HAIFA (Realist English). British trade envoy Lord Ian Austin arrived in Israel this week to promote bilateral commercial ties, just days after the UK government suspended talks on a new free trade agreement in response to Israel’s intensified military campaign in Gaza.
Lord Austin, an independent peer and Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s official trade representative to Israel, visited Haifa on Monday, where he toured key infrastructure projects including the Haifa Bayport, a customs scanning facility, and the future Haifa-Nazareth Light Rail. The visit was organized by the British Embassy, which highlighted “UK-Israel cooperation at every stop.”
Speaking to reporters, Lord Austin said the visit was aimed at deepening commercial partnerships and “promoting trade with the UK.”
“Trade with Israel provides many thousands of good jobs in the UK and brings people together in the great multicultural democracy that is Israel,” he said.
The visit follows a formal announcement by Foreign Secretary David Lammy last week that London would pause negotiations on a new trade agreement with Israel, citing concerns over humanitarian conditions in Gaza. Lammy told parliament the Israeli government’s actions represented “a dark new phase in this conflict.”
Despite the suspension, a Downing Street spokesperson clarified that “the UK continues its existing trading relationship with Israel, though new negotiations are on hold.”
Israel’s Foreign Ministry described the UK’s move as “regrettable” and accused London of failing to advance negotiations in good faith prior to the announcement. Meanwhile, Lord Austin reaffirmed the importance of bilateral trade, calling it “worth billions” and vital for both economies.
Writing in Politics Home, he argued: “The situation in Gaza is terrible, as it is in all wars. The quickest way to get the aid in and save lives is for Hamas to stop fighting and release the hostages. That would end the conflict immediately.”
The UK has also sanctioned several West Bank figures linked to violence against Palestinians, including far-right settler activist Daniella Weiss, further straining relations with the Netanyahu government.
The British government is attempting to walk a diplomatic tightrope — voicing criticism of Israeli actions in Gaza while maintaining the commercial links that underpin its strategic relationship with Israel. Lord Austin’s visit signals that, for now, trade remains a separate track in the UK’s Israel policy.