Asked by: Rosena Allin-Khan (Labour - Tooting)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether his Department is taking steps to support access to education for children in Gaza whose schools have been (a) damaged and (b) destroyed.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK is deeply concerned at reports of bombing of schools in Gaza, and the impact on Gaza's children. We have called on Israel to do its utmost to protect civilians and civilian infrastructure including schools. We highlighted the critical situation for Gaza's children at a session of the UN Security Council which we co-called on 16 July, and at the International Development Committee on 16 July. We have provided £5.6 million to the Global Partnership for Education to support the educational and psychosocial needs of children and young people in Gaza and the West Bank. Our support to Education Cannot Wait is also supporting children's education and mental health via the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) and other partners.
Asked by: Rosena Allin-Khan (Labour - Tooting)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what representations his Department has made to the Government of Israel on the reported bombing of (a) schools and (b) shelters in Gaza.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK is deeply concerned at reports of bombing of schools in Gaza, and the impact on Gaza's children. We have called on Israel to do its utmost to protect civilians and civilian infrastructure including schools. We highlighted the critical situation for Gaza's children at a session of the UN Security Council which we co-called on 16 July, and at the International Development Committee on 16 July. We have provided £5.6 million to the Global Partnership for Education to support the educational and psychosocial needs of children and young people in Gaza and the West Bank. Our support to Education Cannot Wait is also supporting children's education and mental health via the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) and other partners.
Asked by: Rosena Allin-Khan (Labour - Tooting)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of the conflict in Gaza on the mental health and wellbeing of children.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The humanitarian situation in Gaza remains dire. We highlighted the critical situation for Gaza's children at a session of the UN Security Council which we co-called on 16 July, and at the International Development Committee on 16 July. We have provided £5.6 million to the Global Partnership for Education to support the educational and psychosocial needs of children and young people in Gaza and the West Bank. Our support to Education Cannot Wait is also supporting children's education and mental health via the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) and other partners.
Asked by: Rosena Allin-Khan (Labour - Tooting)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether his Department has made an estimate of the number of children at risk of waterborne diseases due to fuel shortages in Gaza.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The humanitarian situation in Gaza remains dire. We remain deeply concerned at the lack of fuel supply in Gaza, which puts vital services such as water desalination at risk. On 18 July, the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UN OCHA) described the deepening fuel crisis in Gaza, including the impact on solid waste collection and availability of clean water supplies and health services. We highlighted the impact of the lack of fuel on water supplies and hospitals and the critical situation for Gaza's children at a session of the UN Security Council which we co-called on 16 July, and at the International Development Committee on 16 July.
Asked by: Rosena Allin-Khan (Labour - Tooting)
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 impact of fuel shortages in Gaza on the civilian population.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
No fuel has entered Gaza for over four months, putting vital services such as water supply, hospitals and ambulances at imminent risk of shutting down. This is unacceptable. We continue to be in regular contact with the Government of Israel about the importance of allowing fuel to reach Gaza. In our statement to the UN Security Council on 13 May, we called on Israel to allow the full resumption of aid into Gaza, including fuel. We reiterated this in our joint donor's statement with 26 other signatories on 19 May.
Asked by: Rosena Allin-Khan (Labour - Tooting)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 4 November 2024 to Question 10451 on Israel: Occupied Territories, whether he plans to publish a formal response.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK Government condemns settler violence. We regularly raise settler violence with Israeli ministers and officials, and we are clear that the Israeli government must clamp down on settler violence and settlement expansion. The UK has taken action to hold perpetrators and supporters of settler violence to account. On 10 June, the Foreign Secretary announced sanctions against Ben-Gvir and Smotrich in their personal capacity for inciting violence towards Palestinians. This was alongside action from our partners Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and Norway. On 20 May, the Foreign Secretary announced sanctions targeting individuals, illegal settler outposts and organisations supporting violence against Palestinian Communities in the West Bank.
Asked by: Rosena Allin-Khan (Labour - Tooting)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps he is taking with international partners to help ensure an adequate supply of fuel to Gaza.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
No fuel has entered Gaza for over four months, putting vital services such as water supply, hospitals and ambulances at imminent risk of shutting down. This is unacceptable. We continue to be in regular contact with the Government of Israel about the importance of allowing fuel to reach Gaza. In our statement to the UN Security Council on 13 May, we called on Israel to allow the full resumption of aid into Gaza, including fuel. We reiterated this in our joint donor's statement with 26 other signatories on 19 May.
Asked by: Rosena Allin-Khan (Labour - Tooting)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what discussions he has had with his Israeli counterpart on the entry of fuel into Gaza.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
No fuel has entered Gaza for over four months, putting vital services such as water supply, hospitals and ambulances at imminent risk of shutting down. This is unacceptable. We continue to be in regular contact with the Government of Israel about the importance of allowing fuel to reach Gaza. In our statement to the UN Security Council on 13 May, we called on Israel to allow the full resumption of aid into Gaza, including fuel. We reiterated this in our joint donor's statement with 26 other signatories on 19 May.
Asked by: Rosena Allin-Khan (Labour - Tooting)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of the decline in the People's Health Trust's turnover and funding on local public health initiatives.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government recognises the valuable part played by third sector organisations in tackling health inequalities and the social determinants of health, and commends the work of the People’s Health Trust in providing funding and support to left-behind communities.
Much of what determines our health and wellbeing is influenced by factors other than health services. The roots of sickness too often lie in poverty, poor housing, poor education, poor work, and poor access to the things that make life worth living like culture, sport, and recreation. We are taking action on the social determinants of health, through our Health Mission, to reduce the gap in healthy life expectancy.
Asked by: Rosena Allin-Khan (Labour - Tooting)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of the Health Lottery's decisions to (a) divest from the People's Health Trust and (b) create its own funding distribution vehicle on organisations receiving funding from that lottery.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
The department and the Gambling Commission have regular discussions covering gambling regulation, including society lotteries. The department has not held recent discussions with the Gambling Commission on the Health Lottery’s arrangements for distributing funds.
The Gambling Act 2005 provides for the definition of a non-commercial society lottery and how proceeds can be used. All licensed lottery operators are expected to put in place arrangements to make sure that the proceeds of each lottery are distributed in a lawful and compliant way. That includes ensuring that a minimum of 20% of proceeds are awarded to good causes.
The oversight of licences for society lotteries, including ensuring operators remain compliant with its statutory responsibilities, is a matter for the Gambling Commission.
More information about the Gambling Commission’s principles for licensing and regulation, compliance and enforcement under the Gambling Act 2005 can be found on the Commission’s website.