Asked by: Martyn Day (Scottish National Party - Linlithgow and East Falkirk)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Deputy Foreign Secretary, if he will have discussions with his Israeli counterpart on the (a) effectiveness of command and control within the Israeli Defence Forces and (b) reports that a senior commander who was dismissed in connection with the strike that killed international aid workers in Gaza had expressed personal views on aid to Gaza.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
The Foreign Secretary visited Israel on 17 April and held high-level talks with Prime Minister Netanyahu, President Herzog and Foreign Minister Katz. He reiterated the need for an immediate pause in the fighting in Gaza to get aid in and hostages out.
The UK is pushing as hard as we can to get aid to Palestinian civilians. Israel must fulfil its commitments to enable a flood of aid, including by guaranteeing deconfliction for aid workers.
Asked by: Fabian Hamilton (Labour - Leeds North East)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Deputy Foreign Secretary, what assessment he has made of the potential implications for his policies of Amnesty International’s annual report, published 23 April 2024.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
We note Amnesty International's annual report, published last month.
The UK has a long-standing commitment to the promotion and protection of human rights both internationally and domestically. We will continue to show global leadership in encouraging all states to uphold international human rights obligations and hold those who violate human rights to account. We report on the UK's work around the world to promote and protect human rights in the Annual Human Rights & Democracy Report, due to be published this summer.
Asked by: Stephen Doughty (Labour (Co-op) - Cardiff South and Penarth)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Deputy Foreign Secretary, what (a) ambassadorial, (b) high commissioner and (c) deputy head of mission postings in (i) Europe and (ii) North America he plans to (A) announce and (B) appoint in the next seven months.
Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The FCDO has published announcements of changes to HM Ambassadors (HMA), High Commissioners (HC) and Heads of Mission planned for 2024 where His Majesty The King has approved and agrément by the host government has been granted. Details of changes are not published before these processes conclude. Any future HMA, HC and Head of Mission appointments would be announced following appropriate recruitment and approval processes concluding. Deputy head of mission (DHM) appointments are not formally announced.
Asked by: Navendu Mishra (Labour - Stockport)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Deputy Foreign Secretary, what the average time taken by his Department to respond to a freedom of information (FOI) request was in each of the last five years; how many and what proportion of FOI requests his Department did not answer within the target time in each of the last five years; and how many FOI requests to his Department have not been answered within the target time as of 24 April 2024.
Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The FCDO takes its responsibilities under the Freedom of Information Act very seriously and will continue to strive to answer Freedom of Information (FOI) requests within the required timescales.
1. Number of cases received and answered on time 2019 - 2023
Year | Department | Total Number of FOI requests | Total Number answered on time | % on time |
2019 | FCO | 1229 | 1146 | 93% |
DfID | 436 | 430 | 99% | |
2020 | FCO | 828 | 665 | 80% |
DfID | 288 | 283 | 98% | |
FCDO | 352 | 277 | 79% | |
2021 | FCDO | 1245 | 1080 | 87% |
2022 | FCDO | 1214 | 956 | 79% |
2023 | FCDO | 1362 | 866 | 64% |
2. Number of cases received and answered on time 2024 - to date
Year | Department | Total number of FOI requests closed to date | Total number answered on time to date | % answered on time |
2024 to date | FCDO | 334 | 212 | 63% |
Asked by: Stephen Morgan (Labour - Portsmouth South)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Deputy Foreign Secretary, what steps he is taking to help prevent the flow of resources to the Rapid Support Forces across the border from Libya; and whether his Department is monitoring the potential for onward flows to Sudan as a result of the Russian supply of arms within Libya.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
There is a UN Arms Embargo and Sanctions Regime on Darfur, which the UN renewed in March 2023. There is also a longstanding bilateral UK arms embargo in place for the whole of Sudan. In our engagement with international partners, the UK continues to emphasise the importance of refraining from actions that prolong the conflict.
Asked by: Stephen Morgan (Labour - Portsmouth South)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Deputy Foreign Secretary, what diplomatic representations he has made to discourage states channelling (a) weapons and (b) funding to the parties to the war in Sudan.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
There is a UN Arms Embargo and Sanctions Regime on Darfur, which the UN renewed in March 2023. There is also a longstanding bilateral UK arms embargo in place for the whole of Sudan. In our engagement with international partners, the UK continues to emphasise the importance of refraining from actions that prolong the conflict.
Asked by: Jane Hunt (Conservative - Loughborough)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Deputy Foreign Secretary, what steps he is taking with his international counterparts to help secure peace between Israel and Palestine in the Holy Land.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
The fastest way to end the conflict is to secure a deal which gets the hostages out and allows for a pause in the fighting in Gaza. We must then work with our international partners to turn that pause into a sustainable, permanent ceasefire.
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; continuing to support a deal which would secure a pause in the fighting; pushing as hard as we can to get aid to Palestinian civilians; working with partners to deescalate the situation in the region; and building momentum towards a lasting peace.
Building momentum towards a lasting peace will require the release of all hostages; removing Hamas's 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 for the Palestinians, providing a credible and irreversible pathway towards a two-state solution.
We have played an active role in discussions at the UN. The passing of UN Security Council Resolution 2728 on 25 March reflected international consensus behind the UK's position We continue to use public and private diplomatic channels as well as multilateral fora.
Asked by: Layla Moran (Liberal Democrat - Oxford West and Abingdon)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Deputy Foreign Secretary, whether he has made an assessment of the potential implications for his policies of the US's sanctions on (a) Mount Hebron Fund, Shlom Asiraich and (b) the leader of Lehava, Ben Zion Gopstein; and whether he has plans to implement sanctions on those actors.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
We do not speculate on future designations.
The UK continues to take a strong stance against settler violence. Extremist settlers, by targeting and attacking Palestinian civilians, are undermining security and stability for both Israelis and Palestinians.
On 12 February, the Foreign Secretary announced sanctions on four extremist Israeli settlers who have committed human rights abuses against Palestinian communities in the West Bank. Those now subject to a UK asset freeze, travel and visa ban include Moshe Sharvit, Yinon Levy, Zvi Bar Yosef and Ely Federman. These measures are part of wider UK efforts to support a more stable West Bank, which is vital for the peace and security of both Palestinians and Israelis.
Asked by: Stephen Farry (Alliance - North Down)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Deputy Foreign Secretary, pursuant to the Answer of 16 January 2024 to Question UIN 7644 on Gaza: Israel, what recent assessment he made of the implications for his policies of allegations that Israel has used starvation as a weapon of war.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
We are doing everything we can to get more aid in as quickly as possible by land, sea and air.
On 20 March, the Foreign Secretary announced the UK has funded WFP to provide 2000 tons of food aid, enough to feed 275,000 people in Gaza.
Israel has now committed to significant steps to increase the amount of aid getting to Gaza. We have seen an encouraging increase in the number of aid trucks getting into Gaza, but we must see further action to ensure more aid actually gets over the border.
Israel must fulfil its commitments to enable a flood of aid, including by guaranteeing deconfliction for aid workers.
Asked by: Rachael Maskell (Labour (Co-op) - York Central)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Deputy Foreign Secretary, whether he has had discussions with his international counterparts on the UN Security Forces taking over the border checks for aid at the Gaza border.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
The deployment of UN peacekeepers would require a UN Security Council Resolution and the consent of all parties to the conflict. We judge neither of these requirements to be obtainable at this time.