Will Israel's war on Gaza impact the outcome of the upcoming UK elections?

Although Starmer has claimed his comments have been misinterpreted, Labour has been divided ever since, and more than 20 Labour councillors have resigned, causing the party to lose control of the council. 

Yet, despite days of criticism from inside his party and calls for him to ask for a formal ceasefire, Starmer has stuck to his position, insisting that a full ceasefire would only strengthen Hamas.

In a speech at Chatham House in London on Tuesday this week, he repeated a call for a humanitarian pause to allow people out of the enclave and let aid in, in line with the position of both the US and UK governments.

"It is the only credible approach which has a chance of what we all want to see in Gaza," he said. He added that he understood why people wanted a ceasefire in response to "horrifying" scenes of civilian suffering.

Starmer argued a permanent ceasefire at this stage would leave Hamas with the infrastructure and capability to carry out the sort of attack seen on 7 October, risking more misery and suffering for Israelis and Palestinians.

"Hamas would be emboldened and would start preparing for future violence immediately," he said. "It is, of course, also holding 200 hostages; you cannot freeze that situation without denying a sovereign state its self-defence."

Labour Party divisions

The deepening row within the Labour Party over how to respond to the Gaza crisis has undoubtedly provided a boost to the ruling Conservatives, which, prior to the Hamas attack, was trailing badly in the opinion polls and looked set to suffer heavy losses at the next general British election, which is due to take place next year.

And while it is still too early to judge whether the differing approaches of Britain's leading parties will have an impact on the eventual election outcome, it is clear that Sunak's more robust support for Israel has enhanced his leadership credentials, with only a few backbench Conservative MPs voicing concerns on the ceasefire issue.

By contrast, significant numbers of front bench Labour MPs have criticised Starmer's approach and tested the party's collective responsibility by calling for a full ceasefire and the Labour leader was harangued by a knot of leftwing protesters as he arrived for the speech at Chatham House in London.

While Sunak has so far managed to maintain a united front on the Gaza issue, Starmer is now battling to maintain Labour discipline with members of his frontbench in open revolt about his stance on Israel's war on Gaza.

Sixteen Labour frontbenchers are opposed to Starmer's position and Labour MPs have told The Independent newspaper that at least 100 of Sir Keir's MPs – half his parliamentary party – want him to shift stance to avoid losing further support.

They warned the Labour leader that the party faces an "existential threat" in seats with a large number of Muslim voters as councillors continue to quit and local parties pass motions in favour of a ceasefire.

This comes as a YouGov survey found that 42% of 2019 Labour voters think Starmer has mishandled his response to the conflict, while only 26% think he has responded well.

Starmer has also seen a significant drop in his personal ratings among the wider British public, with a survey by DeltaPoll showing Starmer's net approval has dropped by 12%, from +7 to -5. 

There is still some time before Britain goes to the polls, but it is not inconceivable that the terrible events taking place in Gaza could still have a direct impact on the outcome of Britain's next general election.