Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, what steps his Department is taking to help de-escalate tensions in the West Bank; and whether he has had discussions with his counterparts in Israel on their (a) withholding of work permits and (b) blocking of travel by Palestinians from the West Bank.

The Government maintains a regular dialogue with Israeli counterparts and partners on a range of issues relating to the conflict, including steps Israel must take to deescalate tensions in the West Bank. This includes halting settlement expansion, holding to account those responsible for extremist settler violence and releasing frozen funds.

On 12 February, the UK announced new sanctions against extremist Israeli settlers who have violently attacked Palestinians in the West Bank. These sanctions follow the announcement by the Foreign Secretary in December that the UK plans to ban those responsible for settler violence from entering the UK.