Sir Nicholas Soames: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, if he will make representations to the Government of Israel to improve the flow of electricity supplies from Israel to Gaza.

Alistair Burt, Minister of State for the Middle East at the Foreign & Commonwealth Office: Increased water and electricity supplies are a prerequisite to improving life in Gaza. We welcome reports that the Gaza power plant is back online meaning the average electricity supply has now increased to around 5 hours per day. However this still leaves Gazans with at least 19 hours a day without electricity. Ultimately the best solution is a political agreement between all parties on sustainable solutions to increase the electricity supply to Gaza. We press for immediate discussions to alleviate the situation.

Hansard

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