Middle East
Vikki Slade Excerpts(3 weeks, 6 days ago)
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Mr Lammy
Can I be very clear to my hon. Friend that Israel does not have a veto on our decision to recognise? I hear what has been said about a peacekeeping force, but I discussed these issues with the Secretary-General at the UN a few weeks ago and there are real tensions that Israel has put in the way with its ability to work with the UN. That is why I think it is doubtful that that will come to pass in the near term.
Vikki Slade (Mid Dorset and North Poole) (LD)
Back in May, I raised concerns about exemptions for licences for components that were going out to Israel. I wrote to the Foreign Secretary and it was passed on to the Department for Business and Trade. To date I have had no reply, so I have absolutely no idea whether those licences have been suspended and whether they are not being used. My residents are worried that while the licences are now for non-military items, the exemptions for licences may be used for things that could harm Palestinians. Will the Foreign Secretary please do all that he can to work with his colleagues in the Department for Business and Trade to make sure that we can get that reassurance?
Oral Answers to Questions
Vikki Slade Excerpts(3 months ago)
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Mr Lammy
I cannot comment on hypotheticals, but I can assure my hon. Friend that we will do all we can to protect our assets and our troops in the region and always to stay within international law.
Vikki Slade (Mid Dorset and North Poole) (LD)
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs (Mr Hamish Falconer)
The hon. Lady raises vital questions about the status of children in Gaza. In response to one of her colleagues, I set out some of the measures that we have taken already. Clearly, children in Gaza, like all civilians there, are under the most enormous pressure at the moment, and aid getting in is a vital next step. Where children from Gaza are outside the region, in particular in Egypt and Jordan, we have provided support to them there. In a very limited set of cases where specialist medical attention is possible only from the UK, we have brought children from Gaza to the UK.
Iran-Israel Conflict
Vikki Slade Excerpts(3 months, 1 week ago)
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Mr Lammy
As I said before, this is an academic course, non-combat. We have extremely high standards in this country, and it is important that we share them—although in the instance that he raises, this is fewer than ten people.
Vikki Slade (Mid Dorset and North Poole) (LD)
Given the UK’s long-standing friendship with Israel, what assessment has the Foreign Secretary made of the increased risk to our military personnel in the countries in the wider region?
Mr Lammy
We are at the highest level of force protection at this time because of the ongoing conflict and the dangers that exist, and it is why we emphasise de-escalation and restraint.
Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories
Vikki Slade Excerpts(3 months, 2 weeks ago)
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Mr Falconer
My hon. Friend is very committed to these issues. He rightly points to some of the rhetoric and extremist language that has been used by these two men. I will not repeat my answers in relation to the conference next week. We will work with our friends and allies on our approach.
Vikki Slade (Mid Dorset and North Poole) (LD)
The Foreign Secretary summoned the Israeli ambassador to meet the Minister two weeks ago and we were asked to “wait and see” what positive steps would come from the meeting. Since then, we have seen violence and attacks on vulnerable people increase by the state of Israel. The ambassador has repeatedly rejected a two-state solution. Given that 200,000 people have now signed a petition to expel her from this country, has the Minister given any consideration to further action on the ambassador?
Mr Falconer
I summoned the Israeli ambassador and set out the strength of views to the Israeli Government that the British Government feel on these questions. It is of vital importance that we have an Israeli ambassador. Whatever the views of this House, it is important that we maintain relations. We also have an ambassador from Iran in London, and that is important, too. We need to be able to deliver messages to friends, to allies and to those with whom we do not enjoy good relations. We will continue to host ambassadors because of the importance of maintaining those diplomatic relations.
Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories
Vikki Slade Excerpts(3 months, 3 weeks ago)
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Mr Falconer
I think I have addressed most of those substantive points already. We are clear in our position: we have set it out repeatedly, privately and publicly, and no doubt I will be back in the House shortly.
Vikki Slade (Mid Dorset and North Poole) (LD)
Under the UK strategic export licence criteria, licences are prohibited when there is a clear risk that items would undermine peace and security or, under criteria 7, where the controlled items might be diverted for such uses. Can the Minister confirm that the export of all items, both those with licences and those that sit outside the rules or that have authorised exemptions, is being reviewed so that, for instance, drones for decoys and surveillance used against civilians and aid convoys will fall under the restrictions and not go under the radar?
Mr Falconer
I hesitate in my answer because there are quite a few clauses in the question and I do not want to get it wrong. The effect of what I have said in Parliament binds all our export licences. There is not an asterisk or footnote that allows some way around; this is a full-reaching approach that has been set out repeatedly in Parliament and has been scrutinised by the Business and Trade Committee and the courts. There is no attempt to fudge the position; it is as I have set out.
Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories
Vikki Slade Excerpts(4 months, 1 week ago)
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Mr Lammy
I will not comment on any future sanctions, except to say that as my hon. Friend knows, we keep these issues under review. He will have seen the Prime Minister’s statement on these matters a few moments ago, and indeed his statement alongside the Canadian and French leaders. I know that my hon. Friend has long campaigned on the second issue that he raised; his views are very well known.
