Question to the Department for International Development:

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what assessment her Department has made of the effect of denials of permits to exit Gaza on the ability of Palestinian health workers to access training and professional development.

The UK remains deeply concerned about the restrictions on movement and access that affect Gaza. The inability to enter or exit the strip impacts the delivery of vital humanitarian services and limits the professional development of health and humanitarian workers.

DFID is providing £1.3 million (2018-21) to support the UN’s Access Coordination Unit (ACU), which works to ensure humanitarian access to Gaza for UN and NGO workers by intervening when travel permits issued by Israel are delayed. The ACU has been instrumental in facilitating access, with more than 3,200 humanitarian personnel receiving assistance between October 2019 and March 2020. We continue to monitor the situation and regularly raise our concerns with the Israeli government.