Asked by: Nadia Whittome (Labour - Nottingham East)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment he has made of the potential implications for his policies of reports of Israeli forces (a) starving and (b) killing Palestinian civilians in Northern Gaza.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
As the Foreign Secretary set out in his statement of 16 October, the humanitarian situation in Northern Gaza is dire. Israel must ensure civilians are protected and ensure routes are open to allow life-saving aid through. The UK is clear that International Humanitarian Law must be upheld, and civilians protected. We continue to raise issues of International Humanitarian Law with the Israel at the highest levels.
Asked by: Nadia Whittome (Labour - Nottingham East)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what diplomatic steps his Department is taking to help uphold international law in the Occupied Palestinian Territories, in the context of the conference entitled Preparing to resettle Gaza, which took place in Israel on Monday 21 October 2024.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
This government is committed to upholding international law. The UK's position on all settlements is clear. They are illegal under international law, present an obstacle to peace and threaten the physical viability of a two-state solution. The Government will challenge those who undermine the prospects of a two-state solution or use hateful rhetoric. The UK also condemns inciteful remarks, such as those made by Israel's National Security Minister Ben-Gvir, which seek to inflame tensions and harm the viability of a two-state solution.
We support a two-state solution that guarantees security and stability for both the Israeli and Palestinian people. We must give the people of the West Bank and Gaza the political perspective of a credible route to a Palestinian state and a new future. And it needs to be irreversible.
Asked by: Nadia Whittome (Labour - Nottingham East)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment he has made of the safety of LGBTQI+ people in Georgia following the On Family Values and Protection of Minors legislation being passed.
Answered by Stephen Doughty - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
It is our view that, despite the title of the law, these laws undermine fundamental rights of freedom of expression and assembly, and risk discriminating against and stigmatising Georgia's LGBT+ groups. The UK works closely with our international partners to advance equality, including through the Equal Rights Coalition and the European LGBTI Focal Points Network. On 9 October I raised my concerns over recent legislative changes, including these laws, with Georgian Foreign Minister Darchiashvili, and emphasised the importance of protecting minority rights, and wider human rights.
Asked by: Nadia Whittome (Labour - Nottingham East)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Deputy Foreign Secretary, what assessment he has made of the implications for his policies of plans by Israeli settler movement organisations to march to Gaza on 15 May 2024 with the aim of establishing new settlements there.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell
The UK policy on settlement expansion is clear: settlements are illegal under international law and only make it harder to progress to achieving peace and security for Israelis and Palestinians. We have called on the Israeli Government to halt seizures of Palestinian lands immediately.
On 3 May, the Foreign Secretary announced new sanctions on extremist groups and individuals for inciting and perpetrating settler violence in the West Bank. The measures impose financial restrictions on the entities and individuals, and travel restrictions on the individuals. The UK will not hesitate to take further action if needed, including through further sanctions.
Asked by: Nadia Whittome (Labour - Nottingham East)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Deputy Foreign Secretary, what recent assessment he has made of the level of risk to the safety of aid workers in (a) Israel and (b) the Occupied Palestinian Territories; and what steps he is taking to help protect (i) international aid agencies and (ii) their employees from (A) threats and (B) other hindrance.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell
The Foreign Secretary has called on Israel to reform its deconfliction mechanism to ensure the safety of aid workers and to make progress on the UN's minimal operating requirements, including more visas and driver approvals granted, as well as more trucks permitted to cross into Gaza.
The Prime Minister set out the need for more aid to enter Gaza in his call with Prime Minister Netanyahu on 2 April, and that far too many aid workers and ordinary civilians have lost their lives.
Asked by: Nadia Whittome (Labour - Nottingham East)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, what discussions he has had with his Ugandan counterpart on the (a) arrests and (b) treatment of people campaigning against the East African Crude Oil Pipeline.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell
Through our High Commission in Kampala, we have previously raised concerns around detentions of climate protesters in Uganda; both I and the High Commission regularly engage with the Ugandan Government on human rights, both bilaterally and with likeminded countries.
Asked by: Nadia Whittome (Labour - Nottingham East)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, whether he plans to take steps to encourage companies that extract fossil fuels to contribute to the loss and damage fund at COP 29.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell
The UK is committed to establishing an efficient and effective Fund for Loss and Damage which delivers demonstrable outcomes for those particularly vulnerable to climate change. The UK's pledge of up to £40 million for the new Fund will help achieve this. Given the scale of finance required to respond to climate impacts, it is essential that the Fund encourages and deploys a wide variety of sources of funding, including from public, private and innovative sources. As a Board member, the UK will work with others to broaden the scale, scope and sources of financing for loss and damage.
Asked by: Nadia Whittome (Labour - Nottingham East)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, pursuant to his answer of 12 March 2024 to Question 16922 on Egypt: Gaza, if he will make representations to his Egyptian counterparts on (a) an investigation into the alleged demand for large sums of money from Palestinians seeking to exit Gaza and (b) an immediate end to any system in place that allows for this practice.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell
We continue to monitor the situation. We maintain a close dialogue with Egypt on a range of issues relating to the conflict in Gaza.
We also continue to work with the Israeli and Egyptian authorities to facilitate British Nationals and eligible dependents to leave Gaza.
Asked by: Nadia Whittome (Labour - Nottingham East)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, whether he has made an assessment of the potential implications for his Department’s policies of reports of Palestinians being required to pay large sums of money to facilitate their exit from Gaza in to Egypt.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell
Egypt is a key regional partner in supporting the Government's response to the crisis. We welcome efforts by Egypt in getting aid into Gaza and British Nationals out. We are aware of these reports and do not recommend individuals seek or obtain permissions to cross the border by these means.
As the British Government has said, the immediate priority must be a humanitarian pause in the fighting, which is the best route to secure the safe release of hostages and significantly step up the aid reaching Gaza, and for that pause to lead to a sustainable ceasefire without a return to further fighting. This remains the focus of all our diplomatic effort.
Asked by: Nadia Whittome (Labour - Nottingham East)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, what recent discussions he has had with his counterpart in Iraq on Elizabeth Tsurkov.
Answered by David Rutley
The UK is concerned over the kidnapping of Israeli-Russian dual national Elizabeth Tsurkov. The Government of Iraq opened an investigation into her kidnapping last year and we await the findings. Those suspected of criminal responsibility for her kidnapping should be brought to justice in fair trials. His Majesty's Government has not had any discussions with the Government of Iraq regarding the kidnapping.