The FCDO are unable to confirm these details in line with paragraph 2.13 of the Ministerial Code which states: "The fact that the Law Officers have advised or have not advised and the content of their advice must not be disclosed outside Government without their authority."

The UK Government does not recognise the legitimacy of the Maduro regime. The recent steps taken by Venezuela with respect to the Essequibo region of Guyana are unjustified and should cease. The UK supports Guyana's territorial integrity. We are clear that the border was settled in 1899 through international arbitration. The statement by Venezuela in St Vincent confirming that it will refrain from the use of force and any further escalation is welcome and it must be followed by concrete actions. We will continue to work with our partners in the region and internationally to ensure respect for Guyana's sovereignty. I [Minister Rutley] visited Guyana on 18 December to show UK support for the Guyanese people on this vital issue.

FCDO consultancy spend in 2020-21, 2021-22 and 2022-2023 was £2.7 million, £1.4 million and £3.9 million respectively. Total FCO plus DFID spend for years 2019-20, 2018-19, 2017-18, 2016-17 and 2015-16 was £3.0 million, £2.6 milion, £1.3 million, £3.3 million and £2.6 million respectively.

The FCDO's E-sourcing system only goes back to 2016 so we are unable to provide data between 2012-13 and 2014-2015.

Total temporary agency staff spend for those financial years are in the table below. This information is published in FCDO's Annual Report & Accounts and can be found online.

Ministers and officials continue to raise Mr El-Fattah's case at the highest levels with the Egyptian Government and have been consistently clear in our calls for his release, whilst continuing to press the need for urgent consular access. The Prime Minister raised Mr El-Fattah's case with President Sisi on 20 October. The former Foreign Secretary has raised Mr El-Fattah's case on several occasions with Egyptian Foreign Minister Shoukry, most recently on 18 September. The Minister of State for Development and Africa, Rt Hon. Andrew Mitchell, has also raised the case with the Egyptian authorities, most recently on 15 November during his visit to Cairo. The Minister of State for the Middle East, Lord (Tariq) Ahmad of Wimbledon, continues to raise his case with the Egyptian Ambassador and with Egyptian Foreign Minister Shoukry.

The UK supported United Nations Security Council Resolution 2703 on 30 October, which renewed the United Nations Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara (MINURSO) mandate for 12 months. The UK supports UN-led efforts to reach a just, lasting, and mutually acceptable political solution, based on compromise, which will provide for the self-determination of the people of Western Sahara. We strongly support the work of Staffan de Mistura, Personal Envoy of the UN Secretary-General and welcome the recent efforts of all concerned to engage with the Envoy and to facilitate his recent visits to the region, including to Western Sahara. We will continue to engage key partners to encourage constructive engagement with the political process.

The Foreign Secretary last raised settler violence with his Israeli counterpart on 17 November. Reports of Palestinian civilians being murdered by settlers in Occupied Palestinian Territories are appalling. Whilst we welcome statements from Israeli Ministers including Prime Minister Netanyahu condemning settler violence, we must see tangible action to bring perpetrators to justice.

The UK also condemns attacks against Israel emanating from armed groups in the region. The former Foreign Secretary spoke with the Palestinian Authority, the Government of Jordan and other regional partners about how best to work together to ensure tensions do not escalate further.

The Foreign Secretary last raised settler violence with his Israeli counterpart on 17 November. Reports of Palestinian civilians being murdered by settlers in Occupied Palestinian Territories are appalling. Whilst we welcome statements from Israeli Ministers including Prime Minister Netanyahu condemning settler violence, we must see tangible action to bring perpetrators to justice.

The UK also condemns attacks against Israel emanating from armed groups in the region. The former Foreign Secretary spoke with the Palestinian Authority, the Government of Jordan and other regional partners about how best to work together to ensure tensions do not escalate further.

As the Prime Minister and former Foreign Secretary have said, the safety of British nationals remains our top priority. We are working closely with the Egyptian and Israeli authorities round the clock to ensure our British nationals can leave Gaza as soon as possible. Humanitarian pauses are helping British nationals to leave Gaza and we are urging Israel to adhere to International Humanitarian Law. The UK has a team at the Rafah crossing to ensure we can provide the necessary consular and administrative support needed to British nationals when they cross. We are providing support for British nationals to get from Rafah to Cairo, where we have set up a reception centre and have arranged temporary accommodation. Additional Consular and Border Force staff are in country to support this work, as is an FCDO Rapid Deployment Team and a team of British Red Cross psychological support experts. More than 200 British nationals and their dependants have left Gaza so far; this is well over half of those who registered with the FCDO initially.

