Liberal Democrat Friends of Israel

LDFI operates in and around Liberal Democrat politics as an advocacy and engagement group focused on Israel and Britain–Israel relations. Its documented work includes policy motions at party conferences and dialogue with party spokespeople.[2][3] It has also supported visits to Israel and Ramallah and hosted conference programming involving hostage families.[5][7]

An Encyclopedia.com entry separately identifies a similarly named "Liberal Friends of Israel" as one of three British pro-Israel parliamentary groups active mainly in political circles. The entry does not establish whether that name referred to the same organization as LDFI.[8]

A 2000 report by the Institute for Jewish Policy Research catalogued LDFI in an appendix of Jewish communal organizations engaged in representation, under the heading "Israel/Zionist organizations." The report grouped LDFI with its Conservative and Labour counterparts as bodies that were not themselves Jewish organizations but worked for Jewish interests.[1]

The cited sources do not establish a founding date. The JPR report documents LDFI's status, membership criterion and stated purpose in 2000, but does not by itself establish every aspect of the group's current organizational status.[1]

Lord Monroe Palmer served as LDFI's honorary chairman for more than twenty years and subsequently held the position of honorary president.[9] A 2015 report stated that Gavin Stollar had succeeded Palmer as chair, while Palmer was appointed Middle East adviser to Liberal Democrat leader Tim Farron.[10] Reports from 2025 continued to identify Stollar as the group's chair.[6][11]

A 2009 CAMERA-UK post reproducing a list attributed to Wikipedia names David Steel, Robert Maclennan, Paddy Ashdown, Charles Kennedy, Sir Menzies Campbell and Nick Clegg as leaders of the group. It names Russell Johnston, Alan Beith, Sir Menzies Campbell and Vince Cable as deputy leaders, and lists several peers as leaders in the House of Lords.[12] CAMERA-UK did not independently verify that list, so it should be treated with caution.

One of LDFI's most clearly documented policy interventions came in 2007, when spokesperson Matthew Harris confirmed that the group had brought a motion to the Liberal Democrats' annual conference opposing an academic boycott of Israel. Harris stated: "We brought this motion to the conference to emphasize the Liberal Democrats' opposition to the academic boycott of Israel."[2] The conference passed a motion condemning the proposed boycott and calling for continued dialogue with Israeli and Palestinian academic counterparts.[2]

In 2015, Tim Farron, as newly elected party leader, reaffirmed the party's commitment to a two-state solution based on peace and security for both peoples. Stollar described Palmer's appointment as Farron's Middle East adviser as elevating "moderate and pro-two state voices."[10]

Before the 2021 Liberal Democrat annual conference, LDFI joined Liberal Democrat Friends of Palestine in backing a party motion that subsequently passed overwhelmingly. The motion supported a ban on UK trade with Israeli settlements, a two-state solution with secure boundaries based on the 1967 lines, and the establishment of an international peace fund.[13] Liberal Democrat foreign affairs spokesperson Layla Moran said she had consulted LDFI about issues likely to concern it and described that dialogue as "heartening." She said it contributed to the party adopting a policy of boycotting goods produced in Israeli settlements, a measure she distinguished from broader BDS.[3] Some communal organizations nevertheless raised concerns that the policy could lead toward wider BDS support.[3]

At the 2024 Liberal Democrat conference in Brighton, LDFI hosted relatives of three people held captive by Hamas following the October 7 attack: family members of Oded Lifshitz, Or Levy and Tsachi Idan.[5] The families sought meetings with at least 36 of the party's 72 MPs, and Stollar reported that more than half of the parliamentary party heard their accounts directly.[5] LDFI also created a conference space displaying posters of those taken hostage.[5]

At the party's 2025 annual conference in Bournemouth, Stollar hosted a fringe event featuring Israeli Knesset member Shelly Tal Meron of Yesh Atid, described by the source as the Liberal Democrats' sister party in Israel, alongside Lord Palmer of Childs Hill.[11] Reported comments about media coverage of Gaza and UK protests were Meron's remarks rather than a formal LDFI position.[11]

In early 2024, Stollar accompanied Liberal Democrat leader Ed Davey on a two-day visit to Israel and the region, reported as the first such visit by a sitting Liberal Democrat leader since 1988.[4] The itinerary included Yad Vashem, Kibbutz Kfar Aza, Hostage HQ in Tel Aviv and Makassed Hospital in East Jerusalem. The delegation also met former prime minister Yair Lapid, other Israeli political figures and NGOs supporting civil society in Palestinian territories.[4] Stollar said the trip left Davey "better equipped to represent a fair Liberal Zionist two state agenda."[4]

From 15 to 19 February 2026, Liberal Democrat foreign affairs spokesperson Calum Miller participated in a fact-finding visit to Israel and Ramallah funded jointly by ELNET UK and LDFI.[7] Miller met political figures, academics and diplomats, including Israeli President Isaac Herzog. At a later Liberal Democrat conference fringe event in Brighton, an LDFI vice chair chaired a session with Miller.[7]

LDFI has used Liberal Democrat conferences to advance or support policy positions, including opposition to an academic boycott in 2007 and a settlement-trade motion in 2021.[2][13] It has also facilitated direct engagement through senior-party visits and meetings between hostage relatives and Liberal Democrat MPs.[4][5] These activities illustrate its role as an intermediary between Liberal Democrat political figures and Israeli individuals, institutions and policy perspectives.

By September 2025, the relationship between LDFI and the broader party had become openly strained. Stollar stated that LDFI "fundamentally disagrees" with the Liberal Democrats' position on UN claims of genocide in Gaza.[6] While acknowledging opposition to actions and words of the current Israeli government and recognizing Gaza's deteriorating humanitarian situation, Stollar argued that the relevant UN committee report was flawed, particularly in its treatment of specific intent, Hamas's role and the hostage crisis.[6]

Stollar said he had conveyed LDFI's position directly to Davey and senior party advisers and that the group would continue to press for "justice, fairness, and a two-state solution."[6] These were LDFI's and Stollar's stated assessments on a contested issue, not independently adjudicated conclusions about the UN report.