Mr Robin Walker (Worcester) (Con): What development support his Department provides to the Palestinian Authority and to Israeli non-governmental organisations working in the west bank. [40974]
The Minister of State, Department for International Development (Mr Alan Duncan): We provide financial and technical assistance to the Palestinian Authority. In this financial year, our support will total £31.1 million. DFID also co-funds the UK conflict pool, which supports five Israeli human rights NGOs operating in the west bank.
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Robert Halfon (Harlow) (Con): Is the Minister aware that an increasing amount of aid to the Palestinian territories ends up in the hands of extremists and is used for extremist purposes? Will he take steps to stop that and ensure that aid gets to the Palestinians who need it most?
Mr Duncan: I do not share my hon. Friend’s conclusion. We are very careful how we spend our money in the occupied Palestinian territories and have done our utmost to support the legitimate government of Salam Fayyad with, I think, great success. We would abhor any money falling into the hands of extremists, and we do everything possible to ensure that such an accusation can never be verified or proved valid.
Interesting choice of words....