We are working closely with Egypt and Israel to ensure all British nationals who want to leave Gaza can exit via the Rafah crossing or other routes as quickly as possible. Over 200 British nationals and their dependents have crossed into Egypt and we are continuing to offer support to those that are yet to cross. The safety of all British nationals continues to be our utmost priority. We are doing everything we can to support all British nationals in Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories and are working closely with Israeli counterparts and international partners.

The Government's thoughts are with those families who are facing unimaginable uncertainty and fear because of these despicable attacks and kidnappings. We are not commenting on specific numbers or individual cases. The safety of all British nationals continues to be our utmost priority and we continue to do everything we can to secure the release of all hostages, including working with Israeli counterparts and international partners at the highest levels.

The Government's thoughts are with those families who are facing unimaginable uncertainty and fear because of these despicable attacks and kidnappings. We are not commenting on specific numbers or individual cases. The safety of all British nationals continues to be our utmost priority and we continue to do everything we can to secure the release of all hostages, including working with Israeli counterparts and international partners at the highest levels.

The Government's thoughts are with those families who are facing unimaginable uncertainty and fear because of these despicable attacks and kidnappings. We are not commenting on specific numbers or individual cases. The safety of all British nationals continues to be our utmost priority and we continue to do everything we can to secure the release of all hostages, including working with Israeli counterparts and international partners at the highest levels.

The need for temporary staff within the FCDO is largely driven by the nature of the projects being undertaken and the expertise required. At a high level, costs for temporary staff are associated to IT and digital activity, which includes supporting the implementation of the HERA programme, priority programmes and merger activity where temporary and specialist expertise has been needed to ensure delivery. Information on the cost of temporary staff specifically for the HERA programme is not centrally held and could only be obtained at a disproportionate cost. Overall temporary staff costs are set out in the FCDO Annual Reports for the previous three financial years:[https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/1019938/FCDO_annual_report_and_accounts_2020_to_2021_accessible.pdf][https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/1095304/FCDO_Annual_Report_2021_2022_Accessible_290722.pdf][https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/1170838/Foreign-Commonwealth-and-Development-Office-annual-report-and-accounts-2022-to-2023.pdf]

Spend on temporary staff within the FCDO are set out in the FCDO Annual Reports for the previous three financial years:

The creation of the FCDO brought together our development and diplomatic expertise to deliver greater impact for the UK internationally. The merger has required all FCDO staff across the department to work in different ways. Spend on temporary staff within the FCDO is largely driven by the nature of the projects being undertaken and the expertise required. At a high level, temporary staff costs over the last three financial years are associated to IT and digital activity, priority programmes and merger activity where temporary and specialist expertise has been needed to ensure delivery. These costs are set out in the FCDO Annual Reports for the previous three financial years:

Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office officials have been in regular contact with their counterparts at the Department of Levelling Up, Housing and Communities throughout the development of the Economic Activity of Public Bodies (Overseas Matters) Bill. FCDO advice to the DLUHC was that our assessment is that the bill is compliant with our responsibilities under UNSCR 2334.

On 13 July, at the Foreign Secretary's instruction, his senior official conducted a formal démarche of the Chinese Ambassador. The senior official set out our strong objections to actions in Hong Kong in recent weeks, including the issuing of arrest warrants and bounties for eight individuals living overseas, three of whom live in the UK, as well as the detention and questioning of the family members of some of those individuals in Hong Kong. We also expressed our ongoing opposition to the imposition of the National Security Law by Beijing on Hong Kong, which is a breach of the Sino-British Joint Declaration.

The UK's position on settlements is clear: they are illegal under international law, present an obstacle to peace, threaten the physical viability of a two-state solution and call into question Israel's commitment to a two-state solution. We urge Israel to halt settlement expansion immediately and we continue to monitor the changes to the settlement approval process instituted by the government of Israel on June 18, which facilitate swifter approval of construction in settlements. The Foreign Secretary reaffirmed this position in his 30 June statement along with his Australian and Canadian counterparts, and to Israeli Foreign Minister Eli Cohen directly in their 5 July phone call. The Minister of State for the Middle East, Lord (Tariq) Ahmad of Wimbledon also frequently raises this issue with the Israeli ambassador to the UK.