Asked by: Baroness Coussins (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to support mining companies headquartered or incorporated in the UK in complying with the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights, in the light of reports of human rights abuses resulting from the mining of key minerals.
Answered by Lord Collins of Highbury - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK supports voluntary human rights due diligence by UK businesses across their operations and supply relationships, in line with the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights and the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) Guidelines on Multinational Enterprises. In mineral supply chains, the Government supports the OECD's Due Diligence Guidance for Responsible Mineral Supply Chains which promotes responsible operation in conflict-affected and high-risk areas. The UK is Chair of the multi-stakeholder Voluntary Principles Initiative on Security and Human Rights that guides companies on security operations while respecting human rights. Several UK headquartered and incorporated mining companies are members of the initiative.
The UK's new Critical Minerals Strategy will help secure the supply of critical minerals vital for the UK's economic growth and clean energy transition whilst promoting responsible and transparent supply chains.
Asked by: Baroness Coussins (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to support the work of the Global Tailings Management Institute.
Answered by Lord Collins of Highbury - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK strongly welcomed the launch of the Global Tailings Management Institute in Johannesburg earlier this year. The Global Tailings Management Institute was established by the International Council on Mining and Metals, the United Nations Environment Programme and the UN-backed Principles for Responsible Investment (PRI) in 2019 to make mine tailings facilities safer. We are considering how best to support the Institute as part of our international approach under the new strategy.
Asked by: Baroness Coussins (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking, including through their embassies, to support environmental defenders, human rights defenders and indigenous communities who are at risk of violence due to their opposition to mining operations by companies headquartered or incorporated in the UK.
Answered by Lord Collins of Highbury - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK recognises the essential role that civil society and human rights defenders play in promoting and protecting human rights, democracy, and the rule of law. Our Embassies and Missions support those at risk, including by monitoring cases, observing trials and raising issues with host governments. We encourage delivery partners to incorporate lived experience into programme design and delivery in an ethical and meaningful way. The UK government works to promote responsible business practices and greater value-addition in developing countries' critical minerals supply chains through several ODA-funded initiatives working with governments, investors and civil society, including support to the Extractives Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI) and Natural Resource Governance Institute (NRGI).
Asked by: Baroness Coussins (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to ensure consultation of civil society stakeholders who may be affected by proposed mining operations in the review of the UK Critical Minerals Strategy.
Answered by Baroness Jones of Whitchurch - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The Department for Business and Trade will publish a Critical Minerals Strategy this year that will refine our approach to promoting responsible and transparent practices in critical mineral supply chains, both across the UK and globally. We are engaging a range of stakeholders to gather expertise and insights to shape our approach, including civil society, standards-setting organisations and other key environmental, social and governance (ESG) stakeholders to inform our approach to the strategy.
Asked by: Baroness Coussins (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to publish the new promotional leaflets and posters about the Victims' Code in languages other than English.
Answered by Lord Ponsonby of Shulbrede - Lord in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The materials that are part of the ‘Victims’ Code: Understand Your Rights’ campaign are available in English, Welsh, Arabic, Bangla, Chinese, French, Gujarati, Italian, Lithuanian, Polish, Portuguese, Punjabi, Romanian, Spanish, Tamil, Turkish and Urdu. These reflect the fifteen most spoken languages in the UK, in addition to English and Welsh. They are available at Victims' Code posters and leaflet translated - GOV.UK.
Asked by: Baroness Coussins (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Smith of Malvern on 6 January (HL3649), what progress has been made in discussions across the Government regarding funding of the Mandarin Excellence Programme beyond August 2025; and when they expect a decision on the subject to be announced.
Answered by Baroness Smith of Malvern - Minister of State (Minister for Women and Equalities)
The department continues to work with all interested parties across government to consider the future approach to supporting Mandarin language learning beyond August 2025, and we will set out more in due course.
Asked by: Baroness Coussins (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask His Majesty's Government what discussions they are holding with foreign language professionals and their representative bodies about the regulation of machine translation in the context of developing AI policy.
Answered by Lord Vallance of Balham - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
We recognise that the vast majority of AI systems - including machine translation - are best regulated at the point of use and in the context in which they are deployed. That’s why in response to the AI Action Plan, the government has committed to supporting regulators in evaluating their AI capabilities and understanding how these can be strengthened.
In regard to foreign language professionals, the GCHQ-chaired cross-Government Languages Group brings together government language professionals, developers and commissioning officers who have a stake in machine translation capability, to capture use cases and develop best practice for its development and deployment.
Asked by: Baroness Coussins (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer on 31 July 2024 by Lord Collins of Highbury (HL27), what progress has been made towards a UN Security Council Resolution on the protection of civilian interpreters working with the Armed Forces in conflict zones who may not be classified as conducting humanitarian activities.
Answered by Lord Collins of Highbury - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
We recognise the vital role that interpreters play in conflicts, and the threats they face. The most effective way to protect civilians and safeguard human rights, including those civilians working as interpreters, is by improving implementation of existing UN Security Council resolutions, compliance with International Humanitarian Law and seeking accountability for violations.
The UK takes seriously our duty of care responsibilities for civilian interpreters and other locally employed civilians working with our Armed Forces, as the Afghan Relocations and Assistance Policy (ARAP) scheme demonstrates. The ARAP scheme, administered by the Ministry of Defence, provides safe resettlement routes for those formerly employed, directly or indirectly, by the UK Government.
Asked by: Baroness Coussins (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer on 11 November 2024 by Lord Ponsonby of Shulbrede (HL2195), when they plan to conduct the consultation on the revised Victims' Code.
Answered by Lord Ponsonby of Shulbrede - Lord in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
We aim to consult on the revised Victims’ Code early this year as part of our commitment to ensure that victims of crime have the information and support they need.
Asked by: Baroness Coussins (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government why a visa requirement for Columbian nationals travelling to the United Kingdom was reintroduced in November 2024.
Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)
A visit visa requirement for Colombian nationals was reintroduced on 26 November 2024 due to the significant and sustained increase in individuals travelling to the UK for reasons other than those permitted under the Immigration Rules for Visitors following the lifting of the visa requirement in November 2022. In particular, there was a significant increase in Colombian nationals claiming asylum, with more asylum claims in every quarter of 2023 and 2024 than in the entire 10 years preceding the visa lift. Full reasons for the reintroduction of the visa requirement were provided in the Explanatory Memorandum to the changes in the Immigration Rules on 26 November 2024. This also set out details of the visa-free transition period for Colombian nationals holding travel bookings to the UK made prior to the reintroduction of the visa requirement.