Oral Answers to Questions

David Williams Excerpts

Tuesday 27th October 2026 Commons Chamber

[Warinder Juss (Wolverhampton West) (Lab)]

10. What steps his Department is taking to help improve the humanitarian situation in Palestine and Gaza.

[David Williams (Stoke-on-Trent North) (Lab)]

21. What steps his Department is taking to help improve the humanitarian situation in Palestine and Gaza.

--- Later in debate ---

[Kirsty McNeill]

First of all, I thank my hon. Friend for drawing attention to this incredibly important topic. Reports that hundreds of Palestinian children are being detained—as he says, many of them are being mistreated—in Israeli military detention are horrifying. Children’s rights must be upheld, in accordance with international law. Children must only be detained in line with internationally agreed juvenile justice standards, and we call for an end to military detention where it is incompatible with those principles. We continue to call on Israel to grant the International Committee of the Red Cross immediate unrestricted access to all detention facilities, and we raised this issue with Israeli authorities in September.

[David Williams]

Given the scale of civilian suffering in Gaza and the Occupied Palestinian Territories, can the Minister please outline what discussions have taken place and will take place with international partners to ensure that international humanitarian law is upheld, and that humanitarian workers can work safely?

[Kirsty McNeill]

Gaza remains one of the deadliest places on earth to deliver aid. We have seen countless incidents involving humanitarian personnel over the past three years. The UK is a member of the Australia-led ministerial group that developed the declaration for the protection of humanitarian personnel, and lobbied other states to join. A total of 132 states have now signed the declaration, and just last month the Foreign Secretary met Australia and others at the UN General Assembly to maintain momentum and drive collective action to address this fundamental issue.