Asked by: Caroline Lucas (Green Party - Brighton, Pavilion)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Deputy Foreign Secretary, with reference to paragraph 4.11 of the Independent Commission for Aid Impact’s report entitled UK aid’s international climate finance commitments, published on 29 February 2024, for what reason his Department has categorised 30 per cent of the funding for The Assurance and Learning Programme as international climate finance.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell
To recognise the work that is being done to support resilience building in the most climate-vulnerable countries a fixed proportion of 30 per cent International Climate Finance will be applied to programmes delivering and supporting humanitarian work being done in countries that fall into the bottom 10 per cent in terms of recognised climate vulnerability rankings, including Afghanistan.
Asked by: Caroline Lucas (Green Party - Brighton, Pavilion)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Deputy Foreign Secretary, if he will take steps to ensure measurable commitments to improve indoor air quality are included in the forthcoming Pandemic Accord.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell
The UK recognises that improving indoor air quality is an important public health issue. However, as the Pandemic Accord aims to establish a high-level framework for pandemic prevention, preparedness and response, we have instead pursued action on this issue in other multilateral settings. For example, at last year's UN General Assembly, the UK worked with international partners to advocate for action on indoor air quality during the High-Level Meeting on Universal Health Care. The UK supported reference being made to the health impacts of indoor air pollution in the HLM's political declaration, which was subsequently adopted on 5 October 2023.
Asked by: Caroline Lucas (Green Party - Brighton, Pavilion)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Deputy Foreign Secretary, with reference to the Independent Commission for Aid Impact’s UK review of UK aid’s international climate finance commitments, published 29 February 2024, what assessment his Department has made of whether the £1.724 billion funding which has been reclassified as international climate finance is (a) dedicated ring-fenced funding and (b) distinguishable from non-climate ODA.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell
The UK is delivering on our commitment to spend £11.6 billion International Climate Finance (ICF) between 2021/22 and 2025/26. Much of our ICF is integrated into programmes that seek to tackle climate change alongside other development objectives such as supporting economic growth and boosting sustainable agriculture. UK ICF programmes are all identifiable through a dedicated tag on the Development Tracker website: [https://devtracker.fcdo.gov.uk/].
Asked by: Caroline Lucas (Green Party - Brighton, Pavilion)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Deputy Foreign Secretary, with reference to paragraph 4.11 of the Independent Commission for Aid Impact’s report entitled UK aid’s international climate finance commitments, published on 29 February 2024, for what reason his Department has categorised 30 per cent of the funding for the Afghanistan Multi-Year Programme Phase 2 project as international climate finance.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell
To recognise the work that is being undertaken to support resilience building in the most climate-vulnerable countries a fixed proportion of 30 per cent International Climate Finance will be applied to humanitarian work being carried out in countries that fall into the bottom 10 per cent in terms of recognised climate vulnerability rankings, including Afghanistan.
Asked by: Caroline Lucas (Green Party - Brighton, Pavilion)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Deputy Foreign Secretary, if he will summon the Chargé d’Affaires of the Embassy of the Islamic Republic of Iran and call for (a) the revocation of Toomaj Salehi’s death sentence, (b) his unconditional release, and (c) a nationwide moratorium on executions.
Answered by David Rutley
The UK condemns the death sentence of prominent and fearless artist Toomaj Salehi. Iran's deliberate attempts to silence dissenting voices are clear for all to see. We call for Mr Salehi's immediate release, and the release of all those who are unjustly detained by the Iranian regime. Mr Salehi's sentence is yet more evidence of unacceptable restrictions on freedom of expression in Iran. Nine people associated with the "Woman Life Freedom" protests have been executed.
The UK opposes the death penalty in all circumstances as a matter of principle. We condemn Iran's continued imposition of the death penalty on protesters and have sanctioned 94 Iranian individuals or entities for human rights violations since September 2022. We call on Iran to establish a moratorium on executions with a view to abolishing the death penalty.
