Asked by: Matthew Pennycook (Labour - Greenwich and Woolwich)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what the Government's policy is on whether conditions should be attached to any future EU agreement to financially support the reconstruction of Syria.
Answered by Tobias Ellwood
The UK and EU have made clear that they will only commit funding to a reconstruction process in Syria once a credible political transition is firmly under way.
Asked by: Matthew Pennycook (Labour - Greenwich and Woolwich)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what reports he has received on the use of Sarin in the chemical weapon attack in Khan Sheikhoun, Syria on 4 February 2017; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Tobias Ellwood
I refer the Hon. Member to a statement to the House on 18 April by my Rt Hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary. This sets out the UK's policy on Syria and covers a number of issues including the use of sarin in the attack on Khan Sheikhoun on 4 April.
Asked by: Matthew Pennycook (Labour - Greenwich and Woolwich)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with his Israeli counterpart on the Regulations Bill in that country since 7 December 2016.
Answered by Tobias Ellwood
I raised the issue with the Israeli Deputy Foreign Minister when we met in London on 12 December. I have also raised the issue with the Israeli ambassador to London and have issued two press statements on the issue. The UK is extremely concerned that the Knesset has passed the first reading of a bill which would expropriate privately owned Palestinian land and pave the way for a significant further expansion of settlements in the West Bank. This would be illegal under international law, and once again calls into question the Israeli government's commitment to a two-state solution. The UK urges the Israeli government to reconsider the land regulation bill at the earliest opportunity.
Asked by: Matthew Pennycook (Labour - Greenwich and Woolwich)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with his Israeli counterpart on demolitions that took place on 9 October 2016 in the community of Khan al-Ahmar in the Palestinian Occupied Territories.
Answered by Tobias Ellwood
While we have not had any discussions with the Israeli authorities on this specific issue, on 7 September, during a meeting with Israeli Defence Minister Lieberman in London, I raised our concerns about demolitions. The UK's positions on demolitions in the Occupied Palestinian Territories is clear: such demolitions cause unnecessary suffering to ordinary Palestinians; are harmful to the peace process; and are, in all but the most exceptional of cases, contrary to international law.
Asked by: Matthew Pennycook (Labour - Greenwich and Woolwich)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, with reference to the press statement issued by the Minister for the Middle East and Africa on 5 October 2016, entitled Minister for the Middle East statement on plans to construct a new settlement in the West Bank, what discussions he has had with the government of Israel on preventing illegal settlement activity in the Palestinian Occupied Territories.
Answered by Tobias Ellwood
The Foreign Secretary, my Rt. Hon. Friend the Member for Uxbridge and South Ruislip (Mr Johnson), raised our concerns over new settlements with the Israeli Prime Minister when he met him in Jerusalem on 30 September. On 7 September, during a meeting with Israeli Defence Minister Lieberman in London, I also raised our concerns about settlements. Our Embassy in Tel Aviv also regularly raises our concerns with the Israeli authorities on the continued expansion of settlements in the West Bank.
Asked by: Matthew Pennycook (Labour - Greenwich and Woolwich)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps he is taking to secure the release of Andargachew Tsege in Ethiopia.
Answered by James Duddridge
The Foreign Secretary, my Rt Hon. Friend the Member for Runnymede and Weybridge (Mr Hammond) has raised Mr Tsege’s case with his Ethiopian counterpart Dr Tedros 21 times, most recently on 13 February. I have also raised this case, most recently on 28 January. I have met with Mr Tsege's partner, Yumi Hailemariam. We have asked that Mr Tsege has access to a lawyer and a legal route through which he can challenge his detention. The Foreign Secretary has asked the Ethiopians to set out a timeline in which this will happen.
Asked by: Matthew Pennycook (Labour - Greenwich and Woolwich)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, if he will take steps to permit the European External Action Service to press for the release of Andargachew Tsege in Ethiopia.
Answered by James Duddridge
Whilst we welcome the concern of all international partners on Mr Tsege’s case, the UK will continue to lead lobbying efforts.
The Foreign Secretary, my Rt Hon. Friend the Member for Runnymede and Weybridge (Mr Hammond) has raised Mr Tsege’s case with his Ethiopian counterpart Dr Tedros 21 times, most recently on 13 February. I have also raised this case, most recently on 28 January. I have met with Mt Tsege's' partner, Yumi Hailemariam. We have asked that Mr Tsege has access to a lawyer and a legal route through which he can challenge his detention. The Foreign Secretary has asked the Ethiopians to set out a timeline in which this will happen.
Asked by: Matthew Pennycook (Labour - Greenwich and Woolwich)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what representations his Department has made to the Indian government on re-opening border crossings to Nepal since discussions were held between the British and Indian ambassadors to Nepal on border blockages on 30 October.
Answered by Lord Swire
I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 9 November 2015 to question 15614 which can be located at: www.parliament.uk/writtenanswers. In addition to this answer, I discussed the blockage at the border with the Indian Foreign Secretary during the visit of Prime Minister Modi to the United Kingdom.Asked by: Matthew Pennycook (Labour - Greenwich and Woolwich)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the Gaza Reconstruction Mechanism in enabling the construction and reconstruction of the Gaza Strip.
Answered by Tobias Ellwood
Through the Gaza Reconstruction Mechanism (GRM) over 95,000 people have now been able to buy materials to repair homes that were damaged during the conflict. However, we are concerned that none of the homes destroyed have been rebuilt yet. We therefore welcome the June 2015 agreement between the Israeli and the Palestinian authorities on the Residential Stream of the GRM to support the reconstruction of homes that were completely destroyed. DFID is providing £700,000 to the Materials Monitoring Unit which monitors the import, storage, supply and use of construction materials into Gaza under the GRM. The UK is also calling on all donors to disburse pledges made at the October 2014 Cairo Gaza Reconstruction Conference without delay.