Asked by: Ruth Jones (Labour - Newport West)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Deputy Foreign Secretary, what recent steps his Department has taken to help ensure women and girls in Gaza have access to sanitary products.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
We have provided £4.25 million to the United Nations sexual and reproductive health agency, UNFPA, to provide life-saving support to vulnerable women and girls in Gaza. This support is expected to reach about 111,500 women, around 1 in 5 of the adult women in Gaza. It will support up to 100 community midwives, the distribution of around 45,000 clean delivery kits and 20,000 menstrual hygiene management kits. These dignity kits include tampons, reusable pads and underwear. The Foreign Secretary met with the London representative of UNFPA on 28 March to discuss the needs of vulnerable women and girls in Gaza and I [the Deputy Foreign Secretary] met with UNFPA Executive Director, Natalia Kanem, on 16 April in Geneva.
Asked by: Brendan O'Hara (Scottish National Party - Argyll and Bute)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Deputy Foreign Secretary, what steps his Department is taking to support Sudanese Christians.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
We will provide £89 million to support Sudan this year, mostly for humanitarian assistance. Exact budgets have not yet been allocated, but this will include support to protection activities for vulnerable people affected by the conflict. UK support will be providing nutrition, safe drinking water, medical care and shelter, as well as supporting protection services for those affected by Gender Based Violence. The UK funds and supports the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights in Sudan (OHCHR), a UN body that plays a crucial role in monitoring and reporting on human rights violations including of any particular religious group.
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 implications for his policies of recent violence in Tripoli.
Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
We are aware of the recent clashes in Tripoli, and continue to monitor the situation on the ground closely. The UK calls for all parties to exercise restraint, and to avoid escalation or retaliatory action. Libyan actors must press forward in fulfilling their responsibilities to uphold peace and security across the country, by engaging meaningfully with the political process to deliver a Libyan-led political settlement. We continue to work with international partners to improve stability in Libya at the national and local level, including engaging with communities across Libya to solve local conflicts and build peace.
Asked by: Kerry McCarthy (Labour - Bristol East)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, whether he plans to support a third term for the Secretary-General of the International Seabed Authority.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
FCDO Ministers will consider the UK position in advance of the upcoming election for the Secretary-General of the International Seabed Authority. The question of mineral-resources related activities in the seabed beyond the limits of national jurisdiction for the benefit of humankind is a critical one, and the outcome of this election will have wide significance.
Asked by: Marsha De Cordova (Labour - Battersea)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Deputy Foreign Secretary, what recent steps his Department has taken to implement the FCDO disability inclusion and rights strategy 2022 to 2030, published on 16 February 2022.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
Our commitment to the Disability Inclusion and Rights Strategy was recently reaffirmed in the International Development White Paper that I [Minister Mitchell] presented to the House. To deliver on our strategy the FCDO seeks to embed disability inclusion across the full range of FCDO's diplomacy, policy, and programming, working with local partners around the world. For example, the Girl's Education Department has recently developed a new internal policy paper drawing on what works to get children with disabilities into quality and inclusive education. Our progress against the strategy is regularly reviewed by a board of independent experts from civil society and academia.
Asked by: Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi (Labour - Slough)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Deputy Foreign Secretary, what recent assessment he has made of the impact of Iranian support for the Houthis on the stability of (a) Yemen and (b) the wider Middle East region.
Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK assesses that Iran has directly supported Houthi attacks in the Red Sea. Specifically, Iran has provided intelligence to enable Houthi targeting of vessels. Furthermore, Iran has supplied the Houthis with missiles and UAVs used to attack international shipping. Iran should cease such support and use its influence to restrain its proxies to prevent further escalations.
The UK continues to seek the de-escalation of tensions in the Middle East. We are employing the full range of our diplomatic and security efforts, working with allies and international partners to counter groups seeking to undermine the region's peace, stability and prosperity.
Asked by: Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi (Labour - Slough)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Deputy Foreign Secretary, what steps he is taking to support UN-led Yemeni peace talks; and what progress he has made towards achieving an inclusive political settlement in Yemen.
Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Minister for the Middle East and North Africa, Lord Ahmad, spoke with the new Yemeni Foreign Minister Al-Zindani on 17 April. He reiterated the UK's commitment to an intra-Yemeni peace process under UN auspices.
We continue to champion the vital role of the UN Special Envoy to Yemen, Hans Grundberg, and welcomed his formal launch of the UN-led Roadmap in December. This was enabled following years of HMG's diplomatic support. An inclusive political settlement is the only way to bring sustainable peace and long-term stability to Yemen, and to address the worsening humanitarian crisis.
Asked by: Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi (Labour - Slough)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Deputy Foreign Secretary, whether he has made an assessment of the potential merits of proscribing the Islamic Revolution Guard Corps as a terrorist organisation in the context of the recent military actions by Iran.
Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
We have condemned in the strongest terms Iran's direct attack against Israel, which was a dangerous escalation. We do not routinely comment on any potential proscription decisions. We are deeply concerned by the threat from Iran, including the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps, and have taken significant measures to counter it at home and around the world. That includes sanctioning the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps in its entirety and more than 400 Iranian individuals and entities, including dozens of IRGC commanders. We are confident that the police, security services and courts all have the tools they need to sanction, prosecute and mitigate the threats from Iran.
Asked by: Vicky Ford (Conservative - Chelmsford)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Deputy Foreign Secretary, what recent steps he has taken to secure guarantees from participants in the Sudan conflict for the safe delivery of humanitarian assistance.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
The UK has pressed the warring parties to agree to a permanent ceasefire, to protect civilians and to allow unrestricted humanitarian access, both cross-line and cross-border, so that aid can reach people in desperate need. On 8 March, the UK-led UN Security Council Resolution 2724 called for an immediate cessation of hostilities and full, rapid, safe, and unhindered humanitarian access. We welcome unified international messaging at the Paris Pledging Conference on 15 April - at which the UK was represented by Lord Benyon - as well as plans to re-start Jeddah talks in the next weeks to maintain pressure on the warring parties to facilitate cross-line and cross-border humanitarian access and a permanent ceasefire.
Asked by: Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi (Labour - Slough)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Deputy Foreign Secretary, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of recent regional military action on the peace process in Yemen.
Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK is deeply concerned by the humanitarian situation in Yemen, which remains dire. We are committed to provide continued humanitarian assistance to help alleviate the dire conditions faced by millions of Yemenis.
We have played a leading role in responding to the humanitarian crisis, committing over £1 billion in aid since the conflict began in 2014.
In both 2022-23 and 2023-4 we committed £88 million in aid to Yemen, which has contributed to providing food to at least 100,000 people every month, delivering lifesaving health care through 400 facilities, and treating 22,000 severely malnourished children.