Hamish Falconer MP: speeches 2025

Speeches

• 24 Jun 2025 · Arms Trade: Israel · Hansard source

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  It is important to be focused on the facts at issue. We do not support spy flights; we have a limited presence to try and find hostages in Gaza, for reasons that the whole House would understand and support. There are fewer than 10 IDF personnel receiving any training in the UK, and that training is academic and non-military in nature. We are not arming Israel’s war in Gaza. We categorically do not export any bombs or ammunition for use in military operations in Gaza. My hon. Friend asks about an independent inquiry. The Government welcome scrutiny and I welcome my time in this Chamber. On the questions at issue on arms sales, including on the F-35 programme, there is a judicial review on which we will hear findings shortly. There is plenty of scrutiny of this Government.

• 24 Jun 2025 · Topical Questions · Hansard source

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  We have discussed these issues many times. Earlier, an hon. Friend asked me why, when Ministers say things at the Dispatch Box, they do not happen. The view of this House on the question of a two-state solution is clearly very important, but it is the job of Foreign Office Ministers to try to make it a reality in practice, through diplomacy.

• 24 Jun 2025 · Topical Questions · Hansard source

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  The hon. Lady raises vital questions about the status of children in Gaza. In response to one of her colleagues, I set out some of the measures that we have taken already. Clearly, children in Gaza, like all civilians there, are under the most enormous pressure at the moment, and aid getting in is a vital next step. Where children from Gaza are outside the region, in particular in Egypt and Jordan, we have provided support to them there. In a very limited set of cases where specialist medical attention is possible only from the UK, we have brought children from Gaza to the UK.

• 24 Jun 2025 · Topical Questions · Hansard source

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  This is an incredibly important question. As I think some in the House know, I negotiated with the Taliban when I was an official. It is a source of incredible personal frustration to me that the situation in Afghanistan for women has got worse and worse as the months have drawn on. The Taliban need to change course, not just on the rights of women, but for the viability of their economy and their country.

• 24 Jun 2025 · Topical Questions · Hansard source

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  As I have said before, travel advice is the surest and most regularly updated advice for British nationals in the region. We changed the travel advice yesterday for Qatar, as my right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary announced in the House. We hope, as he has said this morning, that there will now be greater stability in the region, that the ceasefire will hold, and that British nationals in the region will not be so concerned. Travel advice is the best place to look.

• 24 Jun 2025 · Topical Questions · Hansard source

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  I recognise the appetite in the Chamber to hear more about the ICJ advisory opinion. It was a far-reaching and complex judgment, and we are taking our time with our response.

• 24 Jun 2025 · Topical Questions · Hansard source

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  We are talking to the French and the Saudis about their plans. Obviously events in the middle east are moving quickly, but I recognise the force of what my hon. Friend has said.

• 24 Jun 2025 · Gaza: Humanitarian Situation · Hansard source

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  Aid can be delivered effectively into Gaza. There are established mechanisms through the United Nations and its partners, and we want to see those mechanisms in place. The hon. Gentleman raises the vital question of ensuring that the hostages themselves get sufficient access to food. Both my right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary and I have heard directly from Eli Sharabi, a released hostage, who has talked about Hamas’s deprivation of food from the hostages. That must stop, and they must immediately release all hostages.

• 24 Jun 2025 · Gaza: Humanitarian Situation · Hansard source

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  The killing of civilians at aid distribution centres in Gaza is horrifying. Israel must fulfil its obligations under international law to ensure unhindered humanitarian assistance. I will not speculate about future sanctions or arms embargoes, but we continue to engage with our partners and will not hesitate to take further action if the Government of Israel do not change course.

• 24 Jun 2025 · Gaza: Humanitarian Situation · Hansard source

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  The hon. Gentleman shares with the House a heartbreaking story. I know that it is one of thousands of such stories about lives lost in Gaza. The situation is intolerable, and we will continue to take further action. As I have said, my right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary raised this matter with the Foreign Minister on Sunday. Clearly, there have been significant developments in the middle east since 10 June. This is now the time for Israel to implement a ceasefire and to allow aid in; for Hamas to release hostages; and for us to try to draw a line under the horrifying suffering of Mohammed and many others like him.

