I share constituents’ concerns regarding the crisis in Yemen and the plight of the Yemeni people who are caught up in the conflict. I can assure you that the Government fully recognises the severity of the humanitarian crisis.
The UK has recently announced new UK aid worth £200 million to help millions of people at risk of starvation in Yemen, bringing the total that the UK has committed since the start of the four-year conflict to £770 million. The additional aid will support basic needs for over 3.8 million people, treat 20,000 vulnerable children for malnutrition and provide 2 million people with improved water supply and basic sanitation.
I was encouraged that the Foreign Secretary, Jeremy Hunt recently visited Yemen, the first Western foreign minister to do so since the conflict began.
As he made clear, this is now the last chance saloon for the Stockholm peace process - it is imperative that both sides stick to their commitments. None of the parties really want a return to hostilities so they need to put aside their anger and mistrust and take the risks that are always necessary at the start of any peace process.