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  • Joan Ryan – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Joan Ryan – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Joan Ryan on 2016-02-04.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, which (a) Israeli and (b) Palestinian non-governmental organisations and projects receiving funding from the Conflict Stability and Security Fund.

    Mr Tobias Ellwood

    We currently fund projects through twelve Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs) in Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories (including East Jerusalem); ten through the Conflict Stability and Security Fund and two through Bilateral Programme Budgets. All of these NGOs are registered as Israeli. We do not fund NGOs other than for specific projects that support Her Majesty’s Government’s objectives.

  • Patrick Grady – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Patrick Grady – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Patrick Grady on 2016-02-04.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what progress the Government has made on the establishment of a memorial to UK citizens killed in terrorist attacks overseas; and what consultation the Government is undertaking with families of victims about that proposal.

    Mr Tobias Ellwood

    On 22 January I launched an online consultation seeking views on what form the national memorial to British victims of overseas terrorism should take (Official Report, 22 January 2016, col 47WS). The consultation is open until 4 March 2016. I have written to families of victims for whom the Government hold contact details. I have also issued an open letter available on gov.uk to invite all those with an interest to respond to the consultation should they wish to. Decisions on the memorial will be taken after we have fully considered responses to the consultation.

  • Andrew Rosindell – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Andrew Rosindell – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Rosindell on 2016-02-04.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, when his Department plans to publish the listed dates for flights to Sharm el Sheikh airport on which his Department advised against all travel to the region.

    Mr Robert Goodwill

    The advice against all but essential travel by air to or from Sharm el-Sheikh was issued by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office on 4 November 2015, and flights by UK carriers were suspended on the same day. Repatriation flights took place between 6–17 November 2015, supported by additional security measures.

    The Government is working closely with the Egyptian authorities with a view to a resumption of flights as soon as possible, whereupon scheduling of such flights would be a matter for the airlines concerned.

  • Nigel Evans – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Nigel Evans – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Nigel Evans on 2016-02-04.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment his Department has made of the effect on that region of recent violence in Israel and the West Bank.

    Mr Tobias Ellwood

    We are deeply concerned by the recent violence in Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories. Since the start of the current violence, Ministers and officials have spoken regularly to both the Israeli government and the Palestinian Authority on the urgent need to de-escalate the tensions. We understand, and share, the deep frustration on all sides at the lack of progress on the Middle East Peace Process. The current violence underlines that a just and lasting resolution that ends the occupation and delivers peace for both Israelis and Palestinians is long overdue.

  • Nigel Evans – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Nigel Evans – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Nigel Evans on 2016-02-04.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what reports his Department has received on renewed rocket fire attacks into Gaza in Israel.

    Mr Tobias Ellwood

    We receive reports from our Embassy in Tel Aviv and our Consulate General in Jerusalem giving us regular updates on the current situation in Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories. These updates include reports on rockets being fired from the Gaza Strip into the sea; any rocket fire from Gaza into Israel; and any retaliatory Israeli air strikes on Gaza. According to reports, in December 2015 and January 2016 a total of three rockets were fired into Israel by Gazan militant groups.

  • Nigel Evans – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Nigel Evans – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Nigel Evans on 2016-02-04.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what reports his Department has received on the extent of radicalisation in the Palestinian Territories.

    Mr Tobias Ellwood

    We condemn all violence and all incitement to commit violence. We are concerned by reports of radicalisation, which may, in turn, encourage violence in the region. We have seen reports referring to Hamas. Hamas must renounce violence, recognise Israel and accept previously signed agreements. We have also received reports on the role school textbooks play in this area. An extensive study, conducted by a joint Israeli and Palestinian research team in 2013, found the need for textbooks on both sides to do far more to promote a more positive portrayal of each other, reflecting the principles of co-existence, tolerance, justice and human dignity.

  • Joan Ryan – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Joan Ryan – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Joan Ryan on 2016-02-04.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what financial assistance his Department has given to the Palestinian Authority in each of the last five years for which information is available.

    Mr Desmond Swayne

    I have been asked to reply.

    The Department for International Development (DfID) provided £349 million in support of Palestinian development from 2011-15 and will provide a further £72 million in 2015-16, of which up to £25.5 million will be provided to the Palestinian Authority. This year, UK aid will support 36,000 children in primary education and support 270 enterprises to improve their annual sales or productivity.

    UK aid is helping the Palestinian Authority to develop strong institutions, deliver essential public services and improve security – building the foundations for a sovereign and viable Palestinian state living alongside Israel in peace and security. For a breakdown on how financial assistance in the Palestinian Territories is spent, information is published on DfID’s Development Tracker website at https://devtracker.dfid.gov.uk.

    “

  • Geoffrey Clifton-Brown – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    Geoffrey Clifton-Brown – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Geoffrey Clifton-Brown on 2016-02-04.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what plans her Department has to commence the provisions of Schedule 23 of the Deregulation Act 2015 on the Breeding of Dogs Act 1973.

    George Eustice

    My Department has no plans to commence paragraphs 35 and 36 of Schedule 23 of the Deregulation Act 2015, relating to the Breeding of Dogs Act 1973. While the option to do so remains, we believe that for the foreseeable future these records do have a role in assisting Local Authorities investigating welfare concerns at dog breeding establishments. This will mean that licensed dog breeders will therefore be required to continue keeping records in a prescribed form.

  • Clive Efford – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    Clive Efford – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Clive Efford on 2016-02-04.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what progress the Food Standards Agency has made on coordinating steps in partnership with the Medicines and Health Products Regulatory Agency and the National Crime Agency to stop the marketing of Miracle Mineral Solution as a cure for children with autism; and if he will make a statement.

    Jane Ellison

    The Food Standards Agency (FSA) has issued advice that Miracle Mineral Solution (MMS) is not safe and should not be sold as a supplement. It has been working with local authorities across the country to share knowledge, investigate and disrupt the sale of MMS and other similar products.

    Further activity is being conducted with the support of the Medicine and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency and with the involvement of the FSA’s National Food Crime Unit. This activity is ongoing and it would not be appropriate to comment in detail.

    However, the FSA has secured the removal of MMS products from some major marketplace websites, and it has shared information internationally through the National Crime Agency, alerting authorities in other countries to planned seminars at which the use of MMS is promoted.

  • Glyn Davies – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    Glyn Davies – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Glyn Davies on 2016-02-04.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, when she plans to publish further details of the next Contract for Difference auction; and which technologies she plans will be eligible for inclusion in that auction.

    Andrea Leadsom

    As announced by the Secretary of State in her speech in November, the current intention is to hold the next CFD allocation round for ‘less established’ technologies (pot 2) in late 2016.

    We will set out details around future rounds in due course.