Asked by: Kenny MacAskill (Alba Party - East Lothian)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, pursuant to the Answer of 21 February 2024 to Question 14107 on UNRWA: Finance, what the allegations were; and from whom those allegations were received.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
As the UN Commissioner-General, Phillippe Lazzarini, set out on 26 January, the Israeli Authorities provided the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) with information about the alleged involvement of UNRWA employees in the horrific attacks on Israel on 7 October. The UN quickly moved to set up two investigations.
As we have set out, we are pressing the UN Office of Internal Oversight and Catherine Colonna to produce a rapid interim report, and we want UNRWA to give detailed undertakings about changes in personnel, policy and precedents to ensure this can never happen again. We are working with allies to try to bring this situation to a rapid conclusion - not least because UNRWA have a vital role to play in providing aid and services in Gaza.
Asked by: Kenny MacAskill (Alba Party - East Lothian)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, pursuant to the Answer of 8 February 2024 to Question 13138 on UNRWA: Finance, if he will publish a breakdown of funds allocated to (a) OCHA, (b) UNICEF, (c) the World Food Programme, (d) Egyptian Red Crescent Society and (e) any other partners.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
UK funding to specific agencies and organisations includes the following:
•£7.75 million to the OCHA Pooled Fund to support up to 139,000 people in Gaza and the West Bank with food, water, sanitation, health, education and protection services through NGOs
•£1.35 million to OCHA to support analysis of needs and coordination of humanitarian aid
•£7.75 million to UNICEF to support up to 89,200 beneficiaries in Gaza with protection, nutrition, education, health, Water Sanitation and Hygiene services, and Gender-Based Violence services
•£8.25 million to the World Food Programme to provide in-kind food assistance to up to 53,500 beneficiaries
•£7.75 million to Red Cross/Red Crescent Movement to support up to 140,000 beneficiaries in Gaza and the West Bank with food, livelihoods, water, sanitation, health and protection
In addition, the UK is providing:
•£1.5 million to WHO to support Emergency Medical Teams and essential medical supplies
•£1 million to Jordan Hashemite Charity Organisation (JHCO) to facilitate medical supplies to Gaza
•£900 thousand to UNOPS to facilitate humanitarian access and delivery of aid supplies
Asked by: Kenny MacAskill (Alba Party - East Lothian)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, pursuant to the Answer of 8 February 2024 to Question 13138 on UNRWA: Finance, what the sources for the allegations referred to were.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
As we have said, we are pausing any future funding of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) whilst we review these concerning allegations. We are pressing the UN Office of Internal Oversight and Catherine Colonna to produce a rapid interim report.
Asked by: Kenny MacAskill (Alba Party - East Lothian)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, if he will apply Magnitsky-style sanctions to (a) Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir, (b) Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, (d) David Chai Chasdai, (e) Einan Tanjil, (f) Shalom Zicherman and (g) Yinon Levi, in the context of (i) the US President's executive order in relation to settler violence in the West Bank and (ii) the Foreign Secretary's announcement that he will ban those responsible for settler violence from entering the UK.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
The UK continues to take a strong stance against settler violence and urges Israel to take stronger action to stop settler violence and hold the perpetrators accountable. As noted, we will prevent those responsible for settler violence in the West Bank from entering the UK.
Asked by: Kenny MacAskill (Alba Party - East Lothian)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, how much UK aid money was spent in Gaza in each year since 2003.
Answered by Anne-Marie Trevelyan - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
We remain committed to getting humanitarian aid to the people in Gaza who desperately need it and, as such, we have trebled our aid commitment for this financial year. The UK is providing £60 million in humanitarian assistance to support partners including the British Red Cross, UNICEF, the UN World Food Programme (WFP) and Egyptian Red Crescent Society (ERCS) to respond to critical food, fuel, water, health, shelter and security needs in Gaza.
The UK's 'Official Development Assistance' (ODA) Spend for Occupied Palestinian Territories each year since 2012:
2012/13 - £89.3 million
2013/14 - £95.4 million
2014/15 - £85 million
2015/16 - £73.6 million
2016/17 - £67.8 million
2017/18 - £64.9 million
2018/19 - £81.3 million
2019/20 - £112.7 million
2020/21 - £79.8 million
2021/22 - £29.8 million
2022/23 - £25.7 million
Asked by: Kenny MacAskill (Alba Party - East Lothian)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, what the evidential basis was for his decision to suspend funding to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA).
Answered by Leo Docherty - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for the Armed Forces)
We are appalled by allegations that United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) staff were involved in the 7 October attack against Israel. The UK is pausing any future funding of UNRWA whilst we review these concerning allegations. The United States, Germany, Australia, Canada, Finland, Switzerland and the Netherlands have all temporarily paused funding.
We remain committed to getting humanitarian aid to the people in Gaza who desperately need it. Our commitment to trebling aid to Gaza still stands. The UK is providing £60 million in humanitarian assistance to support partners including OCHA, UNICEF, the World Food Programme (WFP) and Egyptian Red Crescent Society (ERCS).
Asked by: Kenny MacAskill (Alba Party - East Lothian)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, pursuant to the Answer of 22 January 2024 to Question 9661 on Houthis: Shipping, what the British links were of each vessel.
Answered by Anne-Marie Trevelyan - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Where vessels are not flagged with the Red Ensign Group, specific detail relating to their operations is commercially sensitive information which is not for the UK Government to share.
Asked by: Kenny MacAskill (Alba Party - East Lothian)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, whether his Department has sought (a) internal and (b) external legal advice on the case brought against Israel at the International Court for Justice by the Republic of South Africa.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
We regularly review advice about Israel's capability and commitment to International Humanitarian Law. We act consistently with that advice, for example when considering export licenses.
Regarding the case brought by South Africa at the International Court of Justice, we believe this development to be unhelpful and we do not support it. As previously stated, we recognise that Israel has the right to defend itself against Hamas, in accordance with International Humanitarian Law. We do not believe that calling this genocide is the right approach. It is wrong to say that Israeli leadership, and Israel as a country, have the intention to commit genocide. Ultimately, it is for courts to decide on matters of genocide, not for states. We of course respect the role and independence of the International Court of Justice.
Asked by: Kenny MacAskill (Alba Party - East Lothian)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, what assessment he has made of the integrity of the democratic process for the 2023 presidential elections in Egypt.
Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Egypt held Presidential elections from 10-12 December 2023. The UK did not take part in formal election observation but encouraged free and fair elections. While a number of opposition candidates ran against President Abd El Fattah El-Sisi without issue, some claimed that they had faced obstacles to participating in the run up to the election. With 66.8 percent of the population voting, President Sisi secured 89.6 percent of the votes.
Asked by: Kenny MacAskill (Alba Party - East Lothian)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, on how many occasions (a) Saudi Arabia, (b) the United Arab Emirates, (c) Qatar, (d) Bahrain, (e) Kuwait and (f) Oman gave awards to members of the Government (i) without seeking permission from the Government and (ii) regardless of permission being denied between 2014 and 2024.
Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office Honours Secretariat has a record of one request to confer an award on a member of Her Majesty's Government from these six countries. In 2017, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia advised that they wished to confer an award on a member of the Government. Due diligence was carried out before the award was accepted. There are no records of any awards conferred without permission.