• 24 Jun 2025 · Gaza: Humanitarian Situation · Hansard source

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  Israel must immediately allow rapid and unhindered aid into Gaza. The Foreign Secretary raised the humanitarian situation with Israeli Foreign Minister Sa’ar on Sunday. We recently announced £4 million of further UK humanitarian support for Gazans, and we will continue to urge Israel to lift restrictions on humanitarian aid to allow the UN and other aid organisations to operate safely and independently.

• 24 Jun 2025 · Gaza: Humanitarian Situation · Hansard source

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  This Government will not give up on Gaza. I can confirm that the Foreign Secretary has raised Gaza in his engagements with the US. I have not forgotten about Gaza, and was speaking to Palestinian counterparts just last night. The situation in Gaza will remain a top priority for this Government.

• 24 Jun 2025 · Gaza: Humanitarian Situation · Hansard source

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  I can confirm that I have raised these issues with my Israeli counterpart. It is appalling that hundreds of healthcare workers have reportedly been killed since the start of the conflict. We continue to urge the Israeli authorities to ensure that incidents are investigated transparently and that those responsible are held to account and lessons learned. Healthcare workers, premises and facilities must be protected, allowing medical staff to do their work.

• 24 Jun 2025 · Gaza: Humanitarian Situation · Hansard source

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  As the right hon. Gentleman knows, this Government have taken a series of actions in response to developments in Gaza. We will continue to take such actions until the situation changes.

• 24 Jun 2025 · Gaza: Humanitarian Situation · Hansard source

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  We have set out the reasons why the Government have had to take special measures to ensure that the F-35 programme continued to operate, which includes our continued role in the global spares pool in the United States. However, I agree with the sentiments of the hon. Lady’s constituents; the deaths around aid distribution centres are clearly horrifying, and there needs to be a full investigation and action taken. Vitally, aid must get into Gaza at the scale required and from enough distribution centres in order to avoid the horrifying scenes that we have seen.

• 24 Jun 2025 · Gaza: Humanitarian Situation · Hansard source

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  As I have said, the Foreign Secretary has raised these issues with both his American and Israeli counterparts, and I have done the same. We remain steely in our focus on the situation in Gaza, including the tragic scenes around the deprivation of aid and the impact that is having on civilians right across the strip, including children. We are trying to take every measure we can to reduce that suffering. That includes aid where it can be brought in; aid into the region, where that is the most appropriate way to reach the medically vulnerable; and in a few small cases ensuring that Gazan children can access medical assistance here.

• 24 Jun 2025 · Gaza: Humanitarian Situation · Hansard source

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  The disagreement that the Israeli Government have is not simply with the British Government; it is with a wide range of their partners. As the right hon. Lady is aware, we signed a statement with 26 partners about the humanitarian situation. We made a leader-level statement with France and Canada. There is wide disagreement with the approach that the Israeli Government are taking in relation to aid distribution. At the weekend, the Foreign Secretary discussed these matters, including entry points, with the Foreign Minister of Israel. We would like to see the Israeli Government shift position. It is clear, for the reasons that she says, that that shift must come urgently.

• 24 Jun 2025 · Gaza: Humanitarian Situation · Hansard source

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  No one should risk death or injury to feed their family. As I said in this House on 4 June, Israel’s aid delivery measures are inhumane. We will not support any mechanism that endangers civilians. We have continually called on Israel, including most recently on Sunday, immediately to allow the UN and aid partners to safely deliver all types of aid at scale.

• 18 Jun 2025 · Political Prisoners · Hansard source

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  In each case, different things are likely to make progress. I am very conscious of my own experience—I negotiated the release of British nationals with the Taliban over a long period. I am sure that in that case publicity would have made the release more complex. It will vary case by case, and I am sure the Minister responsible for China will be happy to discuss these matters further. I will end my remarks there in order to give my hon. Friend the Member for Cities of London and Westminster the chance to respond.

• 18 Jun 2025 · Political Prisoners · Hansard source

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  I welcome and commend the hon. Member’s efforts on freedom of religious belief, not just in Hong Kong but across the world. We have raised the circumstances of Mr Lai’s detention and will continue to do so. The UK will not stop pressing for consular access in that case, and indeed in all other cases where consular access is denied, and we will not stop calling for Mr Lai’s immediate release.

