Written questions by Mitchell.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what discussions he has had with the European Union on distributing the proceeds generated from the sale of Chelsea FC to support the victims of the invasion of Ukraine.

The UK Government continues to hold discussions with the European Commission, as part of our efforts to ensure the proceeds from the sale of Chelsea FC reach humanitarian causes in Ukraine as quickly as possible, in line with the UK's unilateral declaration. The Government is fully committed to that position, as part of our iron-clad support for Ukraine.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with his Portuguese counterpart on distributing the proceeds generated from the sale of Chelsea FC to support the victims of the invasion of Ukraine.

His Majesty's Government continues to hold discussions with the Portuguese Government, as part of our efforts to ensure the proceeds from the sale of Chelsea FC reach humanitarian causes in Ukraine as quickly as possible, in line with the UK's unilateral declaration. The Government is fully committed to that position, as part of our iron-clad support for Ukraine.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, with reference to the Point of Order of the Rt hon. Member for Sutton Coldfield of 8 October 2024, Official Report, column 163, when he plans to respond to the correspondence of 6 September 2024 from Lord Howard of Lympne.

We are grateful to the Honourable member for bringing this matter to our attention. We apologise for the delay. A response will be issued in due course.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 12 September 2024 to Question 4213 on Israel: Arms Trade, for what reason he decided to suspend export licences to Israel on the grounds that there is clear risk that such equipment might be used to commit or facilitate a serious violation of International Humanitarian Law, in the context of the conclusions outlined in the document entitled Summary of the IHL process, decision and the factors taken into account, published on 2 September 2024, on the conduct of hostilities.

On day one in office, the Foreign Secretary commissioned a thorough review into Israel's compliance with International Humanitarian Law (IHL), given the grave concerns about the conduct and consequences of the war in Gaza for civilians. The review assessed IHL compliance across three areas: humanitarian provision and access, treatment of detainees and the conduct of the military campaign. The review found possible breaches of IHL in the areas of humanitarian access and in the treatment of detainees. The lack of sufficient verifiable evidence meant that we could not determine whether possible breaches of IHL in the conduct of the campaign had been committed. However, concerns regarding Israel's compliance and commitment in the areas of humanitarian relief and treatment of detainees give cause for concern about its attitude and approach to the conduct of hostilities. The scale of the destruction and the number of civilian deaths also cause great concern. The UK's robust export licensing criteria states that the Government will not issue export licences if there is a clear risk that the items might be used to commit or facilitate serious violations of IHL. Given the conclusions of the review, on 2 September the Government suspended around 30 export licences to Israel, effectively covering all arms exports for use in the current conflict in Gaza, exempting components for F-35 aircraft which, for reasons outlined in the Foreign Secretary's Statement and the Business and Trade Secretary's Written Ministerial Statement, have been excluded from the suspension.