Who will be the UK's next foreign secretary?

Britain goes to the ballot box on Thursday, and the result is widely expected to be a sweeping Labour victory after 14 years of Conservative rule.

A final poll by YouGov MRP on Wednesday projects a Labour win with 39% of the vote, followed by the Conservatives with 22% — which would translate into a super majority of 431 seats in parliament for the new Labour government.

With global issues like the war on Gaza weighing heavily on the minds of voters, The New Arab takes a look at who could become the UK's top diplomat in the next government.

David Lammy

As Labour's Shadow Foreign Secretary since 2021, David Lammy currently sits in prime position for the post.

Lammy has staunchly supported his party's line on the Israel's war on Gaza, emphasising Israel's alleged right to "self defence" and placing blame for the conflict squarely on Hamas.

In November, the Tottenham MP abstained from a Gaza ceasefire vote in parliament, in which 56 Labour MPs rebelled. Eight frontbenchers were demoted for backing the motion.

In February, Lammy also did not back an SNP ceasefire motion, but voted for a Labour amendment calling for an "immediate humanitarian ceasefire" — a move by the party leadership to avert a rebellion.

Labour took issue with the SNP motion's mention of Israel's "collective punishment of the Palestinian people", but shifted for the first time to calling for an immediate ceasefire.

Lammy has also been come under fire for his statements on the Gaza war, including for criticising protesters and repeating unverified Israeli government and media claims.

He accused protesters of "violence and rioting", claiming that Nelson Mandela would not approve of them. The remarks drew backlash, including from a grandson of the late South African leader.

Speaking on LBC radio in October, Lammy also appeared to claim that babies had been "raped" by Hamas — a claim not even made by Israeli officials or media outlets. 

However, recent remarks by Keir Starmer have cast doubt on whether Lammy will become the UK's top diplomat.

When asked by Britain's Sun tabloid paper on Sunday whether Lammy would be given the role, Starmer  said: “Two things there - one we are working through till 10 o’clock on Thursday because no seat has been won yet. 

“Secondly, nice try, but I’m not going to announce anybody who may be in a cabinet after Thursday if we win - and that goes to the entire cabinet listening in though they may well be.”

There are also concerns about how the US-UK relationship would fare if Donald Trump were to win the November presidential elections, with Lammy having previously called the Republican candidate a "neo-Nazi sympathising sociopath".

Labour's alternatives

Despite having been out of full time politics since 2013, International Rescue Committee head David Miliband has been named in reports as a potential future foreign secretary.

The former foreign secretary has been spotted canvassing for Labour in recent weeks, fuelling speculation that he could land a role in Starmer's expected government.

Miliband served as a senior aide to Tony Blair in the nineties, before he was elected as MP for South Shields in 2001.

When Labour was voted out of government in 2010, Miliband ran an unsuccessful campaign for the party's leadership, losing to his brother Ed Miliband.

As he isn't up for election on Thursday as a prospective MP, Miliband would have to be granted a peerage to take on the foreign secretary role — a prospect some Labour figures have ruled out.

Another figure reportedly with a chance for the role is Douglas Alexander, who served as a minister in the Blair and Brown governments.

Alexander conceded his Paisley and Renfrewshire South seat in a surprise loss to Scottish National Party MP Mhairi Black in 2015, however is standing for election on Thursday for the East Lothian seat.