Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps the Government has taken to encourage the EU to publish the interim report of the Georg Eckert Institute on the Palestinian Authority’s school textbooks; and what response the Government has received from the EU.

Following UK calls for action, the EU commissioned the Georg Eckert Institute, a specialist textbook analysis centre, to undertake a robust, impartial review of Palestinian textbooks. We have remained in close dialogue with our European partners throughout the process, including urging them to complete the review as soon as possible. In July an interim report was submitted to the EU for approval. The EU used the report to inform partners, including the UK, about the current status of progress and to receive feedback. Publication of the interim report is not currently foreseen by the EU. The UK has repeatedly lobbied the EU to push for publication, but this is ultimately a decision for the EU.