Question to the Department for International Development:

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what steps the Government is taking to ensure that humanitarian aid can reach civilians in (a) the besieged area of East Ghouta and (b) other besieged areas in Syria.

DFID has supported the UN and international NGOs since the start of the Syria conflict to deliver aid to hard-to-reach and besieged areas, including Eastern Ghouta. DFID’s humanitarian partners are on the ground in Eastern Ghouta providing life-saving healthcare, food, and protection, but humanitarian access remains severely constrained. We continue to use our position in the UN Security Council and the International Syria Support Group to press the regime and its backers to allow unfettered access so aid can reach those in desperate need, while maintaining the pressure for a political settlement to bring the suffering of the Syrian people to an end.