Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask His Majesty's Government whether there are any barriers to accessing UK Government aid for people in Gaza; and what steps they have taken to ensure their aid enters Gaza.

We remain deeply concerned by the humanitarian situation in Gaza. Since the start of the regional conflict, there has been a significant reduction in the volume of aid entering Gaza, whilst long standing restrictions persist. This is unacceptable and risks undermining progress made since the ceasefire. Despite this, UK support is making a real difference on the ground in Gaza. For instance, UK-Med field hospitals are providing health care to thousands and United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) health teams have been carrying out vital catch-up vaccinations.

We are clear that the Government of Israel must fully abide by their obligations to facilitate the delivery of humanitarian aid into Gaza, in accordance with international law. We continue to raise this issue with our Israeli counterparts, including the need to ensure that international NGOs can operate in a sustained and predictable way. We will continue to support international NGOs and UN agencies, including UNRWA, which are indispensable to both the immediate humanitarian response and longer term recovery efforts in Palestine.