Israel and Palestine: Humanitarian Aid Debate
Full Debate: Read Full DebateBaroness Nicholson of Winterbourne
Main Page: Baroness Nicholson of Winterbourne (Conservative - Life peer)Department Debates - View all Baroness Nicholson of Winterbourne's debates with the Department for International Development
(10 years, 1 month ago)
Lords ChamberWe urge all in the region to be restrained. There is massive civilian casualty resulting from the conflict there, as the noble Lord will be well aware. We would impress on everybody in this situation to draw back. We need an immediate ceasefire. It was appalling to hear this morning our noble colleague, Valerie Amos, saying that a child an hour is being killed.
While welcoming the Minister’s answer, could I ask her how much of the aid—particularly the £30 million that the Government are giving to the Gaza Strip—is she confident is reaching the real beneficiaries and is not being diverted to other purposes?
We have very strong safeguards in place to ensure that the money is spent as intended. As the noble Baroness may know, our financial assistance to the Palestinian Authority is provided through the multi-donor trust fund, which is administered by the World Bank, which very closely monitors Palestinian Authority expenditure. It is absolutely right that we need to make sure that the funds reach those who most need them.