Business of the House Debate

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Department: Leader of the House
Thursday 27th October 2016

(8 years, 1 month ago)

Commons Chamber
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Jim Shannon Portrait Jim Shannon (Strangford) (DUP)
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It was Mother Teresa who said:

“I alone cannot change the world, but I can cast a stone across the waters to create many ripples.”

In northern Iraq, Yazidis are living in tents rather than in the trailer units that are provided for others. They are not receiving rations of basic food or support. There are many Yazidis and Christians living in extremely poor conditions outside the UNHCR camps in Turkey, Jordan and Lebanon. Will the Leader of the House arrange a statement or a debate on this important issue?

David Lidington Portrait Mr Lidington
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The Government are giving assistance to people in need in northern Iraq through our international development and aid programme. As the hon. Gentleman knows, the reason that those people are in such dire circumstances is that they have fled the terrorist genocidal regime of Daesh in parts of the north of that country. The sooner the Iraqi and peshmerga forces are able to re-establish control over Iraqi territory, the sooner we will be able to bring hope and the restoration of normal life to those people.