Sunak and Starmer are out of touch with UK public opinion - Angus Robertson

​The humanitarian crisis in Gaza is a calamity. Thousands of Palestinian men, women and children who have nothing to do with Hamas terrorists have died in recent days.

Protesters raise signs in solidarity with Palestinians in the Gaza Strip as Egyptian army officers and bodyguards escort United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres to his vehicle (Image: KEROLOS SALAH/AFP via Getty Images)

​ Having been denied basic amenities like water, emergency food aid and electricity, bombs and artillery shells continue to rain down on residential areas and now Israel is calling for the evacuation of hospitals.

The United Nations says that people in Gaza have reached breaking point. The UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestinian Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) says that civil order is starting to break down after weeks of siege, with despairing residents looting food and aid centres.

According to the United Nations children’s aid agency children in Gaza are facing a "catastrophic" situation, with parents having no choice but to give them salty water.

UNICEF spokesman Toby Fricker told BBC News that shortages that existed in Gaza even before the current conflict had been "raised to another level” and called for an “immediate humanitarian ceasefire” and the scaling up of aid supplies into Gaza “on a sustained basis”.

That call for a humanitarian ceasefire is supported across the international aid agencies and has the backing of UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres. At the UN General Assembly 120 countries voting for a humanitarian truce with only 14 countries voting against. Sadly the United Kingdom was one of the 45 countries that abstained in the vote.

The majority views of people in the UK are absolutely clear with 76% in support of a ceasefire. According to the supersized poll conducted by YouGov only 8% are opposed.

The UK government and UK Labour leadership are massively out of touch with UK public opinion. James Cleverly says he is proud to be ‘Scotland’s Foreign Secretary’, but does not represent majority opinion in the Scottish Parliament or country north of the border. Neither does Sir Keir Starmer. The UK Labour leader shocked many of his own colleagues by saying in an LBC interview that “I think Israel does have that right,” to cut off power and water to Gaza. Since then, he has failed to join his colleagues Sadiq Khan, Andy Burnham and Anas Sarwar in calling for a ceasefire.

The time has come for Sir Keir Starmer to show some real leadership. His opposition to join calls for a humanitarian ceasefire and condoning the collective punishment of Gaza’s civilians is a stain on Labour.

In Scotland, First Minister Humza Yousaf has been providing principled leadership in the most difficult of personal circumstances, with family members trapped in appalling circumstances in Gaza. He has unequivocally condemned the brutal terrorism of Hamas which claimed the lives of more than 1,400 Israelis and also defended Israel’s right to defend itself.

"The UN resolution must be implemented. We need the violence to stop, and for significant amounts of aid to get through without delay.”

Scotland’s first minister has written to all political leaders in the UK, urging them to back a ceasefire in Gaza. Humza Yousaf said Israel had a right to defend itself following the attacks on October 7, but he added action must be taken now to stop the "staggering humanitarian disaster" unfolding in Gaza.

Too many innocent Israeli and Palestinian families are having to mourn the deaths of loved ones.