• 18 Jun 2025 · Political Prisoners · Hansard source

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  It is an honour to serve under your chairmanship, Mr Western. I will try to keep my remarks brief in order to be able to hand back to my hon. Friend the Member for Cities of London and Westminster (Rachel Blake). I will make some progress through the cases that have been raised, as well as the general policy, and then I will be happy to take interventions. The Government remain gravely concerned by the politically motivated prosecution of Jimmy Lai, who is a British citizen, as so many Members have pointed out. His case remains a top priority. We continue to call on Beijing to repeal Hong Kong’s national security law, and we call on the Hong Kong authorities to end the prosecution of all individuals charged under it and immediately release Mr Lai. As many Members know well from their constituencies —just as I know from Lincoln—the UK has deep and long-standing ties with Hong Kong, but the continued erosion of rights and freedoms threatens Hong Kong’s way of life. China’s imposition of the national security law has seen opposition voices stifled and dissent criminalised. Mr Lai is just one of those voices; prominent and outspoken, he has been silenced through a politically motivated prosecution. The Foreign Secretary has committed to raising Mr Lai’s case with China at every opportunity. We have stood firm on that promise, and it is of the utmost importance to this Government. Ministers have regularly and repeatedly made clear the damage that Mr Lai’s ongoing imprisonment has done to Hong Kong’s reputation and the challenge that it presents to UK-China relationships more broadly. Hon. Members asked me a number of questions about which Ministers have raised Mr Lai’s case and how. The Prime Minister has done so with President Xi, as my hon. and learned Friend the Member for Folkestone and Hythe (Tony Vaughan) highlighted, and the Foreign Secretary, the Chancellor, the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, Foreign Office Ministers—in particular, the Minister with responsibility for China, my hon. Friend the Member for Hornsey and Friern Barnet (Catherine West)—Trade Ministers and Science Ministers have all raised Jimmy Lai’s detention with their Chinese counterparts. We will continue to do so. Our diplomats have attended Mr Lai’s trial throughout, alongside our partners, to make it known that the world is watching. I was asked about the role of other countries. We welcome the support from many of our partners in raising Mr Lai’s case. Just yesterday, the Foreign Secretary again met Mr Lai’s son, Sebastien, who has indeed campaigned tirelessly for his father’s release. The Foreign Secretary updated him on his recent engagements with China and offered his full support, including on behalf of the Prime Minister, who is closely following Mr Lai’s trial. The Government are taking a consistent, long-term and strategic approach to managing the UK’s relations with China, rooted in the national interest, precisely so that we can have direct and often difficult conversations in the interests of the British people, including Jimmy Lai. I say in response to the Liberal Democrat spokesperson, the hon. Member for Carshalton and Wallington (Bobby Dean), that the China audit should be published soon. I turn now to the important points raised by my hon. Friend the Member for Macclesfield (Tim Roca) on consular prisoner policy. As a former official as well as a Minister, I know well the terrible impact that being incarcerated has on not just the individual in question but their family. I know from my own personal experience how different every case is and how difficult it can be to secure progress. I know the importance of commitment, of determination and of finding every possible route to secure release. I can assure hon. Members that the health and welfare of detainees is at the heart of our consular work. We will support families wherever we can. I recognise the complexity of Mr Lai’s case and some of the others that have been referenced. In such cases, we use a taskforce approach, drawing in expertise from specialist teams, geographic experts and our embassies around the world to determine our strategy. Teams examine the circumstances of each case individually and develop tailored approaches based on careful judgments of what is likely to be most effective. We are examining options to strengthen our approach, with the appointment of a special envoy to work with families on the most complex detention cases, and we will announce further details in due course. We are also committed to introducing a new right to consular assistance in cases of human rights violations, and consultations are ongoing. The Liberal Democrat spokesperson made an important point about the accountability of Ministers. I am the Minister with responsibility for consular affairs. The appointment of an envoy will complement our efforts; it will in no way displace my responsibility to hon. Members and to this House, or, indeed, the responsibility of the Foreign Secretary and others to account for their actions on all these cases. I will turn to some of the other cases that have been raised, including tirelessly by my hon. Friend the Member for West Dunbartonshire (Douglas McAllister). We continue to express concerns about Mr Johal’s prolonged detention to the Government of India at every appropriate opportunity, emphasising the need for a prompt, full and just resolution of his case in India’s independent legal system. We continue to provide consular support to Mr Johal and his family. The Foreign Secretary met Mr Johal’s brother on 8 May and raised Mr Johal’s case with his Indian counterpart on several occasions, including most recently on 7 June. The Prime Minister raised Mr Johal’s case with Prime Minister Modi on 18 November and with the Indian Minister of External Affairs on 4 March. As several hon. Members mentioned, many Members are focused on Alaa Abd el-Fattah in Egypt and on his mother, Laila. The Government are committed to securing Alaa’s urgent release and we continue to engage at the highest levels of the Egyptian Government. The Prime Minister raised the case with President Sisi on 22 May and the Foreign Secretary with Foreign Minister Abdelatty on 1 June. I am, of course, concerned by the hospitalisation of Laila, Alaa’s mother. I have met her and the family on a number of occasions, and I met her with Prime Minister on 14 February. I share her desire for an urgent resolution. I have impressed the urgency of the situation on the Egyptian Government and the Egyptian ambassador on repeated occasions. I assure the House that the case remains a top priority for me personally. I reassure my hon. Friend the Member for Cities of London and Westminster of the priority that the Government place on the fate of her constituent, Mr Lai.

