Tag: The Lord Bishop of Southwark

The below Parliamentary question was asked by The Lord Bishop of Southwark on 2016-02-22.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what percentage of the Department for International Development’s humanitarian aid package for Jordan is intended to meet the needs of Iraqi refugees in Jordan.

Baroness Verma

The UK’s humanitarian aid package for Jordan is not earmarked to a particular group of refugees, in line with international humanitarian principles of impartiality. Instead, it targets those most vulnerable and in urgent need, irrespective of nationality. In particular, DFID provides direct support to UNHCR’s protection mandate which serves all registered refugees and asylum seekers in Jordan, including the 53,756 registered Iraqis. DFID’s partners in Jordan subscribe to the same principles and operate an open door policy, providing health, protection services and basic needs support to all refugees, whether they be Syrian, Iraqi, Yemeni or from elsewhere.

DFID also support projects aimed at improving overall public services used by all people living in Jordan, such as water supply, sanitation services and solid waste management. As well as the fact that Iraqi refugees have been in Jordan longer and are therefore better established, it is important to note that the number being met with humanitarian services is lower due to the fact that there are nearly 12 registered Syrian refugees to every one registered Iraqi refugee.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by The Lord Bishop of Southwark on 2016-02-22.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what representations they have made to the government of Israel following its decision to start building the annexation wall in the Cremisan Valley, and in particular regarding building works on the privately owned land of Beir Onah in Beit Jala.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns

Officials from our Embassy in Tel Aviv have raised the issue of the separation barrier though Cremisan Valley with the Israeli authorities repeatedly, most recently on 1 September 2015.

Our Deputy Consul General in Jerusalem visited the Al Walajah and Khirbet Najjar areas of Beit Jala on 9 February 2016, where he was given an update on the impact of the barrier on residents.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by The Lord Bishop of Southwark on 2016-02-22.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is their assessment of the decision by the High Court of Israel on 1 February to dismiss the latest petitions submitted by the Salesian Sisters Convent against the building of the annexation wall in the Cremisan Valley.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns

The UK’s position on the Separation Barrier is clear: where it has been constructed beyond the 1967 border, such as in the case of the Cremisan Valley, it is illegal under international law.