Asked by: Richard Burgon (Independent - Leeds East)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what the average time period in weeks is for his Department to undertake an assessment of Israel's compliance with international humanitarian law.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The FCDO keeps Israel's commitment, capability to comply and record of compliance with International Humanitarian Law in relation to the Gaza conflict under regular review. The assessments, which are supported by a detailed evidence-base and informed by legal advice, take an average of 8 weeks to complete.
Asked by: Richard Burgon (Independent - Leeds East)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if she will take steps to ensure that disabled jobseekers can access the assistive technology they need to look for work.
Answered by Alison McGovern - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
As part of our reforms to jobcentres outlined in the Get Britain Working White Paper, we will explore how we can use assistive digital technology and modern premises design to support greater accessibility and inclusiveness. We will also ensure we offer a range of channels to meet people’s differing needs, whether online, on the phone or in person.
Asked by: Richard Burgon (Independent - Leeds East)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if she will ensure that every computer in a jobcentre is equipped with assistive technology.
Answered by Andrew Western - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
Computers allocated to DWP staff in jobcentres are equipped with the suite of software that comes with the operating system, augmented by specialist software as determined through the reasonable adjustments process on an individual basis to meet the specific needs of the staff member in question.
As part of its commitment to make services accessible to all customers, the Department provides computers for customer use in Jobcentres. All the computers have assistive technology built into those Operating Systems such as screen readers and screen magnification and are managed separately from the wider DWP IT estate.
The Department also provides a range of other items in Jobcentres such as alternative keyboards. Computers for customer use with assistive technology are currently in 634 permanent jobcentres.
Asked by: Richard Burgon (Independent - Leeds East)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether he has made an assessment of the adequacy of his Department's reporting timelines on Israel's compliance with international humanitarian law in the Middle East.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
On day one in office, the Foreign Secretary commissioned a thorough review into Israel's compliance with International Humanitarian Law (IHL). On the first day back after the summer recess the Foreign Secretary informed parliament that the Government had taken the decision to suspend arms export licences to Israel for use in military operations in Gaza, after the review concluded that there is a clear risk that relevant exports to Israel might be used to commit or facilitate a serious violation of IHL. We continue to keep Israel's compliance with International Humanitarian Law in Gaza under review through a regular assessments process.
Asked by: Richard Burgon (Independent - Leeds East)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether his Department has commissioned external legal advice on Israel's compliance with international humanitarian law.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
We continue to keep Israel's compliance with International Humanitarian Law (IHL) in Gaza under review through a regular assessments process, informed by legal advice. Our judgment on Israel's IHL compliance remains as set out in the Foreign Secretary's statement to Parliament on 2 September.
Asked by: Richard Burgon (Independent - Leeds East)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, when his Department next plans to publish an assessment of Israel's compliance with international humanitarian law.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
We continue to keep Israel's compliance with International Humanitarian Law (IHL) in Gaza under review through regular assessments. On 2 September, the Foreign Secretary announced to Parliament the suspension of certain UK export licences to Israel, for items he concluded might be used to commit or facilitate serious violations of IHL in Gaza. This was further to the IHL assessment raising concerns about possible breaches of IHL in the areas of humanitarian access and in the treatment of detainees. The relevant export licences remain suspended and there are no plans to publish further summaries while our assessment remains unchanged.
Asked by: Richard Burgon (Independent - Leeds East)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether her Department plans to take steps to reduce the clearance time for mandatory reconsiderations of Personal Independence Payment decisions.
Answered by Stephen Timms - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
Whilst we aim to make the right decision as early as possible in the claim journey, Mandatory Reconsideration is a key element of the Department’s decision-making process. It offers customers an opportunity to challenge decisions and provide any additional information which may be relevant to their claim.
We recognise that the most recent data shows an increase in Mandatory Reconsideration clearance times, from 37 calendar days in December 2023 to 71 calendar days in July 2024. To address this, we are recruiting Mandatory Reconsideration Decision Makers and have made overtime available to increase productivity.
Asked by: Richard Burgon (Independent - Leeds East)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment she has made of the effectiveness of the mandatory reconsideration process.
Answered by Stephen Timms - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
Whilst we aim to make the right decision as early as possible in the claim journey, Mandatory Reconsideration is a key element of the Department’s decision-making process. It offers customers an opportunity to challenge decisions and provide any additional information which may be relevant to their claim.
We recognise that the most recent data shows an increase in Mandatory Reconsideration clearance times, from 37 calendar days in December 2023 to 71 calendar days in July 2024. To address this, we are recruiting Mandatory Reconsideration Decision Makers and have made overtime available to increase productivity.
Asked by: Richard Burgon (Independent - Leeds East)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 27 November 2024 to Question 14977 on Gaza: Israel, whether he has had recent discussions with his international counterparts on the duty under Article 1 to prevent genocide.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
It is the UK's long-standing policy that any determination as to whether genocide has occurred is a matter for a competent national or international court, and not for governments or non-judicial bodies. This approach ensures that any determination is above politics, lobbying, and individual or national interest. The UK Government is clear in our commitment to international law. This includes our obligations under the Genocide Convention and the Arms Trade Treaty. This Government is profoundly concerned about the deteriorating humanitarian situation in Gaza. The Foreign Secretary has raised our grave concerns with Israeli Minister Dermer and Minister Katz in his recent bilateral meetings. At a multilateral level, the UK is using its presidency of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) to call for an immediate ceasefire, the immediate release of all hostages held since 7 October 2023 and urgent action to address the humanitarian crisis. On 2 September 2024, the Foreign Secretary announced the decision to suspend export licences for items that could be used in military operations in Gaza, exempting the F-35 components.
Asked by: Richard Burgon (Independent - Leeds East)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps her Department is taking to help tackle poverty for people on low incomes; and if she will bring forward legislative proposals to introduce a statutory duty to progressively reduce levels of poverty for those people.
Answered by Alison McGovern - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
I refer the Rt. Hon. Member to the answer I gave on 6 December to PQ17569 in relation to poverty and living standards.