Asked by: Rosena Allin-Khan (Labour - Tooting)
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 implications for his policies of the situation at al-Shifa hospital in Gaza in relation to the ongoing Israeli military operations in the area.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
We have been clear that all parties must afford civilians the protection that is their right under international law. That includes respecting the sanctity of hospitals, so that doctors can continue to care for the sick and injured. Israel must take all possible measures to ensure the safety of medical personnel and facilities.
Asked by: Rosena Allin-Khan (Labour - Tooting)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, whether his Department has sought legal advice on Israel's compliance with international humanitarian law in the context of Israeli military operations targeting the al-Shifa hospital complex.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
We have been clear that all parties must afford civilians the protection that is their right under international law. That includes respecting the sanctity of hospitals, so that doctors can continue to care for the sick and injured. Israel must take all possible measures to ensure the safety of medical personnel and facilities.
We keep advice on Israel's adherence to International Humanitarian Law under review.
Asked by: Rosena Allin-Khan (Labour - Tooting)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, what representations his Department are making to the Israeli government on safe evacuation from al-Shifa hospital complex.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
We have been clear that all parties must afford civilians the protection that is their right under international law. That includes respecting the sanctity of hospitals, so that doctors can continue to care for the sick and injured. Israel must take all possible measures to ensure the safety of medical personnel and facilities.
Asked by: Rosena Allin-Khan (Labour - Tooting)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, whether he is taking diplomatic steps to ensure the protection of medical staff who are trapped in al-Shifa hospital in Gaza.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
We have been clear that all parties must afford civilians the protection that is their right under international law. That includes respecting the sanctity of hospitals, so that doctors can continue to care for the sick and injured. Israel must take all possible measures to ensure the safety of medical personnel and facilities.
Asked by: Rosena Allin-Khan (Labour - Tooting)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, pursuant to the Answer of 16 January 2023 to Question 9028 on Gaza: Humanitarian Aid, can he provide a full list of the UK aid supplies for Gaza that have been refused entry by the Israeli authorities since 7 October 2023.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
UK supplies have been passed on to our partners in the region and the majority are already in Gaza.
The Foreign Secretary's Representative for Humanitarian Affairs in the Occupied Palestinian Territories is based in the region and is working intensively to address the blockages preventing more aid reaching Gaza.
Asked by: Rosena Allin-Khan (Labour - Tooting)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, how much his Department has spent on official development assistance for sexual and reproductive health and rights in each year since 2010.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) annually reports on Official Development Assistance (ODA) expenditure via the Statistics on International Development publications (https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/statistics-on-international-development).
We report spend in line with OECD Development and Assistance Committee sector codes and do not readily hold spend on sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR), which can span across the OECD sector codes.
Asked by: Rosena Allin-Khan (Labour - Tooting)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, what estimate he has made of how much UK aid has reached people in the northern Gaza.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
On 3 January, the Royal Fleet Auxiliary Ship Lyme Bay delivered 87 tonnes of aid into Port Said. Delivery includes over 10,000 thermal blankets, nearly 5,000 shelter packs and medical supplies to be transferred to Gaza through the Rafah crossing. This is in addition to 74 tonnes of aid previously delivered. We have also supported the United Nations World Food Programme to deliver a new humanitarian land corridor from Jordan into Gaza. 750 metric tons of life-saving food aid arrived in the first delivery in December and a second delivery of 315 tons was made last week.
The UK is supporting the Egyptian Red Crescent Society (ERCS), who are leading and coordinating the delivery of all national and international aid to Gaza within its auxiliary role to the Government of Egypt. The ERCS is working with other humanitarian actors, including the UN, to improve the tracking system of aid deliveries for this extremely complicated operation.
We have trebled our aid commitment this financial year and are working closely with partners in international agencies and in the region to get aid to where it is desperately needed.
Asked by: Rosena Allin-Khan (Labour - Tooting)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, whether any UK aid has been refused entry to Gaza by the Israeli authorities.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
UK funded humanitarian aid supplies destined for Gaza are being delivered to the Strip. However, alongside significant congestion at the Rafah border, some items which Israel consider to be of potential "dual use" - civilian or military, such as solar lights and water filters, have been stopped and returned to Egyptian Red Crescent Society (ERCS) warehouses in Al-Arish. The UK is supporting the Egyptian ERCS, who are leading and coordinating the delivery of all national and international aid to Gaza within its auxiliary role to the Government of Egypt. The ERCS is working with other humanitarian actors, including the UN, to improve the tracking system of aid deliveries for this extremely complicated operation. This will help to provide more detail on the goods that have and have not been permitted to enter Gaza. The UK continues to press Israel to increase the flexibility and visibility on goods allowed into Gaza and improved efficiency of screening processes, and the Prime Minister, Foreign Secretary and I have prioritised getting significantly more aid into Gaza. The Foreign Secretary has recently appointed his Representative for Humanitarian Affairs in the Occupied Palestinian Territories who will actively engage with international partners and those operating on the ground to help unblock bottlenecks to delivery.
Asked by: Rosena Allin-Khan (Labour - Tooting)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, if he will make an assessment of the potential impact of the Blue Planet Fund on levels of global poverty.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
The strategic goal of the new UK International Development White Paper [https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/international-development-in-a-contested-world-ending-extreme-poverty-and-tackling-climate-change] is to end extreme poverty and tackle climate change and biodiversity loss. Poverty reduction is at the heart of all ODA spend, as such, all Blue Planet Fund (BPF) programmes factor poverty reduction into their design and implementation. We produce and publish annual reviews for all BPF programmes assessing their performance. Alongside Defra, who are the HMG strategic lead for the BPF, we will use the recent ICAI recommendations to strengthen the BPF programme portfolio's coherence, effectiveness, and relevance, including its poverty impacts at portfolio and individual programme level.
Asked by: Rosena Allin-Khan (Labour - Tooting)
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 the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs on the Blue Planet Fund.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
Lord Benyon is joint Minister of State between the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office and the Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs and the Ocean is part of his portfolio in both Departments. As such, he is in regular contact with his Secretaries of State and other Ministerial colleagues in both departments, including on the Blue Planet Fund and many wider Energy, Climate and Nature issues.