Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether she has had recent discussions with the (a) United Nations and (b) International Maritime Organisation on the access of the Global Sumed Flotilla into Gaza.

We remain in close contact with our Israeli counterparts over the status of vessels seeking to deliver humanitarian aid to Gaza, and as the Prime Minister said on 21 September, the UK continues to demand that the Israeli Government permits the full and unhindered resumption of aid into Gaza immediately. By far the most effective way to meet the desperate needs of the Gazan people at the speed and scale that is needed is via overland routes, and we reiterate that Israel must immediately allow the UN and other agencies to deliver lifesaving aid to those in Gaza who so desperately need it.