Question to the Department for International Development:

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, pursuant to the Memorandum of Understanding between the Palestinian Authority and her Department, whether her Department has had discussions with the Palestinian Authority on the content of a programme on Official Palestinian Authority TV, entitled Talk of the Land, broadcast on 1 April 2017, promoting domestic violence.

We have not discussed the content of this particular programme with the Palestinian Authority (PA). The UK deplores any promotion of violence against women and girls. The UK assess the PA’s commitment to gender equality, including tackling domestic violence, through their adherence to the UK Partnership Principles and we raise concerns where appropriate. As part of our Security and Justice programme we have supported the PA to tackle violence against women through training specialised public prosecutors and judges and developing specialised units that cater to female victims of violence.