Two Conservative MPs directed questions highlighting Israel’s recent humanitarian contributions to Rt. Hon. Desmond Swayne MP, Minister for International Development, in DfID Questions on Wednesday.
CFI Vice-Chairman John Howell, MP for Henley, asked the Minister if he would “praise the doctors at the Hadassah Medical Centre in Jerusalem who are showing real humanitarian characteristics by treating victims and attackers at the same time”.
Mr Swayne responded by describing this compassion as “an object lesson to the measure of leadership that is now required to overcome the huge amount of distrust and hatred”.
The second question was asked by CFI Parliamentary Officer Bob Blackman, MP for Harrow East, who referred to the Israeli government’s proposals for the provision of a desalination plant in Gaza and asked if the Minister had considered them.
Mr Swayne said that this question “draws attention to a very important issue because the UN studies predict that Gaza will become uninhabitable as a consequence of the water problem by 2020”.
He added that it is “vital that there is a peace process so that the level of investment required to drive such developments becomes available”.
