Question to the Department for International Development:

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, pursuant to Questions 167-8 of the oral Evidence given by the Minister of State at her Department to the International Development Committee on 8 May 2014, how much funding her Department gave to the Palestinian Authority in each of the last 10 years which was used (a) directly and (b) indirectly to pay salaries to the families of convicted terrorists.

Since 2013, UK aid to the Palestinian Authority has been used to pay civil servant salaries only. Our funding has previously contributed to the PA overall budget, which funded three types of payments linked to political prisoners in Israeli jails who had been convicted, were pending trial or were in administrative detention. The first was a minimal allowance to Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails intended to cover the cost of food and clothes at the request of the Israeli Authorities. The second was a welfare payment for family members where the primary provider is incarcerated. The third was support to help former prisoners reintegrate into society and find employment.