London (Parliament Politics Magazine) – Sir Keir Starmer is facing pressure from Labour’s left to prioritize human rights during his upcoming visit to Saudi Arabia, amid concerns that his focus on investment will overshadow critical issues like Yemen and Khashoggi’s murder.
The British Prime Minister’s trip to Saudi Arabia aims to secure investment from the UK’s economic growth, with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman expected to visit London next year.
Two years ago in 2022, Keir Starmer condemned Boris Johnson’s visit to Saudi Arabia for “going cap in hand from dictator to dictator,” which aimed to decrease reliance on Russian energy.
Keir Starmer will visit the Gulf State as his government seeks vital investment to support its green and nuclear energy expansion initiatives.
Diplomats consider Saudi Arabia as important for securing peace in Gaza, and Labour figures are urging Starmer to make peace a top priority. A Labour MP, Dan Carden said,
“The next two months are critical to influencing president-elect Trump’s peace plan”.
He added,
“The UK has to work urgently and closely with key regional allies including Saudi Arabia. The offer the UK can make to President Trump should include the UK and Saudi playing a leading role in the difficult work of peace negotiations”.
Critics are demanding assurance that Sir Keir Starmer’s focus on securing funds does not sideline the human rights issues in Saudi Arabia.
The CIA believes Prince Mohammed was behind Jamal Khashoggi’s murder in 2018, while the ongoing Yemen conflict has caused tens of thousands of casualties, though a ceasefire has been held since 2022.
Human Rights Watch (HRW) published a report on Wednesday claiming that the PIF, Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund handled by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, “facilitated and benefited from human rights abuses.”
The 95-page report concluded,
“The crown prince has used the fund’s economic power to commit serious human rights violations and investments in foreign sporting events to whitewash the reputational harm.”
The report also said the Public Investment Fund (PIF) has “facilitated serious human rights violations” linked to Mohammed bin Salman “through companies it owns and controls, such as the 2018 murder of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi”.
Jamal Khashoggi, a journalist who wrote for Middle East Eye and the Washington Post, was murdered by a hit squad at the Saudi consulate in Istanbul. The CIA found that the crown prince approved the operation, but later he denied this claim.
Clive Lewis, the Labour MP for Norwich South, said Keir Starmer’s expertise in human rights law meant the issue should remain
“integral to who he is.”
He added,
“There should be a couple of items on the agenda. One will be their human rights record domestically. The second will be the issue of Yemen. Third will be oil production and where they’re investing their sovereign wealth fund around the world. “
The co-executive director of the Labour Campaign for Human Rights, James Jennion, insisted on the need for the UK to balance economic goals with human rights in its international dealings. He said,
“It is vital to ensure that rights are not sidelined in the UK’s international engagement. “
Suspended Labour MP John McDonnell raised concerns over Starmer’s Saudi Arabia visit; he stated,
“Of course we want economic relations with a whole range of countries, but at the same time we have to be prime advocates across the world in standing up for human rights. Trips to pander to governments that have such a level of abuse of human rights, and particularly with regard to what’s happening in Yemen, we have to be extremely wary. “
Starmer faces rising criticism on Labour’s left after praising BlackRock, the controversial investment company, following a meeting with the asset manager last week.
BlackRock is being investigated by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) for its role in environmental and human rights violations tied to agribusiness investments.
A Labour MP said,
“They’re trapped by their own spiel on growth and making that the sole objective of their success or failure. It means that they have to sit next to some pretty unsavoury characters, from Trump through to the crown prince and BlackRock”.
Keir Starmer stated the meeting was part of a
“clear-eyed determination to deliver growth, create wealth and put more money in people’s pockets, which can only be achieved by working in close partnership with businesses and investors. ”