Asked by: Liz Saville Roberts (Plaid Cymru - Dwyfor Meirionnydd)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Deputy Foreign Secretary, what discussions he has had with his Israeli counterparts on the planned march in Gaza by Israeli settlers on 15 May 2024; and if he will take diplomatic steps to help prevent the resettlement of Israeli settlers in Gaza.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
The UK policy on settlement expansion is 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.
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 Foreign Secretary has made our position clear to his Israeli counterparts, most recently during his visit to the region on 17 April.
Asked by: Liz Saville Roberts (Plaid Cymru - Dwyfor Meirionnydd)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Deputy Foreign Secretary, if he will make an assessment of the implications for his policies of the planned march into Gaza by Israeli settlers on 15 May 2024.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
The UK policy on settlement expansion is 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.
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 Foreign Secretary has made our position clear to his Israeli counterparts, most recently during his visit to the region on 17 April.
Asked by: Liz Saville Roberts (Plaid Cymru - Dwyfor Meirionnydd)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Deputy Foreign Secretary, if he will make an assessment of the implications for his policies of links between the Israeli government and Israeli settlers.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
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.
Asked by: Liz Saville Roberts (Plaid Cymru - Dwyfor Meirionnydd)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Deputy Foreign Secretary, what steps his Department is taking to stop settler violence against farmers in the West Bank.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
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.
Asked by: Liz Saville Roberts (Plaid Cymru - Dwyfor Meirionnydd)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 12 December 2023 to Question 5799 on Visas: Gaza, if he will make an updated assessment of the potential merits of establishing a family reunification visa scheme for people in Gaza.
Answered by Tom Pursglove - Minister of State (Minister for Legal Migration and Delivery)
We keep all existing pathways in response to events under review. Our position remains that at present, there are no plans to create a new visa scheme for family members of British citizens and settled migrants affected by the security situation and the Home Office is not currently considering establishing a separate route for Palestinians to come to the UK.
Since my response of 12 December for Gaza, we have extended eligibility for consular assistance. Under our extended eligibility policy, we are assisting UK visa holders to leave Gaza if they have an immediate family member currently living in the UK and hold valid permission to enter or remain in the UK for longer than six months. Immediate family members of British citizens, and those settled in the UK, who wish to come and live in the UK, and do not have a current UK visa, can apply under one of the existing Family visa routes.
UKVI is working closely with the FCDO in supporting family members of British nationals to exit from Gaza who require a visa, signposting the necessary steps and expediting appointments at the Visa Application Centre.
Any application for a UK visa will be assessed against the requirements of the Immigration Rules and our suitability requirements. Consideration will be given to compelling, compassionate and exceptional circumstances raised and may be taken into account where certain requirements are not met.
Asked by: Liz Saville Roberts (Plaid Cymru - Dwyfor Meirionnydd)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what recent assessment he has made of the adequacy of routes available to people in Gaza to join families in the UK.
Answered by Tom Pursglove - Minister of State (Minister for Legal Migration and Delivery)
We keep all existing pathways in response to events under review. Our position remains that at present, there are no plans to create a new visa scheme for family members of British citizens and settled migrants affected by the security situation and the Home Office is not currently considering establishing a separate route for Palestinians to come to the UK.
Since my response of 12 December for Gaza, we have extended eligibility for consular assistance. Under our extended eligibility policy, we are assisting UK visa holders to leave Gaza if they have an immediate family member currently living in the UK and hold valid permission to enter or remain in the UK for longer than six months. Immediate family members of British citizens, and those settled in the UK, who wish to come and live in the UK, and do not have a current UK visa, can apply under one of the existing Family visa routes.
UKVI is working closely with the FCDO in supporting family members of British nationals to exit from Gaza who require a visa, signposting the necessary steps and expediting appointments at the Visa Application Centre.
Any application for a UK visa will be assessed against the requirements of the Immigration Rules and our suitability requirements. Consideration will be given to compelling, compassionate and exceptional circumstances raised and may be taken into account where certain requirements are not met.
Asked by: Liz Saville Roberts (Plaid Cymru - Dwyfor Meirionnydd)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of (a) producing and (b) publishing disaggregated justice data for Wales.
Answered by Mike Freer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)
The Ministry of Justice produces the data required to deliver justice effectively in Wales. A significant amount of data is already published that is disaggregated for Wales.
Officials in the Ministry of Justice and His Majesty’s Prison and Probation Service continue to work with Welsh Government officials to consider areas in which Wales-specific data is not available and examine whether any such data might further aid the delivery of justice in Wales.
Asked by: Liz Saville Roberts (Plaid Cymru - Dwyfor Meirionnydd)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what recent assessment she has made of the adequacy of the Energy Company Obligation Scheme in ensuring that households receive an acceptable quality of service by companies under the scheme.
Answered by Amanda Solloway - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
As part of the ongoing evaluation of the current iteration of the Energy Company Obligation scheme, ECO4, we are gathering feedback from a sample of households on their satisfaction with the installation of energy efficiency measures.
Installations of measures under ECO4 are carried out by TrustMark registered businesses and must adhere to the industry-developed Publicly Available Specification (PAS) 2035/2030 standards.
Asked by: Liz Saville Roberts (Plaid Cymru - Dwyfor Meirionnydd)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, if she will make an estimate of the number of households in Wales affected by (a) charges which represent a significant proportion of their income and (b) poor standards of workmanship under the Energy Company Obligation Scheme since July 2022.
Answered by Amanda Solloway - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
The Energy Company Obligation (ECO) places a requirement on larger energy suppliers to deliver heating and insulation measures to eligible low-income and fuel poor households. Energy suppliers recoup delivery costs through consumer bills.
Homes benefitting from ECO4 will cut approximately £430 off their energy bills.
The Department does not hold data on the number of households affected by poor standards of workmanship under ECO. Through the ongoing evaluation of ECO4, we are gathering feedback from a sample of households on their satisfaction with installations.
Asked by: Liz Saville Roberts (Plaid Cymru - Dwyfor Meirionnydd)
Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what recent assessment she has made of the adequacy of the Energy Company Obligation redress schemes in ensuring that households receive fair and timely redress for problems arising from the scheme.
Answered by Amanda Solloway - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
The scheme administrator, Ofgem has set out a comprehensive route to redress for any issues arising from measures installed under the scheme, which can be found at: www.ofgem.gov.uk/eco4-complaints-process.
In response to the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) green heating and insulation review, the government also announced work which is being undertaken to improve consumer protection. A link to the government’s written statement of 21 February 2024 can be found here.
We remain fully committed to protecting all consumers undertaking home retrofit work.