Asked by: Samantha Niblett (Labour - South Derbyshire)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment his Department has made of the potential merits of incorporating pleasure-inclusive approaches into UK-funded sexual and reproductive health programmes overseas.
Answered by Kirsty McNeill - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office has not yet engaged with the World Health Organisation on the topic of pleasure-based sexual and reproductive health or assessed the merits or implications of this approach for UK-funded sexual and reproductive health and rights policies and programming, including HIV and STI prevention programmes.
Asked by: Bell Ribeiro-Addy (Labour - Clapham and Brixton Hill)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps he is taking to support efforts to recognise gender-based persecution more explicitly as a crime against humanity.
Answered by Uma Kumaran - Assistant Whip
Persecution on gender grounds is codified as a crime against humanity under the Rome Statute. In partnership with UN Women and the International Criminal Court, the UK is supporting the development of the Gender Persecution Principles (GPP), an initiative that aims to advance understanding, prevention, and accountability for gender persecution. The initiative will help ensure Governments, humanitarian groups, UN bodies, and civil society adopt a more unified approach to tackling gender-based persecution. The UK launched this collaboration at the Commission on the Status of Women in March 2026.
Asked by: Samantha Niblett (Labour - South Derbyshire)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment his Department has made of the potential implications for her policies of the investment case for pleasure-inclusive sexual health published in the British Medical Journal, and its implications for UK Official Development Assistance.
Answered by Kirsty McNeill - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office has not yet engaged with the World Health Organisation on the topic of pleasure-based sexual and reproductive health or assessed the merits or implications of this approach for UK-funded sexual and reproductive health and rights policies and programming, including HIV and STI prevention programmes.
Asked by: Brendan O'Hara (Scottish National Party - Argyll, Bute and South Lochaber)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that funding is protected for programmes supporting women who have suffered conflict-related sexual violence in Colombia.
Answered by Chris Elmore - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK is committed to supporting victims of conflict-related sexual violence (CRSV) in Colombia. UK funding has helped advance accountability and support for thousands of survivors of CRSV over the last ten years. This includes support to the transitional justice elements of the 2016 Peace Agreement in documenting cases of sexual violence in conflict. With women's organisations, our support has ensured survivors of sexual violence, including indigenous women, receive justice and support. The UK regularly raises CRSV and violence against vulnerable communities at United Nations (UN) Security Council Sessions on Colombia and supported the launch of Colombia's first Women, Peace and Security National Action Plan. We will continue to work with the Government of Colombia, international partners and civil society on this agenda, in line with the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) Women and Girls Strategy.
Asked by: Nadia Whittome (Labour - Nottingham East)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent representations he has made to the Government of Iran regarding the ten individuals convicted in connection with the January 2026 protests in Isfahan who are reportedly at risk of execution.
Answered by Stephen Doughty - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
We condemn in the strongest terms the ongoing executions of protesters and use of the death penalty by the Islamic Republic of Iran. On 12 August 2026, the UK signed a joint statement alongside our Canadian and European allies specifically calling on Iran to immediately end the use of the death penalty and highlighting that the use of capital punishment to silence dissent, intimidate communities, and punish individuals exercising their human rights can never be justified.
Asked by: Rupa Huq (Labour - Ealing Central and Acton)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what discussions he has had with his Israeli counterpart on the use of the Unlawful Combatants Law to detain Palestinian doctors.
Answered by Stephen Doughty - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK government has regularly engaged with Israeli counterparts to express deep concern about the detention and treatment in detention of Palestinian doctors and other detainees. We have been consistently clear that all detainees, including doctors, must be treated with dignity and in full accordance with international law we have been clear that any allegations of torture or mistreatment must be thoroughly investigated.
Asked by: Steff Aquarone (Liberal Democrat - North Norfolk)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, on what date the Illicit Finance Summit 2026 will be held.
Answered by Chris Elmore - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
This Government is committed to tackling illicit finance and corruption at home and internationally. To this end, the Foreign Secretary will host an Illicit Finance Summit. Further details will be announced in due course.
Asked by: Anneliese Dodds (Labour (Co-op) - Oxford East)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of the EU's announcement of a ban on the purchase and import of Sudanese gold on the purchase and import of such gold to the UK.
Answered by Kirsty McNeill - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The illicit gold trade in Sudan is fuelling a war that has devasted the lives of millions. On 16 July, the UK designated eleven individuals and entities linked to the illicit gold and finance networks sustaining the war in Sudan, complementing the recent action taken by the EU. For more details on these designations, I refer the Rt Hon Member to the press release issued on 16 July, linked below.
UK sanctions illicit gold networks fuelling Sudan’s war amid crisis around El Obeid - GOV.UK
Asked by: Anneliese Dodds (Labour (Co-op) - Oxford East)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what discussions she has had with her EU counterparts concerning the latter's' adoption of a ban on purchases and importation of Sudanese gold.
Answered by Kirsty McNeill - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The illicit gold trade in Sudan is fuelling a war that has devasted the lives of millions. On 16 July, the UK designated eleven individuals and entities linked to the illicit gold and finance networks sustaining the war in Sudan, complementing the recent action taken by the EU. For more details on these designations, I refer the Rt Hon Member to the press release issued on 16 July, linked below.
UK sanctions illicit gold networks fuelling Sudan’s war amid crisis around El Obeid - GOV.UK
Asked by: Fleur Anderson (Labour - Putney)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what discussions his Department has had with the Coalition for Atrocity Prevention and Justice for Sudan on civilian protection measures.
Answered by Kirsty McNeill - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
We are working closely with our partners in the Coalition for Atrocity Prevention and Justice for Sudan to raise the costs of atrocities, advance justice, and bolster local peacebuilding and protection efforts. We have jointly responded to risks of atrocities - such as a potential RSF assault on El Obeid - through coordinated lobbying, joint statements, and convening an Urgent Debate at the Human Rights Council. On 19-20 August, we hosted Coalition partners for two-days, where we discussed innovative civilian protection measures and met with the UN Fact-Finding Mission to coordinate our support for their mandate renewal in October.