As we reported earlier, Israel’s president Isaac Herzog is expected to visit the UK next week and have meetings with ministers.

Trade minister Douglas Alexander told Sky News that he is “not sure” what the schedule is in terms of ministerial meetings, but he defended speaking to Israeli leaders amid some upset on the Labour backbenches amid the ongoing war in Gaza.

He told our presenter Anna Jones: “First of all, diplomacy involves meeting people with whom you disagree, and the British government has very strong views in terms of the present conduct of the government of Israel.”

He added: “It is right that we are engaging with politicians from across the region, because the suffering is incalculable, and it needs to stop.”

He said “in order to get to a path to that two-stage solution, of course you’re going to have to be talking not just to the Palestinians but also to the Israelis”.