Qatar: Israeli Strike

Bob Blackman Excerpts

Wednesday 10th September 2025 Commons Chamber

[Mr Falconer]

I think I covered the point about sanctions earlier.

[Bob Blackman (Harrow East) (Con)]

I was surprised and disappointed that there was no word from the Secretary of State in relation to the terrorist attack in Jerusalem on Monday, where terrorists opened fire on a bus, killing rabbis and women. The reality is that Hamas’s leadership not only condoned the attack, but praised it. Does the Minister agree that it is essential that we get to the point of having a ceasefire that allows for the release of all the hostages without conditions, and for Hamas to surrender their weapons and agree to demilitarise Gaza?

[Mr Falconer]

I am grateful to the hon. Gentleman for raising the attack in Jerusalem, which I condemn utterly and outright. It was barbaric and, as he says, women and rabbis were killed. The UK has no truck with it and we condemn it outright, just as we condemn all such activities by Hamas, including the taking of hostages, the events of 7 October and the long litany of terrorist attacks that they are responsible for and glorify.

Oral Answers to Questions

Bob Blackman Excerpts

Tuesday 2nd September 2025 Commons Chamber

[Bob Blackman (Harrow East) (Con)]

The remaining hostages in Gaza—those who are still alive—are being starved, persecuted and prevented from getting any form of medical aid. When the Foreign Secretary visits the region, will he force the International Red Cross to seek the hostages and ensure that they are given the medical attention they need?

[Mr Lammy]

The hon. Gentleman has always brought the issues of hostages to mind in this House, and I applaud him for that work. I met with hostage families just before the summer recess, and I will again in the coming weeks. The recent photos showing hostages malnourished and starved were obscene, and I will do all I can to ensure that they get the aid and support that they need, underground in those tunnels.

Middle East

Bob Blackman Excerpts

Monday 21st July 2025 Commons Chamber

[Mr Lammy]

I said that I will look at what more we can do should children require medical aid in our own country. If what my hon. Friend says is correct, it would constitute a war crime, very clearly. We cannot have soldiers turning their guns on children. It would not be appropriate for me to comment on any decision that might come to me.

[Bob Blackman (Harrow East) (Con)]

Last week, I hosted Keith and Aviva Siegel, both of whom were hostages and were released. The previous week, I met families of hostages who all pleaded with all of us to get the hostages released. The hostages have now been in captivity for 654 days, without any access by the International Red Cross. Will the Foreign Secretary call out Hamas to enable the International Red Cross to go to see those hostages and make sure they are being treated humanely?

[Mr Lammy]

The hon. Gentleman is right. I said in my statement that Hamas are making hay with the chaos that exists on the ground, and it is quite wrong to restrict the support of organisations such as the Red Cross and the Red Crescent.

Actions of Iranian Regime: UK Response

Bob Blackman Excerpts

Monday 7th July 2025 Commons Chamber

[Mr Falconer]

The UK has been able to provide a very limited amount by way of consular support in Iran for some years, for exactly the reasons that my hon. Friend mentioned—it is frustrated by the Iranian Government—and our warnings and travel advice are clear. I am grateful to my hon. Friend for providing me with an opportunity to confirm to the House that we have now reopened our embassy in Tehran after a temporary closure, and a chargé is in place. We will continue to play our full role to ensure the safety of British nationals in Iran and, indeed, to contribute to the diplomatic developments we have discussed.

[Bob Blackman (Harrow East) (Con)]

The Israeli and United States military action has destroyed three of the facilities and, of course, killed some of the scientists and IRGC operatives who have been involved in the nuclear programme. However, it is suggested that the Iranians removed their nuclear material to another site before that action took place, and now, of course, Iran has withdrawn its co-operation with everyone in terms of inspections and checks on what is happening. What action is the Minister taking to make sure that Iran is brought to the negotiating table to establish what has happened to that nuclear material, and indeed to ensure that Iran is not going to continue to enhance its nuclear capability?

[Mr Falconer]

I thank the hon. Gentleman for his important question. I am sure I will receive complaints from his party’s Front Benchers, but he will understand that I will not be commenting on the assessment of the strike or on intelligence matters. But I will say that it is absolutely vital that IAEA inspectors are allowed back into Iran; that is the fundamental basis on which trust can be built for a diplomatic solution. Now that a ceasefire is in place, the inspectors must come back in.

British Indian Ocean Territory: Sovereignty

Bob Blackman Excerpts

Wednesday 2nd July 2025 Commons Chamber

[Stephen Doughty]

I repeatedly hear a strong vote of confidence in our investment in national security and defence, whether it is from our European partners or from the United States. One just has to look at our leadership at the NATO summit and our ongoing support for Ukraine, which we agree on across the House. My hon. Friend asks about the value and the costs. I have set out the costs on a number of occasions, but, as he says, it is just a fraction of 1% of our annual defence budget. It would pay to run the NHS for just five hours. It also compares favourably with other allies. For example, France pays approximately €85 million a year for its base in Djibouti. Diego Garcia is 15 times larger and the capabilities are priceless.

[Bob Blackman (Harrow East) (Con)]

The Minister rightly says that the base on Diego Garcia is vital for our national security, and we all agree on that. The key issue is what notification has to be given to the Mauritius Government for the base to be used for operational purposes.

[Stephen Doughty]

My hon. Friend the Minister of State for the Armed Forces has replied to multiple questions on this topic, as have I. Indeed, I answered these questions in the due scrutiny that I received the other day. We do not have to provide notification in advance. The treaty refers to “expeditiously” informing after the event, and that is absolutely the normal course of business. I am clear that the operations and the operational autonomy of this base are secure under this deal.

Middle East

Bob Blackman Excerpts

Monday 23rd June 2025 Commons Chamber

[Mr Lammy]

I am very grateful to my hon. Friend for his service in the RAF, and I am sure that he is thinking about his former colleagues at RAF Akrotiri and across our two sovereign bases in the area, and in particular about our bilateral defence partnerships with so many countries in the region. I am pleased to make it crystal clear that the path through this is a diplomatic one: it is for Iran to return to negotiation and to recognise the power of the global community being absolutely clear that it cannot have a nuclear weapon.

[Bob Blackman (Harrow East) (Con)]

It is good news that, reportedly, the Home Secretary has finally decided to proscribe the treacherous terrorist group Palestine Action. Given that she has done that at great speed after the recent attack, and given that the IRGC has conducted or attempted attacks on this country multiple times, will the Foreign Secretary use his powers to persuade the Home Secretary to proscribe the IRGC in its entirety?

[Mr Lammy]

I am grateful to the hon. Gentleman. The proscription question is always one for the Home Secretary. In relation to the decision that she has made today, it is important to stress that the process has involved all the relevant agencies and their assessment of the activities. I have to say that the attacking of RAF bases is disgraceful and totally unacceptable, and the force of the law must bear down on that. The Home Secretary keeps proscription under review, and I know that the hon. Gentleman has raised a long-standing issue.

Iran-Israel Conflict

Bob Blackman Excerpts

Monday 16th June 2025 Commons Chamber

[Mr Lammy]

I can reassure my hon. Friend that I have spoken to partners in Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Oman, UAE, Qatar, Iraq, Lebanon and Israel, and been in touch, of course, with our friends in Egypt over this last period, and I will continue to do so at this time of intense diplomacy.

[Bob Blackman (Harrow East) (Con)]

We knew that Iran had the ballistic missiles to hit Europe, let alone Israel or other parts of the middle east. Last week, the IAEA reported that Iran was within a whisker of producing atomic weapons. In the absence of diplomatic efforts and the failure to introduce the snapback mechanism, Israel had a right to react to protect itself. Will the Foreign Secretary now look at the diplomatic efforts to introduce the snapback mechanism and to impose sanctions on Iran to ensure that it cannot ever obtain nuclear weapons?

[Mr Lammy]

Yes, I will.

Air India Plane Crash

Bob Blackman Excerpts

Monday 16th June 2025 Commons Chamber

[Mr Falconer]

As I said, British investigators are now in India working with the Indian authorities. We are also in direct contact with Air India.

[Bob Blackman (Harrow East) (Con)]

Around 30% of my constituents emanate from Gujarat originally. On Saturday, we came together in one of the Hindu temples with the interfaith council, and people of all religions and none expressed their condolences. At that temple, 20 people have lost relatives. Last night, we attended another vigil at a temple where four relatives of people who work there have lost their lives.

Can the Minister give us an update on one issue? For the 53 UK nationals who sadly lost their life, we have been able to communicate to their family that they have unfortunately died, but there were 169 Indian nationals who were almost certainly due to visit family in the UK—families that extend across the country. Has the FCDO been able to advise those families of the loss of those lives, so that instead of being by the telephone waiting in hope that their relatives were not on the plane, they have a certain outcome?

[Mr Falconer]

I am happy to talk to the hon. Member about the particulars of the cases that he is referring to. We will, of course, do everything we can to try to minimise uncertainty.

Gibraltar

Bob Blackman Excerpts

Thursday 12th June 2025 Commons Chamber

[Mr Lammy]

Yesterday I met Joe Bossano, who, at 85, is a long-standing Member of the Gibraltar Parliament. He shared his reflections on Gibraltar and its attachment to the UK, on the war and being evacuated to the UK, and on where there have been disagreements with the UK, when the UK has not understood that Gibraltar is part of the family. I give the hon. Gentleman the assurance that he seeks: yes is the answer.

[Bob Blackman (Harrow East) (Con)]

It is clearly in the best interests of Spain and Gibraltar for there to be a free flow of individuals backwards and forwards across the border. For UK citizens who fly into Spain or Gibraltar and hire a car to cross the border into Gibraltar or Spain, what checks will there be at the border? Clarity on that point would help.

[Mr Lammy]

The clarity is that there will no longer be any checks. If they fly into Spain, they are flying into the Schengen area. If they fly into Málaga, they are free to drive to Gibraltar without checks—they would already have had those checks. The same applies in the other direction.

Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories

Bob Blackman Excerpts

Tuesday 10th June 2025 Commons Chamber

[Mr Falconer]

I will not repeat my answers about the conference next week, but my hon. Friend has been committed to these issues for a long time, and she is absolutely right when she says that millions of people are in an abject position, facing famine and terrible shortages of all essential supplies, and they weigh very much on the mind of this Government each and every day.

[Bob Blackman (Harrow East) (Con)]

The two Israeli Ministers that the Minister has announced are being sanctioned are no friends of the Israeli people or the Palestinians. I have no truck with them and nor should any of us. The reality is, though, is that there are two aspects to the situation. There is Hamas’s continued control of Gaza, and their refusal to release the hostages or agree to a hostage exchange, or indeed to allow aid in and let it reach the Palestinian people. There is also the challenge of releasing those hostages, which we all want to see happen. Hamas have refused the ceasefire deal. What action will the Minister take to ensure that Hamas come to the negotiating table and actually negotiate a ceasefire, so that international aid can get in? And while I am on my feet, what is the Government’s attitude towards those who attempt to break the blockade, such as the Madleen ship?

[Mr Falconer]

I called on Hamas to return to ceasefire talks when reports reached us that they were not doing so. I hope that those ceasefire talks are successful, and I of course repeat my call for hostages to be released. We have been clear about the blockade of aid, but I must once again reiterate that it is the land routes on which we must be completely focused; the land routes from Egypt, from Jordan and from Israel itself must be opened at the scale required to get the aid in.