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A Sentebale spokeswoman rejected the claim that £500,000 had been spent on US consultants - and defended its approach to seeking new funds for the charity.

Some of those system upgrades are already underway, meaning cutting the funding now will waste past investments, in addition to increasing the likelihood of system failures during emergencies, the spokeswoman said.

In response to an urgent question from Liberal Democrat education spokeswoman Munira Wilson in the House of Commons, Daby said she regretted the delay in announcing the continuation of the fund.

A spokeswoman for Sentebale told the BBC that the use of "Dr" was a "matter of personal choice" and there was "no legal restriction preventing honorary degree recipients from using the title".

Asked about the killings, state department spokeswoman Tammy Bruce said: "Every single thing that happens in Gaza is happening because of Hamas."