• 17 Jun 2025 · Genocide Convention: UK Compliance · Hansard source

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  I am of course very happy to consider the recommendations of the Committee. We do have extrajudicial—I will be careful on the legalities of it, but as I understand it, British courts can look into crimes of genocide outside the UK where a UK national is involved. If the recommendation of the Committee is that that should be expanded, we can take a look at that, but that is the current position. At the risk of stating the absolute obvious, it is a criminal offence to commit genocide in the UK and it is a criminal offence to commit genocide outside the UK if you are a UK national, and our courts have competence to hear that. I want to be clear on our position in relation to the Occupied Palestinian Territories. We strongly oppose the expansion of Israel’s military operations in Gaza and its stated intention to hold territory indefinitely. Israel’s denial of essential humanitarian assistance is unjustifiable. Israeli settlements in the west bank and East Jerusalem are illegal under international law and settler violence against Palestinians is unacceptable. Extremist rhetoric inciting unlawful violence against Palestinians is abhorrent. The House has heard about steps we have taken in recent days to respond. We have equally been clear in our condemnation of Hamas for its heinous terrorist attacks on 7 October, which the hon. Member for North Herefordshire referred to, its cruel holding of hostages and its use of civilian infrastructure in conflict, which places civilians at huge risk. The hon. Member for North Herefordshire talked of the International Court of Justice, which is considering a case brought under the genocide convention by South Africa against Israel. It has issued provisional measures, including on humanitarian access. We respect the Court’s independence and its authority to issue binding orders, and expect Israel to follow them under international law. Separately, the International Criminal Court is investigating what is happening in Israel and the OPTs. We fully support that Court’s role in investigating and prosecuting serious international crimes and holding those responsible accountable, including delivering justice for victims.

• 17 Jun 2025 · Genocide Convention: UK Compliance · Hansard source

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  Ms Jardine has reminded me that I have one minute left, so I will answer the question and then conclude. Goods from illegally occupied settlements come under different trading provisions than those from green-line Israel. That is a question for His Majesty’s Revenue and Customs that we keep under regular review. As the hon. Member is aware, others are looking at these questions, but at the moment no European power bans settlement trade in the way that she describes. It is something that we talk to our partners and allies about. Let me conclude rapidly in order to give the hon. Member the final word. I want to reaffirm that the Government are meeting their international obligations, including those under the genocide convention. We continue to maintain that genocide determinations are a matter for a competent—

• 17 Jun 2025 · Genocide Convention: UK Compliance · Hansard source

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  I understand the complexities of these questions. I recognise that the judge has not yet opined in the judicial proceedings to which the hon. Member refers. Once the judge has done so, we will all be in a position to consider his findings. I have set out the Government’s position, as I think the hon. Member said, at some length, over a series of appearances in Parliament and outside of it, and through written questions. I will try always to explain why it is that the—

• 17 Jun 2025 · Genocide Convention: UK Compliance · Hansard source

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  I am about to hand over to the hon. Member. Our commitment to international law is firm. It applies everywhere without exception, and our record reflects that.