Ethiopia: Northern Tigray Region
Baroness Goudie Excerpts(3 years, 5 months ago)
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Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon (Con)
Let me assure the noble and right reverend Lord that yes, we are in touch with some of the countries I have already listed, such as Kenya, Uganda, Somalia and South Africa. We are dealing with those countries in the region at the most senior levels of government.
Baroness Goudie (Lab) [V]
My Lords, may I ask the Minister about local women being asked to be at the peace table, on both sides, from now on? It is only with local women at the peace table that we will get real peace.
Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon (Con)
I totally agree with the noble Baroness. The United Kingdom has been at the forefront of involving women peace mediators. Indeed, we have launched several initiatives, and I agree that when women are involved in bringing about peace and sustaining it, peace agreements last much longer. The evidence is there for all to see.
Sustainable Development Goals
Baroness Goudie Excerpts(3 years, 6 months ago)
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Baroness Sugg (Con) [V]
My Lords, we are indeed supporting the Global Partnership for Education. We look forward to co-hosting the replenishment conference with the Government of Kenya next year and we will announce our support for GPE in due course.
Baroness Goudie (Lab) [V]
[Inaudible.] the UN sustainable goals is threatened by lack of investment in some of the emerging markets in Africa, South America and the Middle East. Is it possible for us to concentrate more investment in this area?
Baroness Sugg (Con) [V]
[Inaudible.] and we will continue to do so. I point the noble Baroness towards the UK-Africa Investment Summit, which we held at the end of last year and which set out what further moves we will take to increase our investment within Africa.
Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe
Baroness Goudie Excerpts(3 years, 6 months ago)
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Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon (Con)
My Lords, exercising diplomatic protection to Mrs Zaghari-Ratcliffe’s case formally raised it to the level of a state issue. We continue to take further action where we judge that it will help to secure her full and permanent release. For the time being, we welcome the fact that she has been allowed to return home and has not been taken to prison.
Baroness Goudie (Lab) [V]
My Lords, following on from my noble colleagues’ questions, can the Minister assure us that Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe will be able to have medical check-ups through the embassy every week and that a permanent person will visit her every other day from the embassy? At the moment, I feel she is in a very fragile state, with no continuity of people to be with her besides her family.
Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon (Con)
My Lords, we as Her Majesty’s Government cannot guarantee this, but I assure the noble Baroness that we continue to implore the Iranian authorities that she should receive whatever medical attention she needs.
Nagorno-Karabakh: Genocide Emergency Alert
Baroness Goudie Excerpts(3 years, 6 months ago)
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Baroness Sugg (Con) [V]
My Lords, we have seen a number of reports highlighting some terrible incidents affecting civilians. We will continue to monitor that carefully. Over the weekend, we announced new UK aid support, which is directly targeted to help thousands of people who have been affected by the conflict. That support includes urgent medical supplies, food and safer shelters. It is a £1 million aid package in response to an appeal through the International Committee of the Red Cross.
Baroness Goudie (Lab) [V]
My Lords, I welcome the Government’s assistance for aid. Almost a month ago Canada halted arms sales to Azerbaijan’s backer and ally, Turkey, in the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. Will the UK do likewise?
Baroness Sugg (Con) [V]
My Lords, we continue to monitor developments in the region closely and consider all export applications thoroughly against a strict risk assessment framework. We keep all licences under careful review. The UK complies with the OSCE arms embargo relating to the Nagorno-Karabakh region. This is considered as part of our export licensing process.
Covid-19: Access to Vaccine
Baroness Goudie Excerpts(3 years, 7 months ago)
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Baroness Sugg (Con)
My Lords, getting vaccinated against preventable diseases is of course the right thing to do to protect others. The UK Government take the issue of disinformation very seriously; it is really important at this time of national emergency that the public have accurate information. We are working at pace with partners to help combat false and misleading narratives about coronavirus, making sure that the public have the right information they need to protect themselves.
