We cannot be dragged into another forever war

A person stands on the roof of a building looking at a plume of smoke rises after a strike on the Iranian capital Tehran, on March 3, 2026. Iran stepped up its attacks on economic targets and US missions across the Middle East on Tuesday as the US president warned it was "too late" for the Islamic republic to seek talks to escape the war. The United States and Israel launched strikes against Iran on February 28, with the killing of Iran's supreme leader and the Islamic republic retaliated with barrages of missiles at Gulf states and Israel. (Photo by ATTA KENARE / AFP via Getty Images)

placeholder image — A person stands on the roof of a building looking at a plume of smoke rises after a strike on the Iranian capital Tehran, on March 3, 2026. Iran stepped up its attacks on economic targets and US missions across the Middle East on Tuesday as the US president warned it was "too late" for the Islamic republic to seek talks to escape the war. The United States and Israel launched strikes against Iran on February 28, with the killing of Iran's supreme leader and the Islamic republic retaliated with barrages of missiles at Gulf states and Israel. (Photo by ATTA KENARE / AFP via Getty Images)

American strikes are wrong, the UK must not be dragged in.

We’ve all seen the events that have taken place in the Middle East and the Gulf. I know some of you will criticise me for commenting on such events as the MP for Burnley. But I am a member of His Majesty’s Government. We are a nuclear power. We are influential. Foreign policy is a big part of my job - as well as pointing at pot holes, as I did last week!

Many people have contacted me – scared and outraged – about the events in Iran. I join you in that sentiment of fear and outrage. Fear, because of the unpredictability of the actors involved, the violence and the scale of the weaponry being deployed on both sides.

Let me be clear, I believe the actions of the Americans and Israelis to be deeply reckless, most probably illegal and without a plan. I do not support what they've done and neither does the British Government.

We cannot be dragged into another 'forever war' in the Middle East and I won't support one.

Foreign policy is very messy, this is no exception, and no party is innocent. Moreover, multiple things can be true at the same time: I don't endorse or support what the Americans and Israelis have done, but the Ayotollah or Iran was a brutal theocratic violent dictator whose regime has massacred tens of thousands in the last few weeks alone, and hundreds of thousands since coming to power in the 1970s. The Iranian state is the single largest supporter of terrorism in the world, which does come to our shores, indeed more than 20 Iranian-backed terror plots were foiled last year alone in the UK according to the intelligence services.

The UK was not involved in the decision to conduct strikes in Iran, as made by Israel and the US. Our bases were not used and we were not involved, much to the annoyance of Trump, but we were right to stand up to him. He doesn't run British foreign policy, we do. I am proud to stand behind a Prime Minister who stands up for what is right.

We must approach such a volatile situation with legal clarity, with moral purpose, and with a cool head. Our national interests must be defended – they remain central to everything our Government does.

That said, we must take measures that will protect the lives of British citizens, minimise the economic fallout from a war, and ultimately try to bring stability to the region.

In that vein, two decisions have been made: one, not to allow the Americans to use our bases to launch their - most probably illegal - attacks. The second, taken later, was to allow anti-drone and missile defensive actions to be conducted by allies, to defend our people and interests in the region. Be it holiday makers in Dubai, military personnel in Bahrain, or protecting our allies in Oman, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Kuwait and alike.

This is not Iraq. We must not repeat the mistakes made in Iraq. Instead, we must have a strong legal base for action, plan for what is next, and if we must, defend ourselves and our allies to protect lives.

There are difficult days ahead. I know many of you, alongside myself, will be worried sick about our friends and families in the region.

You have my word; I will do everything in my power to protect them and you and Burnley from the fallout.

I'm surprised Reform and the Tories have been so gun-ho to have us wrapped in another war like this, I don't believe it what you want or the world needs.

As always, if you have any concerns or any questions please ensure you contact my office. You can do so by emailing [email protected] or attending a drop in from 10am-2pm Monday-Thursday.