerge.<\/p>\n <\/span>Keir Starmer nad Narendra Modi at the Global Fintech Fest 2025, Jio World Center in Mumbai, India, 9 October 2025.<\/span> Photograph: Press Informaton Bureau\/EPAShare<\/p>\n The Liberal Democrats have repeated their call for the government to abolish and replace Ofwat in the wake of the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) allowing five water companies to increase bills by a higher amount than the regulator had originally allowed.<\/p>\n Liberal Democrat environment spokesperson Tim Farron<\/strong> said<\/p>\n This is not a functioning market; it is a rigged racket. Customers are seeing their water bills rocket, whilst leaky infrastructure further deteriorates and gallons of disgusting sewage is pumped into British rivers and seas.<\/p>\n These increases are disgraceful and insulting to customers. They shouldn\u2019t have to foot the bill for the failures of private water companies to clean up the mess they themselves created. And we shouldn\u2019t have a regulator that can simply be ignored.<\/p>\n Enough is enough. The Liberal Democrats are urging the government to get on with replacing Ofwat with a new, powerful regulator and implement a single social tariff to better protect the most vulnerable customers.<\/p>\n Earlier, environment minister Emma Hardy<\/strong> said she understood the public\u2019s anger over the price rises.<\/p>\n Share<\/p>\n Scotland\u2019s first minister John Swinney<\/strong> has welcomed the prospect of a Gaza ceasefire deal, urging all sides to \u201cabide by the terms of the agreement\u201d. In a statement the SNP leader said:<\/p>\n I want to welcome the news that Israel and Hamas have agreed to the first phase of a peace plan for Gaza.<\/p>\n I call on all sides to abide by the terms of the agreement, for the release of all hostages and for the immediate entry of humanitarian aid into Gaza.<\/p>\n After more than two years of devastating brutality and loss of life, I know that this will be a moment of relief for many here in Scotland, and around the world.<\/p>\n I reiterate my call that Palestinians and Israelis must be able to live safely, side-by-side, based on a two-state solution, and I dearly hope that this is the first step towards that outcome.<\/p>\n Former first minister of Scotland Humza Yousaf<\/strong> has also commented on the latest development.<\/p>\n PA Media reports that, speaking on BBC Radio Scotland\u2019s Mornings with Stephen Jardine programme on Thursday, Yousaf was asked if he accepts the US president is helping bring about peace. He said:<\/p>\n I find this question really difficult because of the role the US administration has played in funding, arming and giving impunity to the very administration and government that has committed a genocide against Palestinian people.<\/p>\n It is akin to \u2026 there\u2019s an individual who provides matches and petrol to the arsonist and then asks for praise when he puts out the fire.<\/p>\n I\u2019m not negating the fact that Donald Trump has played an important role, I think credit should also be given to the state of Qatar, who were just a few weeks ago bombed by one of the parties in this conflict but they still held steadfast to the belief and tried to bring people together.<\/p>\n Share<\/p>\n The shadow foreign secretary, Priti Patel<\/strong>, has also issued a statement on the prospect of a deal in Gaza.<\/p>\n In a statement on social media, Patel said:<\/p>\n News overnight that the initial phase of the peace plan is coming together is of course encouraging. We await the full details and the outcome of the Israeli cabinet meeting, but the outline of the deal could represent a significant breakthrough.<\/p>\n It is vital that every single hostage is indeed released by Hamas. They must be returned to their loved ones. Their suffering, for over 730 days, has been utterly unbearable.<\/p>\n Aid delivery to innocent civilians in Gaza must ramp up too.<\/p>\n The UK should be at the forefront of efforts to support the safe release of the hostages and the delivery of aid.<\/p>\n Ultimately, a sustainable end to this terrible conflict must also involve Hamas no longer being in power and its terrorist infrastructure being dismantled.<\/p>\n Patel lost her job in Theresa May\u2019s government in November 2017 in a scandal after it emerged she failed to be candid with the then-prime minister about 14 unofficial meetings with Israeli ministers, businesspeople and a senior lobbyist while she was in government.<\/p>\n Share<\/p>\n In further political reaction in the UK to the news of a potential ceasefire deal in Gaza, health minister Wes Streeting<\/strong> expressed support for a two-state solution, saying \u201cLet\u2019s pray this ceasefire holds, that the hostages are back home, that aid flows in to save innocent lives and that Israeli and Palestinian leaders can find the courage to build a path to peaceful coexistence with two states for two peoples.\u201d<\/p>\n Labour\u2019s leader in Scotland, Anas Sarwar<\/strong>, has said \u201cI welcome the agreement on a Gaza ceasefire, the end of bloodshed and the release of hostages. This needs to last, but must be backed up by an urgent surge in aid into Gaza and a meaningful pathway to an end of the illegal occupation and a lasting peace.\u201d<\/p>\n The first minister of Wales, Labour\u2019s, Eluned Morgan<\/strong>, said \u201cThe news of a breakthrough in Gaza peace talks offers a glimmer of hope after years of unbearable loss. Let\u2019s hope this moment marks the beginning of the end of this terrible conflict and the dawn of a just and lasting peace.\u201d<\/p>\n Plaid Cymru leader, Rhun ap Iorwerth<\/strong>, said \u201cThis is a hugely significant moment that will bring overwhelming relief to the families of the Israeli hostages and the civilians of Gaza who have suffered unimaginable horror over the last two years. Efforts on the ground must focus on allowing as much humanitarian aid as possible into Gaza whilst thousands still face famine and disease.<\/p>\n \u201cA ceasefire must be only the first step towards a just and lasting peace for everyone in the region through a two-state solution. This means a cohesive international effort to ensure the Palestinian people can begin to rebuild their lives and communities, and to bring those responsible for the terrible genocide, which has claimed tens of thousands of lives, to justice.\u201d<\/p>\n Share<\/p>\n Chris Philp<\/strong>, the shadow home secretary, has posted to social media to say the Conservatives are \u201cback\u201d in the wake of their policy announcements at this week\u2019s conference.<\/p>\n He listed the following pledges:<\/p>\nSwinney at FMQs: Scotland is ‘on a pathway to independence’<\/h2>\n
Lib Dems: water market in England and Wales is ‘rigged racket’ and Ofwat must be replaced<\/h2>\n