Asked by: Fleur Anderson (Labour - Putney)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether he has had recent discussions with his Israeli counterpart on establishing a (a) safe and (b) fast route to the UK for Mr Bijendran of Royal London Hospital.
Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
We are monitoring the ongoing humanitarian situation in Gaza and welcome the current ceasefire brokered by Egypt. When the Foreign Secretary wrote to his Israeli counterpart Eli Cohen on 10 May, he thanked him for coordinating with the British Embassy in Tel Aviv and requested Israel's continued assistance to allow British nationals in Gaza who wish to return to the UK to do so. The individual in question left Gaza via the Erez crossing into Israel on 13 May, confirming their safety to UK officials on 15 May.
Asked by: Fleur Anderson (Labour - Putney)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent assessment his Department has made of the adequacy of the International Fund for Israeli-Palestinian Peace in encouraging people-to-people peacebuilding programs.
Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
There is already a range of UK aid-funded development programming in the Occupied Palestinian Territories, outside of what the UK may do in the future with this fund, which works to preserve the prospect of a negotiated two-state solution. The UK is a key donor to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA), providing essential humanitarian support to Palestinian refugees across its five zones of operation. Our annual contribution to their programme budget helps UNRWA provide education to over 533,000 children a year (half of them girls), and access to health services for 3.5 million Palestinian refugees.
Asked by: Fleur Anderson (Labour - Putney)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, on what date he most recently discussed the International Fund for Israeli-Palestinian Peace with his American counterparts.
Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The Foreign Secretary has regular discussions with his US counterpart about the Middle East Peace Process, most recently at the G7 Foreign Ministers' meeting in April. The UK Government remains in close contact with the US Government about the US Middle East Partnership for Peace Act and how existing peace-building projects and funding can better support the goals of this Act. We share the objective of advancing economic, social, and political connections, and peaceful co-existence between Israelis and Palestinians. We stand ready to collaborate and coordinate further, including regarding the Act's Advisory Board, as additional information about its plans and priorities become available.
Asked by: Fleur Anderson (Labour - Putney)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of UK involvement in the International Fund for Israeli-Palestinian Peace.
Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
There is already a range of UK aid-funded development programming in the Occupied Palestinian Territories, outside of what the UK may do in the future with this fund, which works to preserve the prospect of a negotiated two-state solution. The UK is a key donor to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA), providing essential humanitarian support to Palestinian refugees across its five zones of operation. Our annual contribution to their programme budget helps UNRWA provide education to over 533,000 children a year (half of them girls), and access to health services for 3.5 million Palestinian refugees.
Asked by: Fleur Anderson (Labour - Putney)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with Nigerian counterpart on (a) reports of violence against Christians in Nigeria and (b) the defence of the rights to freedom of religion or belief in Nigeria.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
The UK Government condemns all incidents of violence across Nigeria and is committed to defending freedom of religion or belief for communities of all faiths. I [Minister Andrew Mitchell] discussed the effects of insecurity on communities with President-elect Tinubu in December 2022. Additionally, in July 2022, at the UK's Ministerial Conference on Freedom of Religion or Belief, the Nigerian High Commissioner reiterated his Government's commitment to freedom of religion or belief. Our High Commission in Nigeria regularly engages with Nigerian officials and local communities on this. We will continue to encourage the Nigerian Government to assist affected communities and implement long-term solutions.
Asked by: Fleur Anderson (Labour - Putney)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with his Pakistani counterpart regarding the arrest of Azam Swati.
Answered by Leo Docherty - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for the Armed Forces)
The UK Government continues to regularly engage the Government of Pakistan at a senior level on the need to respect human rights and uphold the rule of law. Where there are allegations of human rights violations, we expect these to be fully investigated in line with due process. We do not comment on Pakistan's internal domestic affairs.
Asked by: Fleur Anderson (Labour - Putney)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with his Pakistani counterpart regarding the arrest of Dr Shahbaz Gil.
Answered by Leo Docherty - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for the Armed Forces)
The UK Government continues to regularly engage the Government of Pakistan at a senior level on the need to respect human rights and uphold the rule of law. Where there are allegations of human rights violations, we expect these to be fully investigated in line with due process. We do not comment on Pakistan's internal domestic affairs.
Asked by: Fleur Anderson (Labour - Putney)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent steps the Government has taken to work with the international community to ensure that people in Sudan who have been impacted by the recent violence have access to (a) drinking water, (b) food, (c) shelter and (d) healthcare.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
The humanitarian situation in Sudan is worsening. The FCDO's top humanitarian priority is to secure workable humanitarian access, including security assurances for humanitarian agencies. There can be no international aid without safe and reliable access. We are coordinating with the international humanitarian system to support the UN to be able to scale-up delivery within Sudan so they can move quickly to respond as soon as access improves. On 4 May the UK announced an initial £5 million allocation which will help to provide urgent assistance to tens of thousands of refugees and returnees in South Sudan and Chad fleeing violence in Sudan. The UK is a committed donor in Sudan, having spent over £250 million in humanitarian aid in the last five years.
Asked by: Fleur Anderson (Labour - Putney)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent steps his Department has taken to work with the international community restore access to immunisation services around the world.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
The COVID-19 pandemic has dramatically impacted global health and immunisation. The UK Government is committed to supporting efforts to get routine immunisation back on track and has committed £1.65 billion to Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance from 2021-2025 to support their mission to immunise 300 million children and save up to 8 million lives from vaccine preventable diseases over this period.
Alongside our Gavi investment, we are committed to working with countries and with the wider international community, to focus efforts on building stronger primary health systems for the future as a core part of restoring immunisation services around the world.
Asked by: Fleur Anderson (Labour - Putney)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent discussions the Government has had with the European Commission on proposals for the use of e-gates for British citizens travelling to and from the EU.
Answered by Leo Docherty - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for the Armed Forces)
Some Member States already allow British citizens to use e-gates at airports in certain circumstances.
Our priority is to minimise unnecessary delays for British citizens, including by engaging with the European Commission and Member States on the EU's Entry/Exit System to understand the impact on British citizens once operational.