Asked by: Caroline Lucas (Green Party - Brighton, Pavilion)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Deputy Foreign Secretary, pursuant to the Answer of 3 April 2024 to Question 20107 on West Bank: Violence, what recent discussions he has had with his Israeli counterpart on (a) stopping settler violence and (b) holding perpetrators accountable; and what steps he is taking to help prevent settlement expansion in the Occupied Palestinian Territories.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell
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. The Foreign Secretary has made this clear to his Israeli counterparts, most recently during his visit to the region on 17 April. The Israeli authorities must clamp down on those responsible.
On 3 May, the Foreign Secretary announced new sanctions on extremist groups and individuals for inciting and perpetrating settler violence in the West Bank. The measures impose financial restrictions on the entities and individuals, and travel restrictions on the individuals. The UK will not hesitate to take further action if needed, including through further sanctions.
The UK policy on settlement expansion is also clear: settlements are illegal under international law and only make it harder to progress to achieving peace and security for Israelis and Palestinians. We have called on the Israeli Government to halt seizures of Palestinian lands immediately.
Asked by: Caroline Lucas (Green Party - Brighton, Pavilion)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Deputy Foreign Secretary, pursuant to the Answer of 26 April 2024 to Question 22287 on Gaza: Aid Workers and with reference to the investigation by the IDF which reported on 5 April 2024, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of that investigation into the killing of seven World Central Kitchen aid workers on 1 April 2024.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell
As the Foreign Secretary has said we are carefully reviewing the initial findings of Israel's investigations into the killing of World Central Kitchen aid workers and welcome the suspension of two officers as a first step. Their inquiry so far has highlighted failures in deconfliction processes and the unacceptable conduct of the IDF personnel involved. This must never happen again.
The Foreign Secretary has underlined the need for Israel to ensure effective deconfliction in Gaza and ensure effective systems to guarantee the safety of humanitarian operations. We continue to raise this with Israel at the highest levels.
Asked by: Caroline Lucas (Green Party - Brighton, Pavilion)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Deputy Foreign Secretary, with reference to the Final Report for the United Nations Secretary-General: Independent Review of Mechanisms and Procedures to Ensure Adherence by UNRWA to the Humanitarian Principle of Neutrality, published on 20 April 2024, if he will make it his policy to resume funding of UNRWA operations in Gaza; and whether he has had discussions with his German counterpart on their decision to resume funding for UNRWA following publication of that report.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell
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.
We will set out our 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.
We remain absolutely committed to getting humanitarian aid to people in Gaza who desperately need it, including through other UN agencies and British charities.
We have regular discussions with international counterparts, including Germany, on all aspects of the conflict.
Asked by: Caroline Lucas (Green Party - Brighton, Pavilion)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Deputy Foreign Secretary, whether he has had discussions with representatives of World Central Kitchen on the creation of an independent commission to investigate the killings of aid workers in Gaza on 1 April 2024.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell
As the Prime Minister said in his call with Prime Minister Netanyahu 2 April, the UK was appalled by the killing of seven World Central Kitchen aid workers, including three British nationals, in an Israeli airstrike 1 April. The Prime Minister called for a thorough and transparent investigation into what happened. Lord (Tariq) Ahmad of Wimbledon also spoke with the CEO of World Central Kitchen, Erin Gore, on 2 April to offer our condolences.
Both the Prime Minister and Foreign Secretary have conveyed to their Israeli counterparts the importance of effective deconfliction.
Asked by: Caroline Lucas (Green Party - Brighton, Pavilion)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, with reference to the press release entitled UK to nearly double aid for Sudan as humanitarian crisis deepens, published on 28 March 2024, when he expects the full funding for the 2024-25 financial year to be distributed to (a) non-governmental organisations and (b) local responders in Sudan.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell
We will provide £89 million to support Sudan over the year ahead, most of which will go towards humanitarian assistance. Budgets have not yet been allocated. However, UK support will continue to be delivered through the UN and other trusted partners including some NGOs. The UK last year provided £23.5 million to the UN-led Sudan Humanitarian Fund (SHF) to provide flexible, muti-sector support and which predominantly provides funding to NGOs, including grassroot organisations and national NGOs; we will continue our support to the SHF this year too. We are also planning to provide support to the National NGO Forum, as well as to the development of a Localisation Strategy at the request of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA).