Occupied Palestinian Territories: Humanitarian Situation

Saqib Bhatti Excerpts

Wednesday 8th November 2023 Commons Chamber

[Mr Mitchell]

I thank the hon. Gentleman for what he says and the tone in which he says it. I also thank him for what he says about the brave humanitarian workers who have lost their lives. He asks whether we are aware of the full impact of supplies running out in Gaza, and I can assure him that we absolutely are. He speaks about the importance of following the rules of war and international humanitarian law, and both Front Benches are urging the Israeli Government to do that. We note the commitment of the President of Israel in that respect, but everyone will be watching to ensure that the rules of war are obeyed.

[Saqib Bhatti (Meriden) (Con)]

I have not spoken to a single constituent who has not felt the pain and tragedy of the 1,400 people murdered on 7 October, or of the tragedy unfolding in Gaza. I commend the Minister for all the work he is doing, and I know he works incredibly hard to make sure no stone is left unturned. Can he confirm that aid will increase, if necessary, in future? Does he share my concern about the risk of the conflict expanding because of the presence of Hezbollah? Its 100,000 soldiers and 150,000 rockets pose a risk to the region.

[Mr Mitchell]

I thank my hon. Friend for his comments. We have doubled the amount of aid going into the region, but we will increase it further if necessary. We are currently doing a lot of work to try to work out how to quantify what is in el-Arish and how to make sure it can be moved. Physically moving the aid is also a factor, which is why Britain has sent five forklift trucks and a conveyor belt.

Of course, regional expansion is an enormous worry for us all, and it is one of the reasons why the Prime Minister decided to send both air and naval assets to RAF Akrotiri in the eastern Mediterranean, to see what is being moved, to interdict any arms that are coming in, and to make sure we do everything we can to ensure that this conflict is contained and does not expand further.

Integrated Review Refresh

Saqib Bhatti Excerpts

Monday 13th March 2023 Commons Chamber

[James Cleverly]

I struggle to find a question among that stream of consciousness, but the simple truth is that the Secretary of State for Defence was at this Dispatch Box only few minutes ago welcoming this announcement. The hon. Gentleman says £5 billion is a “paltry” sum. I was just reminded by the Minister for Defence Procurement, my hon. and learned Friend the Member for Cheltenham (Alex Chalk), that that sum is larger than our budget for prisons. The hon. Gentleman’s attitude towards public money demonstrates the classic problem with the Opposition; suggesting that £5 billion is an insignificant sum demonstrates a blasé attitude towards public expenditure, which is sadly the hallmark of the Opposition.

[Saqib Bhatti (Meriden) (Con)]

I thank my right hon. Friend for the refresh, which makes the country stronger today. Many of my constituents are concerned about the rise of China. Does the Secretary of State agree with me that China is one of the greatest challenges we will face in the 21st century? Will he confirm that we must build on our relationships in the Indo-Pacific, not just with our existing friends, such as Australia, India and Japan, and that we must find new friends and allies to strengthen our hand?

[James Cleverly]

My hon. Friend is right that it is important for us to build on our existing friendships and develop new ones in the Indo-Pacific region. Those friendships and partnerships are a good thing in and of themselves, not just in response to China’s activity. He is also right that China has demonstrated a range of behaviours that we oppose. I have raised those directly with representatives of the Chinese Government, so it is right that this review looks carefully at our relationship with China, those areas where we need to defend ourselves and our partners, and those areas where we need to work more closely with them.

Ukraine

Saqib Bhatti Excerpts

Monday 31st October 2022 Commons Chamber

[James Cleverly]

My hon. Friend raises an important point, but this is fundamentally a separate issue. Our resolve, and the international resolve, to prevent further nuclear proliferation remains unchanged. We will continue working with our allies to ensure that Iran does not acquire a nuclear weapon, but we will also ensure that we prevent Iran, and indeed anyone else, from exporting arms to Russia that are being used in this conflict in Ukraine.

[Saqib Bhatti (Meriden) (Con)]

It is incredibly worrying that Iran is undermining the Ukrainian defence and putting Ukrainian civilians at risk by supplying Russia with Shahed drones. I understand that we have sanctioned three Iranian commanders, but will my right hon. Friend confirm that he and the Prime Minister are willing to go further if needed and that he will be raising the issue when he meets his counterparts in the G7 this Thursday?

[James Cleverly]

I assure my hon. Friend that we will continue to keep our sanctions package under review. We will respond to any further breaches of the United Nations Security Council resolutions and we will ensure that the message is sent that those people and companies that are supplying arms to Russia in breach of UN Security Council resolutions will be responded to.

Xinjiang: Uyghurs

Saqib Bhatti Excerpts

Monday 29th June 2020 Commons Chamber

[Nigel Adams]

The hon. Lady speaks with great knowledge of the sector. She must be aware that we have made it absolutely clear to any British firm wishing to do business in that particular region that they must they apply due diligence—it is essential that they do so. We will continue to press UK firms in that regard, because it is the right thing to do.

[Saqib Bhatti (Meriden) (Con)]

Time and again, we hear reports of torture, rape, concentration camps, systematic brainwashing, forced sterilisation and now forced labour camps that feed into our global supply chain. The Chinese, of course, deny all those reports. Will my hon. Friend call for an international delegation to visit Xinjiang, so that we can find out the truth? Does he agree that global brands which may have these forced labour camps in their supply chain need to look long and hard at how and where they source their materials?

[Nigel Adams]

Yes, they absolutely have to look long and hard at their supply chains, for the reasons that I have given during this session. As I said, we have raised these concerns, and the report we have seen in the last 24 hours adds fuel to our serious concerns about human rights violations in Xinjiang.

Oral Answers to Questions

Saqib Bhatti Excerpts

Wednesday 29th April 2020 Commons Chamber

[Dominic Raab]

This is a hugely challenging time for nurseries, as it is for schools and other small businesses. The Chancellor has set out the range of support available. It is widespread, covering all sorts of different areas, but of course in relation to nurseries or any other sector that is finding the challenges too much to bear as we go through this crisis, we will make sure we look at them afresh to see what further can be done.

[Saqib Bhatti (Meriden) (Con) [V]]

I would like to begin by echoing the congratulations that have already been given to the Prime Minister and his fiancée on the birth of the baby boy—I hope they are all in good health. There was a double stabbing in my constituency at the weekend. In the light of that, will the First Secretary join me in calling on the police and crime commissioner to reverse his decision to close the local police station? What reassurances can my right hon. Friend give the House that as we emerge from this lockdown we are protecting our communities from the scourge of knife crime?

[Dominic Raab]

I thank my hon. Friend for that. It is a tragic but timely warning that some of the persistent social challenges we face on knife crime, or any other kind of crime, will persist and will not just stay at home because of coronavirus, although overall the level of crime has come down. I send my deepest sympathies to the families of the victims in his constituency. May I reassure him that we have committed to recruiting 20,000 more police officers over the next three years? We are making it easier for the police to exercise stop-and-search powers. We are ensuring that more perpetrators go to prison, and for longer. He will know that it is for PCCs to decide how and where to spend their resources, but I pay tribute to him for being a tenacious and doughty champion on crime issues and the policing that needs to take place in his constituency.