Asked by: Lord Austin of Dudley (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Department for International Development:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, with reference to section 6.5 of the Memorandum of Understanding between her Department and the Palestinian National Authority, whether the implications of any breach of the commitment on the principle of non-violence was discussed at the annual partnership talks between her Department and that Authority.
Answered by Rory Stewart
The UK raised the issue of incitement as part of the FCO-led UK-Palestinian strategic talks and in the DFID-Palestinian Authority (PA) annual talks that review the DFID-PA Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), sending a clear message of discouraging incitement to violence. The UK’s assessment is that the PA is not in breach of the MoU and the track record of President Abbas and Prime Minister Hamdallah demonstrates their overall commitment to non-violence and a negotiated two-state solution.
Asked by: Lord Austin of Dudley (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Department for International Development:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, with regard to the amendment letter to the Memorandum of Understanding with the Palestinian Government for Financial Assistance, signed on 19 March 2015, whether her Department has a list of the eligible beneficiaries of the PEGASE support programme; and if she will make a statement.
Answered by Rory Stewart
The list of vetted civil servants is held by the European Union. DFID has access to this list on request. The list of eligible beneficiaries is subject to a vetting process that includes screening against international and ad hoc sanctions lists, covering a large number of different risk categories including terrorism financing.
Asked by: Lord Austin of Dudley (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Department for International Development:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, pursuant to the Answer of 19 September 2016 to Question 45930, on the Palestinian Authority, if she will place a copy of her Department's formal assessment of the Palestinian Authority's commitment to the Partnership Principles in the Library.
Answered by Rory Stewart
DFID does not routinely publish Partnership Principles assessments. These assessments are used to inform the annual dialogue between DFID and the Palestinian Authority (PA). Our assessment is that the PA continues to deliver on the Partnership Principles.
Asked by: Lord Austin of Dudley (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Department for International Development:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, whether her Department has made a recent assessment of the level of adherence by the Palestinian National Authority to the principle of non-violence set out in the Memorandum of Understanding between her Department and that authority; and if she will make a statement.
Answered by Lord Wharton of Yarm
The UK deplores incitement to violence on both sides of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and takes the issue of incitement extremely seriously. When incidents of incitement to violence do occur, we do not hesitate to raise and condemn these with the Palestinian Authority. The UK raises the issue of incitement as part of the FCO-led UK-Palestinian strategic dialogue, most recently in February this year. HMG’s assessment is that the Palestinian Authority is not in breach of the Memorandum of Understanding. The UK continues to encourage the leaderships of both the PA and Israel to re-engage in the Trilateral Committee on Anti-Incitement.
Asked by: Lord Austin of Dudley (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Department for International Development:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, when her Department last made a formal assessment of the Palestinian National Authority's adherence to its commitment to ensure that the human rights of all citizens are respected without exception as set out in the Memorandum of Understanding between her Department and that authority; and if she will make a statement.
Answered by Lord Wharton of Yarm
The last formal assessment of the Palestinian Authority’s (PA) commitment to the Partnership Principles, including the PA’s commitment to respecting human rights, was carried out in May 2016. Our assessment is that the PA continues to deliver on the Partnership Principles, even under increasingly fragile and volatile conditions.
Asked by: Lord Austin of Dudley (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Department for International Development:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what organisations her Department is working with to deliver humanitarian aid in Nepal.
Answered by Desmond Swayne
DFID is working with a range of partners to deliver humanitarian aid in Nepal. These include: a set of Prequalified NGO partners working with local partners that helped facilitate a rapid response in the aftermath of Earthquake; International Organizations such as the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC); and the multilateral system which includes the United Nations.
Asked by: Lord Austin of Dudley (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Department for International Development:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what recent discussions she has had with her Palestinian counterpart on ensuring that the material used for the reconstruction of Gaza is not used by terrorists.
Answered by Desmond Swayne
DFID is providing £0.5 million to the Materials Monitoring Unit (MMU) which oversees and monitors the import, storage, supply and use of construction materials into Gaza under the auspices of the Gaza Reconstruction Mechanism (GRM). This Mechanism is designed to ensure reconstruction material reaches those who need it most. We continue to engage with the Palestinian Authority, the UN and the Government of Israel to ensure the mechanism continues to work as intended.
Asked by: Lord Austin of Dudley (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Department for International Development:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what assessment she has made of the effect of political and other divisions within the Palestinian unity government on international efforts to rebuild Gaza.
Answered by Desmond Swayne
The reconstruction of Gaza will require a durable ceasefire agreement that includes, amongst other things, the restoration of Palestinian Authority control. We welcomed the leadership shown by the Palestinian Authority at the Gaza Reconstruction Conference in Cairo, and their agreement to the Gaza Reconstruction Mechanism which is facilitating the import of construction materials into Gaza. The situation is extremely difficult, but we continue to support Prime Minister Hamdallah in his efforts to take the steps necessary to restore Palestinian Authority control.
Asked by: Lord Austin of Dudley (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Department for International Development:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what recent discussions she has had with the Palestinian Authority on that body's use of UK funding.
Answered by Alan Duncan
The UK regularly meets Palestinian Authority ministers, most recently on 6 March 2014 as part of our regular strategic dialogue to discuss progress against commitments in our Memorandum of Understanding. The discussion covered the range of areas of cooperation (including security and justice, finance and the economy) as well as progress on developing the new Palestinian National Development Plan.