Asked by: Baroness Berridge (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many Yazidis have been given asylum in the UK under (1) the Syrian Vulnerable Person Resettlement Scheme, (2) the Gateway Protection Programme, and (3) the Mandate Refugee Scheme, in the last six months.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
We continue to work closely with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees to identify appropriate cases that they deem in need of resettlement for the Syrian Vulnerable Persons Resettlement Scheme, the Gateway Protection Programme and the Mandate Refugee Scheme.
Statistics on arrivals under each of these schemes are published in the regular quarterly Immigration Statistics in line with the Code of Practice for Official Statistics.
The next set of statistics will be in the quarterly release on 26 May 2016 and will cover the period January – March 2016. We do not publish a breakdown of these statistics by religion or ethnicity.
Asked by: Baroness Berridge (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the answer by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon on 21 April (HL Deb, col 762–4) on religiously motivated crime, whether they will provide details of which community groups the Home Secretary is engaging with in the "community round tables", and how many times each of those round tables have met in the past year.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
In his speech on countering extremism in July 2015, the Prime Minister said that he wanted to hear directly from those in our society who are challenging extremism. The Community Engagement Forum is one of the ways we are doing this. The Forums provide a platform for a wide range of partners to share their experiences and learn from each other. Attendance at the Forums is fluid to ensure Ministers can hear from a wide range of partners from a variety of backgrounds.
To date, the Community Engagement Forum has met on 13 October 2015, 19 November 2015 and 14 January 2016. A list of those that have attended is available in response to written parliamentary questions HL6419 and HC20784. Further community forums are planned for later this year. In addition, I myself have chaired round tables with different faith communities and leaders.
Asked by: Baroness Berridge (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government, following the murder of Asad Shah in Glasgow, what action they are taking to restrict access to websites that espouse extremism in Pakistan.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The tragic murder of Asad Shah demonstrated the powerful influence of extremist online content. In the UK, the Metropolitan Police’s Counter Terrorism Internet Referral Unit (CTIRU) is responsible for the referral of terrorist-related content to online communication service providers (CSPs) for removal. Upon receipt of a referral, CSPs remove material on a voluntary basis where it breaches their terms and conditions.
Referrals made to CSPs by CTIRU have led to over 160,000 pieces of terrorist-related content being removed to date world-wide, including websites, user accounts and videos. Overall, removals at the request of CTIRU have increased from around 60 items a month in 2010, when CTIRU was first established, to over 4,000 a month in 2016.
Asked by: Baroness Berridge (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether, in the light of the ongoing problems faced by the Yazidi community and children affected by the conflict in Iraq and Syria, they will reassess the criteria for eligibility for the Syrian Vulnerable Person Resettlement Programme and other UK resettlement schemes.
Answered by Lord Bates
Under the current scheme, only UNHCR registered Syrian refugees are eligible under the Syrian Resettlement Scheme, which has been expanded to resettle up to 20,000 during this Parliament. We work closely with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) to identify cases that they deem in need of resettlement according to seven agreed vulnerability criteria for the Syrian Resettlement Scheme.
The Syrian Resettlement Scheme is operated in addition to our global resettlement schemes: Gateway and Mandate, which are not nationality specific.
Asked by: Baroness Berridge (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is their latest assessment of the security situation in the Central African Republic.
Answered by Baroness Anelay of St Johns
The security situation in the Central African Republic (CAR) is grave. Outside the capital Bangui, violence, looting, road-blocks, hostage-taking and human rights abuses continue to occur with relative impunity.
The security situation in Bangui is more stable than the rest of the country, having improved following the surge in violence in late September, but tensions still run high and we continue to advise against all travel to CAR.
Asked by: Baroness Berridge (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government how much the United Kingdom contributes to the cost of the UN peacekeeping force in the Central African Republic.
Answered by Baroness Anelay of St Johns
The UK contributes £23.2 million for the financial year 2014/15, and a projected £33.02 million for the financial year 2015/16, to the UN Peacekeeping Budget for the UN Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in the Central African Republic (MINUSCA). These are assessed (i.e. mandatory) contributions which are based on funding a fixed percentage of MINUSCA’s budget.
Asked by: Baroness Berridge (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is their assessment of the need for funds to enable the disarmament, demobilisation and re-integration of those perpetrating violence in the Central African Republic.
Answered by Baroness Anelay of St Johns
Disarmament, demobilisation and reintegration (DDR) is essential to create the conditions for stability and security in the Central African Republic (CAR). The UN peacekeeping force in CAR, the UN Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in the Central African Republic (MINUSCA), is the lead on DDR work in CAR. The UK works closely with MINUSCA to ensure it provides adequate support to CAR authorities to launch DDR in CAR.
MINUSCA has budgeted $28 million for a DDR programme aimed at what they expect will amount to 3,500 ex-Seleka fighters in total and 1,500-3,500 dependants. Through the UK’s contribution to MINUSCA, we support this vital work on pushing DDR forward in CAR.
MINUSCA is currently in the pre-DDR phase, preparing for the launch of DDR. This entails a sensitisation process/education process for former combatants who will take part in DDR.
Asked by: Baroness Berridge (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of whether the Central African Republic should be included in the Preventing Sexual Violence in Conflict initiative.
Answered by Baroness Anelay of St Johns
Work in the Central African Republic (CAR) has been an important part of the Preventing Sexual Violence in Conflict Initiative in recognition of the large role that sexual violence has played in the conflict in CAR which has included the sexual abuse of women and children, sexual slavery and rape. This work has, to date, been primarily carried out through our work with the African Union (AU). Since the launch of the initiative, the UK has provided £1.3 million to support the AU’s Gender Peace and Security Programme. This includes the deployment of sexual violence experts that were deployed to the CAR in 2014. These experts provided support to victims in the districts of Paoua, Kaga-Bandoro and Bambar. This Programme also supported the AU’s Special Envoy on Women, Peace and Security, Madame Bineta Diop. We are working with the AU to build on this deployment and increase AU capacity to carry out similar deployments in the future.Asked by: Baroness Berridge (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the situation of Ahmadi Muslims in The Gambia, particularly in the light of the statement made by the Gambian Supreme Islamic Council claiming them to be non-Muslims.
Answered by Baroness Anelay of St Johns
The British Government is concerned about the statement issued by the Gambian Supreme Islamic Council in January claiming that the Ahmadiyya community are not Muslims. The UK position on human rights is clear: they are universal and must apply equally to all people. This includes freedom of religion, and divergent views or interpretations should be allowed to co-exist. Our Embassy will be speaking to the Government of The Gambia about these statements and will continue to monitor developments closely.
Asked by: Baroness Berridge (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is their assessment of whether coercion is being exercised on Indian citizens to reconvert to Hinduism.
Answered by Baroness Anelay of St Johns
We are aware that incidents of discrimination against minority communities in India do still occur. India’s Constitution guarantees freedom of conscience and the right to freely profess, practice and propagate religion. The Indian government has a range of policies and programmes to support religious minorities.
We discuss minority issues with the Indian authorities and support minority groups through the Department for International Development’s programme in India which helps to promote equal treatment and access to services for the most disadvantaged communities.
I refer the noble Baroness to my previous answers of 31 December 2014 (HL3847 and HL3848).