Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the Gaza Reconstruction Mechanism in fulfilling its objectives to (a) enable the government of Palestine to lead the reconstruction efforts, (b) enable the Gazan private sector, (c) assure donors that their investments in construction work in Gaza will be implemented without delay and (d) address Israeli security concerns related to the use of construction and other dual use material.

The Foreign and Commonwealth Office has not carried out a formal assessment of the effectiveness of the Gaza Reconstruction Mechanism (GRM), as GRM only began functioning in November 2014. However, the UN Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process informed our Consul General in Jerusalem on 30 January that the GRM is working. 35,000 homeowners had now purchased cement, and another 20,000 were cleared to make purchases. The GRM however does not obviate the need for the Israeli authorities to lift the movement and access restrictions on Gaza. Donors to the GRM also need to fulfil the pledges made at the October 2014 Cairo Conference in order to ensure that people whose homes were damaged or destroyed will be able to procure materials to rebuild their homes, to fund much needed infrastructure projects and to address the urgent electricity and water needs for Gaza.

The Department for International Development contributed £500,000 to the GRM, as part of our Cairo Conference pledge.