Asked by: Gregory Campbell (Democratic Unionist Party - East Londonderry)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Deputy Foreign Secretary, if he will have discussions with the UN on establishing responsibility for the (a) bombing of the al-Ahli Arab Hospital in Gaza in October 2023 and (b) recent deaths of four Israel Defence Forces soldiers at Kerem Shalom border crossing.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
As the Prime Minister said on 23 October, the Government's judgement is that the explosion at Al-Ahli Hospital on 17 October was likely caused by a missile, or part of one, that was launched from within Gaza towards Israel. Hamas has claimed responsibility for the strike on 05 May which killed four Israel Defence Force soldiers at Kerem Shalom.
Our priority is doing all we can to reach a long-term solution to this crisis. This means the removal of Hamas' capacity to launch attacks against Israel, Hamas no-longer being in charge of Gaza, the release of all hostages, a new Palestinian Government for the West Bank and Gaza, and a political horizon to a two-state solution.
Asked by: Gregory Campbell (Democratic Unionist Party - East Londonderry)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Deputy Foreign Secretary, if he will make an assessment of the potential impact of trends in the level of gold purchased by the Chinese government on the risk of a conflict in Taiwan.
Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
We do not comment on speculation. More generally, our position on the Taiwan Strait has not changed - the UK has a clear interest in peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait. We consider the Taiwan issue one to be settled peacefully by the people on both sides of the Taiwan Strait through constructive dialogue, without the threat or use of force or coercion. We do not support any unilateral attempts to change the status quo.
Asked by: Gregory Campbell (Democratic Unionist Party - East Londonderry)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Deputy Foreign Secretary, if he will have discussions with the UN on steps that were taken to ensure (a) the independence of the processes for and (b) the accuracy of the findings of the Colonna report.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
Allegations that UNRWA staff were involved in the events that took place on 7 October in Israel are appalling, which is why we took decisive action to pause future funding to the organisation.
The Prime Minister has been clear that the UK will set out its position on future funding to UNRWA following careful consideration of Catherine Colonna's final report, UNRWA's response and the ongoing UN Office for Internal Oversight Services investigation into these allegations.
Asked by: Gregory Campbell (Democratic Unionist Party - East Londonderry)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Deputy Foreign Secretary, whether he has had discussions with the World Bank Group on its commitment to fully align its non-sovereign operations since 1 January 2024.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
At the recent World Bank Spring Meetings on 17-19 April, the Deputy Foreign Secretary discussed the World Bank commitment to scale up financing for climate change with Bank management. For its non-sovereign operations, the World Bank is on track to achieve its commitment to ensure all new financial flows are aligned with the Paris Agreement by July 2025. At the end of 2023, this figure stood at 95 per cent, well ahead of the 85 per cent target.
Asked by: Gregory Campbell (Democratic Unionist Party - East Londonderry)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Deputy Foreign Secretary, how much funding the UK plans to provide to the Productive Safety Net Programme in the 2024-25 financial year.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
We plan to make an estimated contribution of £23 million to the Productive Safety Net Programme (PSNP) this financial year.
Asked by: Gregory Campbell (Democratic Unionist Party - East Londonderry)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, if he will hold discussions with his counterpart in the Burkina Faso Government on the church attack in Oudalan Province on 25 February 2024.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
The UK is appalled by the recent attacks against Churches, Mosques and local communities in Burkina Faso. As Lord Ahmad said last week, freedom of religion or belief (FoRB) is a fundamental right and must be protected, and those responsible for these heinous attacks must be held to account. The UK also signed up to the UN Security Council statement on terrorist attacks in Burkina Faso issued on 29 February 2024. We routinely discuss security challenges with the transitional authorities in Burkina Faso and continue to work with partners in the region to promote stability.
Asked by: Gregory Campbell (Democratic Unionist Party - East Londonderry)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, with reference to the Oral Statement of the Secretary of State for Defence of 5 February 2024 on Situation in the Red Sea, Official Report, column 22, whether the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs discussed the consequences to Iran of failing to stop Houthi attacks during his meeting with his Iranian counterpart last month.
Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The Foreign Secretary sent a clear message during his meeting with his Iranian counterpart on 17 January. The Foreign Secretary made clear that Iran must use its influence with the Houthis to prevent further strikes, and that Iran must cease its support to the Houthi's illegal and unacceptable attacks. We will continue to work with international partners to deter Iran's destabilising activity, including by holding Iran to account in multilateral fora and through sanctions; addressing Iranian weapons proliferation; and maintaining our permanent defence presence in the region.
Asked by: Gregory Campbell (Democratic Unionist Party - East Londonderry)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, if he will make representations to the UN on the potential steps it can take to ensure it has the confidence of donor nations in relation to the operations of its relief and works agencies in the Middle East.
Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
We are appalled by allegations that United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) staff were involved in the 7 October attack against Israel, a heinous act of terrorism that the UK Government has repeatedly condemned. We are pausing any future funding of UNRWA whilst we review these concerning allegations. We are looking to our partners in the UN to carry out a robust and comprehensive investigation. In the meantime, we are getting on with aid delivery through funding multiple implementing partners including other UN agencies and international and UK NGOs. This support is helping people in Gaza get food, water, shelter and medicines.
Asked by: Gregory Campbell (Democratic Unionist Party - East Londonderry)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, what his planned timetable is for the allocation of the £1.4 billion pledge to the International Development Association's replenishment fund.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
The UK has committed £1.4 billion to the World Bank's International Development Association 20th (IDA20) replenishment. We will fund this by depositing promissory notes within the IDA20 cycle, which ends on 30 June 2025. The promissory notes will be encashed by the World Bank quarterly, for 6 years, starting from January 2025 and with the last encashment expected to be in April 2031. The UK has already made its first promissory note deposit to IDA20 in December 2023.
Asked by: Gregory Campbell (Democratic Unionist Party - East Londonderry)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, if he will hold discussions with the Government of India on steps it is taking in response to the Supreme Court's ruling in December 2023 relating to proposals for the restoration of places of worship that have been affected by the violence in Manipur.
Answered by Anne-Marie Trevelyan - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK Government is committed to defending Freedom of Religion or Belief (FoRB) for all and promoting respect and tolerance between different religious and non-religious communities. We have a broad and deep partnership with the Government of India and we discuss all elements of our relationship, including our concerns where we have them. During his visit to India in May 2023, Lord (Tariq) Ahmad of Wimbledon, Minister for South Asia, discussed FoRB with the Government of India, leaders of faith groups and others, and raised the current situation in Manipur with the Indian Ministry of Home Affairs. The UK's diplomatic network in India will continue to engage on FoRB and to closely monitor the situation in Manipur.