Counter-Daesh Update

Jonathan Edwards Excerpts

Thursday 29th March 2018 Commons Chamber

[Penny Mordaunt]

Yes; my right hon. Friend points to the answer. I think hon. Members on both sides of the Chamber regret that we took military action off the table in the vote in 2013. It was not a vote on taking military action; indeed, there was an undertaking that if military action was sought, the Government would come back to the House and ask it to vote on that. What we did that day was remove the option for this country to take military action. That is a lesson that sometimes inaction is not the right answer.

[Jonathan Edwards (Carmarthen East and Dinefwr) (PC)]

Pasg hapus iawn i chi—a very happy Easter to you, Mr Deputy Speaker.

[Mr Deputy Speaker (Sir Lindsay Hoyle)]

And to you.

[Jonathan Edwards]

Thank you.

After turning a blind eye to Turkey’s disgraceful offensive against the Kurds in Afrin province, will the British Government now unreservedly condemn the Turkish army’s intention to extend the offensive into Idlib, Manbij and Kobane, and all the way to the Iraq border? As Turkey is now directly undermining a counter-Daesh operation, should not the British Government at least stop selling arms to that country?

[Penny Mordaunt]

I have already said a great deal about Afrin. I take issue with the hon. Gentleman’s characterisation of the Government as turning a blind eye to this—far from it. Just last week my right hon. Friend the Minister for the Middle East spoke with members of the Turkish Government about these matters.

Oral Answers to Questions

Jonathan Edwards Excerpts

Wednesday 23rd October 2013 Commons Chamber

[Justine Greening]

I could not agree more with the right hon. Gentleman. Britain has done exactly the right thing in playing a leading role in the humanitarian response. It is absolutely right for the Syrian refugees, but right for us too, to try to do what we can to keep stability in the region. However, we cannot do that on our own, and it is now time, in the run-up to the next donor conference in January, for other countries in the international community to ask themselves what more they can do alongside the UK in making sure that the next UN donor appeal, unlike the last one, is fully funded.

[Jonathan Edwards (Carmarthen East and Dinefwr) (PC)]

Some 58,000 Syrians have sought refuge in Jordan since the onset of the civil war. Organisations such as the International Committee of the Red Cross are aiding those displaced individuals with the basics to live. What more can Governments do to help charities such as the Red Cross?

[Justine Greening]

We need to do a number of things. First, we need to make sure that the financing and resources are in place so that not just the life-saving work, but the broader work on educating the 1 million children who are now refugees can take place. As I have said, we also need to work with host Governments—such as the Jordanian Government, who have been incredibly generous—to make sure that they are well placed to be able to cope with this huge, unprecedented number of refugees.

Afghanistan

Jonathan Edwards Excerpts

Thursday 13th September 2012 Commons Chamber

[Justine Greening]

I am pleased that my hon. Friend raises that point. In such a statement, it is often easy to fail to mention the huge amount of very important work done by NGOs, including some of those to which he referred. I have had the privilege of meeting some of the key NGOs involved in international aid, and I would be delighted to meet some of the organisations he has talked about. I will ensure that my office gets in touch with him to make that happen.

[Jonathan Edwards (Carmarthen East and Dinefwr) (PC)]

I welcome the Secretary of State to her new role and express my disappointment that she has left the position of Secretary of State for Transport, where she did such a sterling job. The AFP news agency reported this week that President Karzai had criticised the war on terror. He said that the war

“was not conducted and pursued as it should have been”

and that

“Afghan villages and homes were once again turned into a battlefield of a ruthless war inflicting irrecoverable losses in both human and material”

terms. Does she agree?

[Justine Greening]

We have made it clear why we believe it important to work with the Afghanistan Government to create a stable and secure Afghanistan. Obviously, people will have opinions on how action there is progressing, but the important thing is that we now look forward.

Finally, I am grateful for the hon. Gentleman’s opening comments. I was proud of what I achieved with my previous Department. And one of the most important bits of that, of course, was the electrification of the Welsh railways.