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"I'll vote against air-strikes in Syria", Gavin pledges


Gavin Newlands, the MP for Paisley and Renfrewshire North, has signed a cross-party motion opposing airstrikes in Syria which has been backed by over 110 MPs in the House of Commons – and will vote against dropping bombs on Syria.


The SNP group at Westminster said that they would listen to the Prime Minister’ arguments for the UK’s involvement in air-strikes in Syria; however, the UK Government has failed to answer and address the questions and concerns that have been raised by MPs in the House of Commons. In light of this, the SNP MPs will vote against air-strikes tonight.


Gavin Newlands, the MP for Paisley and Renfrewshire North, said:


“The recent refugee crisis illustrated the horror and evil that currently plagues Syria. I fundamentally believe that we should attempt to end this horrendous violence that is perpetrated by extremists, but the reality is that we cannot secure peace with bombs.


“The Prime Minister himself has conceded that we cannot defeat Daesh from the air. I wholeheartedly agree with this admission. It must be noted that there is no a scarcity of countries for bombing Syria – most recently Russia have been attacking Daesh and, all too often, the moderate opposition to Assad as well.


“On stabilising and rebuilding, we are advised by the World Bank that it will cost $170 billion dollars to rebuild Syria. The Prime Minister has made a commitment to contribute £1bn towards this mammoth task which is welcome, but this mere 1% contribution is highly unlikely to be effective.


“I am not a pacifist and I would never shirk from my responsibility to my constituents to vote for UK military action if the correct case was made, but the Prime Minister’s case for military intervention has simply not been made – there is no clear and coherent exit strategy and there is no plan to secure peace and stability.


“Therefore, I was compelled to vote against the government’s motion and I am disappointed with the result of the vote as it does not represent a step forward towards a solution. The Prime Minister may have won the vote in the House of Commons this evening, but he has fundamentally failed to unite parliament and the country in support of his plans.”

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