Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Deputy Foreign Secretary, what steps his Department is taking to help increase humanitarian aid to Gaza.

We have welcomed recent commitments from Israel to increase the amount of aid getting in to Gaza, including allowing the delivery of humanitarian aid through the Port of Ashdod and the Erez crossing - steps we have long urged Israel to take. We want to see Israel fulfil these commitments swiftly and in full. The Foreign Secretary discussed this with Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu on 17 April.

During that visit, the Foreign Secretary urged Israel to deliver on its promises of delivering more aid into Gaza through as many routes as possible by land, sea and air.

The UK has announced a £9.7 million package of military and civilian support to set up a maritime aid corridor to Gaza, including the deployment of a Navy ship, and £3 million of additional funding for equipment to support UN and aid agencies at new and existing land crossings to get more aid into Gaza. The UK's contribution will include trucks, forklifts, generators, fuel stores and lighting towers.