Vikki Slade (Mid Dorset and North Poole) (LD)
The Foreign Secretary talks of children orphaned. The prediction is that 14,000 babies will die. If that comes true, it would wipe out an entire generation. We have also seen families burned alive in tents, in events that have shocked the world. Enough is enough. I join the right hon. Member for North West Hampshire (Kit Malthouse) in begging the Foreign Secretary—on my knees, if I need to—to take more action. I accept that more settlers have been sanctioned, but it must be time for the Israeli Government to face sanctions. Please can the Foreign Secretary confirm that that option is actively being explored?
Mr Lammy
I have said what I have said from the Dispatch Box, and we have taken further action today. Let us see tomorrow what that yields.
Gaza: UK Assessment
Vikki Slade Excerpts(4 months, 2 weeks ago)
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Mr Falconer
The House has heard me talk about sanctions in the same terms over a long period of time. I understand my hon. Friend’s frustration about my not being able to speculate from the Dispatch Box about the sanctions we might take, but to do so would reduce their effectiveness and frustrate the will of the House. We keep all of these matters under close review. We are not scared in the performance of our duties. We are working all the time to try practically to change the situation on the ground, and that is to what all our efforts are directed.
Vikki Slade (Mid Dorset and North Poole) (LD)
Barely a day goes by when I do not receive impassioned pleas from my constituents begging for actions, not words, from this Government. Many have shared their distress that we celebrated the defeat of tyranny on VE Day at the same time that the people of Gaza starved and were being bombed to oblivion. They say that we are complicit in genocide. What does the Minister say to my constituents? I agree with them, but I feel powerless to do any more than come to this House every time and say the same thing.
Mr Falconer
Deeds, not words. We are restoring funding to UNRWA, suspending arms licences and giving £129 million in humanitarian assistance to the Occupied Palestinian Territories. We have continued work at the UN Security Council and in relation to international courts. I recognise the frustration of the House, and I do not in any way wish to weigh misery between the many, many people still in Gaza or the west bank facing real hardship at this moment, but the action of this Government has made a real difference to Palestinian lives—I have seen it with my own eyes. There are people who are in safety now because of the UK Government, and we will continue to do what we can. I accept that there is more to do, but our actions do have impact.
Middle East Update
Vikki Slade Excerpts(4 months, 3 weeks ago)
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Mr Falconer
As I told my hon. Friend the Member for Dulwich and West Norwood (Helen Hayes), I have not seen those remarks, but we have been clear about what we think is acceptable and we have condemned remarks by other Israeli Ministers. Once I have had an opportunity to review the remarks that my hon. Friends mention, I am sure I will be in a position to provide a further comment. I reiterate our condemnation of the cruelty of some of the measures that have been put in place, particularly the block on aid into Gaza.
Vikki Slade (Mid Dorset and North Poole) (LD)
An Israeli human rights group has now described Israel as using starvation as a method of warfare, which is a war crime under article 54 of the Geneva convention. Will the Minister join Ireland, South Africa and many other countries in clarifying that there has been a genocide and apartheid against the people of Palestine? It is time to speak up and out, and to speak for Palestine.
Mr Falconer
I will not rehearse the points I have already made about the determination of genocide and about recognition.
Palestinian Authority Prime Minister Visit
Vikki Slade Excerpts(4 months, 4 weeks ago)
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Mr Falconer
Some 147 states have recognised a Palestinian state, yet no Palestinian state is fully functioning. That underlines the importance of taking the practical measures that will be absolutely vital not only to support Palestinian life, but to ensure that two states can co-exist peacefully, side by side. Many Members have referred to some of the practical impediments, whether it is the removal of Hamas from the Gaza strip or the economic challenges that face the Palestinian territories in both the west bank and Gaza. Let me be clear. An extremely violent conflict continues. Without a ceasefire, it is hard to imagine the creation of a state. I am sure that we will continue to discuss the merits of recognition, but let us not pretend that there are not serious practical considerations to bear in mind before the practical establishment of a Palestinian state is possible. The British Government are focused on changing the actual facts on the ground. That is the approach that we will take.
Vikki Slade (Mid Dorset and North Poole) (LD)
Other hon. and right hon. Members have talked about what might be left in Palestine, but I will ask about who might be left. Some 20% of the 55,000 pregnant women there—that is 11,000 pregnant women—are so malnourished that their pregnancies are now high risk. That really undermines the future of Palestine’s population. What assurance can the Minister give us that the £101 million will be directed to those people who really need it?
Mr Falconer
As I have said already, once we have fully allocated the funding, we will return to the House to outline how it has been prioritised.
Israel: Refusal of Entry for UK Parliamentarians
Vikki Slade Excerpts(5 months, 3 weeks ago)
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Mr Falconer
As I have said, these parliamentary delegations are very valuable, and I want to see them continue.
Vikki Slade (Mid Dorset and North Poole) (LD)
Many of us have raised serious concerns about the actions of the Israeli Government, and replies have rarely gone as far as most of us would want. I am deeply concerned that the state of Israel may be using this tactic to curtail Ministers from condemning Israel more strongly. What assurance can we have from the Minister that he will not be cowed by what has happened to his colleagues?
Mr Falconer
I will not be cowed by what has happened to my colleagues.