Asked by: Lord Alton of Liverpool (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what progress they have made in using the proceeds from the sale of Chelsea Football Club for the benefit of the people of Ukraine.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
I refer the noble Lord to the answer to Question HL2826 given on 13 March 2024, which can be found on the Q&A web pages (https://questions-statements.parliament.uk/written-questions/detail/2024-02-28/hl2826). The Government is working hard to reach an arrangement that delivers this money for humanitarian causes in Ukraine as quickly as possible.
Asked by: Marquess of Lothian (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they are taking action, with international partners, to dissuade the government of Israel from undertaking a military ground offensive in Rafah, Gaza.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
We are clear that do not support a major operation in Rafah unless there is a very clear plan for how to protect people and save lives. We have not seen that plan so, in these circumstances, we do not support a major operation in Rafah.
The fastest way to end the conflict is to secure a deal which gets the hostages out and allows for a stop in the fighting in Gaza. We must then work with our international partners to turn that pause into a sustainable, permanent ceasefire.
We must remain focused on a long-term solution to this crisis - a political horizon for the Palestinians, providing a credible and irreversible pathway towards a two-state solution.
We have consistently made these points to Israel, at all levels.
Asked by: Marquess of Lothian (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government, following the government of Israel’s decision to shut down the operations of the Al Jazeera television network in that country, what discussions they have had with that government concerning press freedom.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Israel must ensure its campaign is targeted at Hamas leaders and operatives and ensure journalists can carry out their work safely. On 5 December, the UK supported a joint statement of the Media Freedom Coalition expressing concern over the repercussions for the safety of journalists and access to information due to the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas.
Asked by: Lord Kempsell (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what support they have offered to the government of Brazil, if any, following the recent flooding in Rio Grande do Sul.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
We were saddened to learn of the terrible flooding that has ravaged Rio Grande do Sul. The Minister for the Americas [Minister Rutley] offered our sincere condolences to all those affected by this tragic incident, including the families of those who have so sadly lost their lives. His Majesty's Ambassador to Brazil has also offered condolences to State Governor Eduardo Leite. Through the Start Fund the UK has supported an allocation of £193,000 to provide humanitarian aid in response to the flooding in Brazil. The Start Fund is a pooled fund to which the UK is a major donor.
Asked by: Lord West of Spithead (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what discussions they have held with Russian oil and gas exploration entities operating in the British Antarctic Territory, and what agreements have been made.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The Antarctic Treaty and its Protocol on Environmental Protection prohibits the commercial exploitation of minerals. The Antarctic Treaty Parties, which includes Russia, reaffirmed their ongoing commitment to this prohibition in a Declaration on Climate Change and the Antarctic, agreed by consensus in June 2023. Russia has a long-standing programme of surveying and mapping the geology of Antarctica, but has repeatedly assured the Antarctic Treaty Consultative Meeting that these activities are for scientific purposes, and of their commitment to sharing data through the Scientific Committee on Antarctic Research's Seismic Data Library System. There is no evidence of any drilling or extraction activities. We will continue to monitor that situation and Russia's activities.
Asked by: Andrew Rosindell (Conservative - Romford)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Deputy Foreign Secretary, how many officials in his Department are stationed on the British Antarctic Territory as of 20 May 2024.
Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
There are no officials stationed in the British Antarctic Territory. The Territory has no permanent population and is administered by officials in London. The British Antarctic Survey (BAS) operates three research stations in the BAT and the UK Antarctic Heritage Trust (UKAHT) manage the historic base, post office and museum at Port Lockroy.
Asked by: Lord Alton of Liverpool (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government, following the UK address to the UN Security Council on 19 April, what is their assessment of progress being made in reaching people at risk of starvation in Sudan.
Answered by Lord Benyon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
On 19th April, the UK called an open briefing on the situation in Sudan at the UN Security Council, where we reiterated our calls for the warring parties to facilitate unimpeded cross-border and crossline humanitarian access. However, the continued lack of humanitarian access across Sudan makes it extremely difficult for humanitarian organisations to provide the necessary levels of assistance. Nearly five million people in Sudan are currently at risk of famine. We are working with the UN, other donors and humanitarian agencies to improve and increase the delivery of aid into and across Sudan. We will continue to urge the warring parties to achieve a ceasefire, protect civilians and increase much-needed humanitarian assistance and access.
Asked by: Lord Bishop of St Albans (Bishops - Bishops)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what is their response to the state of disaster declared due to the drought and resultant food shortages in Malawi, and whether they plan to provide additional aid to Malawi.
Answered by Lord Benyon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Malawi, like its Southern African neighbours, faces particularly high food shortages this year partly because of the El Nino drought. The UK has just made a £3 million contribution to the World Food Programme, primarily to import and distribute around 3,000 tonnes of food and provide cash transfers, reaching around 300,000 of the least food secure. This contribution compliments on-going efforts by the UK Government to strengthen the resilience of the Malawian people, to future climate shocks, including through contributing to sovereign drought insurance.
Asked by: Matthew Offord (Conservative - Hendon)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Deputy Foreign Secretary, pursuant to the Answer of 12 January 2024 to Question 7549 on Hamas: Audio Equipment, what steps his Department is taking to help support Israel to remove Hamas from power in the Gaza Strip.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
The UK is doing all it can to reach a long-term solution to this crisis by calling for the immediate release of all hostages, the removal of Hamas' capacity to launch attacks against Israel, Hamas no-longer being in charge of Gaza, the formation of a new Palestinian Government for the West Bank and Gaza accompanied by an international support package, and a political horizon to a two-state solution.
The Prime Minister has spoken with Prime Minister Netanyahu several times, most recently on 30 April. The Foreign Secretary spoke with Foreign Minister Katz on 13 May. He also visited Israel with German Foreign Minister Baerbock on 17 April, met G7 partners in Italy immediately afterwards, and has spoken with leaders and counterparts in the OPTs, Qatar, Turkey, Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Iran in recent weeks.
Asked by: Bob Blackman (Conservative - Harrow East)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Deputy Foreign Secretary, if he will have discussions with the UN on the recently released footage of Palestinians firing from inside an UNRWA compound in eastern Rafah.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
The UK takes allegations of neutrality violations extremely seriously. With regards to this specific incident, UNRWA has said that while it cannot verify the authenticity or the content of this video, it is likely that it is from an UNRWA warehouse in Rafah that was evacuated during the week of 6 May following forced displacement orders from the Israeli authorities. UNRWA has condemned the use of UN facilities by any party to the conflict for military and fighting purposes.