Baroness Goudie (Lab) [V]
My Lords, following on from the question from my noble friend Lord Collins, how are we are going to ensure that larger nations such as America do not try to buy all the vaccine, thereby taking it away from other countries, as we have read about in the press recently? What could Britain’s role be in that?
Baroness Sugg (Con)
My Lords, as the noble Baroness says, COVAX does not prevent countries signing up to their own bilateral deals, but we really believe that bringing the world together through the COVAX Facility is going to be the best way to prevent vaccine nationalism. We will continue to work with our friends and partners around the world to encourage all countries to sign up to COVAX.
Nagorno-Karabakh
Baroness Goudie Excerpts(3 years, 7 months ago)
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Baroness Sugg (Con)
The noble Lord rightly highlights the situation in which many civilians find themselves in this conflict, which is why we are keen to do everything we can to de-escalate it. On relations with Turkey, on 28 September, the Prime Minister spoke to President Erdoğan. They agreed on the importance of a return to dialogue. As I have said, we will do all that we can to urge the parties to avoid any external interference.
Baroness Goudie (Lab) [V]
My Lords, war crimes do not justify further war crimes. The talks have been going on since the early 1990s, so is it not time that we had a new round of peace talks with the parties? I call on the British Government to be one of those leading parties at a round table with NATO and with women from the locality who are on the ground. There can be no peace without women. It is really important that we start the talks afresh.
Baroness Sugg (Con)
My Lords, I agree completely with the noble Baroness on the importance of including women in the peace talks. As she will know, when women are involved, we see longer-lasting peace. The international community is fully behind the Minsk process, which we think is the correct mechanism to bring the parties to the table and to see some progress on this.
Belarus: Presidential Elections
Baroness Goudie Excerpts(3 years, 7 months ago)
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Baroness Sugg (Con)
I thank the noble Lord for his support. The Magnitsky regime, as he will know, is relatively new. As I said, we are looking at what more we can do to strengthen it, and there will be further developments on that in due course. I also agree with the noble Lord on the importance of keeping up cultural relationships with countries all around the world, and we will continue to support the BBC World Service and other cultural organisations.
Baroness Goudie (Lab) [V]
My Lords, I very much welcome the Government’s Statement. Belarus is the only country in Europe not to be part of the European Convention on Human Rights. The United Kingdom would become the second if we were to move on to the second round of Brexit, and it would cease to be a full party to the convention, as many Conservatives wish. I do hope that this will be reconsidered.
As many colleagues have said, Belarus is the only country in the world where the President is inaugurated in secret, and he is very close to his ally, President Putin. I hope that we will consider the whole question of how women are being treated in Belarus, with sexual violence, imprisonment and having other rights taken away, because the women are leading this campaign, and it is vital that they are given support.
Belarus has had arrests on a huge scale. The United Kingdom must go beyond recognising the Belarusian regime—we must review our relationship at every level, and we must pursue sanctions; otherwise, our credibility will be at stake. We must demonstrate solidarity continually with everyone, including those in the trade union movement. I end where I began: human rights are the heart of this matter.
Baroness Sugg (Con)
My Lords, the noble Baroness rightly highlights many of the reasons why the people of Belarus continue to protest for a better future. She mentioned the European Convention on Human Rights; we are committed to that and to protecting and championing human rights at home and abroad. I hope the noble Baroness is reassured that we are pursuing sanctions, and we will continue to demonstrate solidarity with the brave protesters. I spoke to our ambassador this morning, who talked me through all the different ways she is supporting the protesters: both laying wreaths and hosting some of the protesters at the embassy to give them a safe space to talk. Also, UK diplomats have attended the trials of political opponents and independent journalists to show solidarity. I agree with the noble Baroness that human rights are at the heart of this matter.
Treaty Scrutiny: Working Practices (EUC Report)
Baroness Goudie Excerpts(3 years, 8 months ago)
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The Deputy Chairman of Committees (Lord Bates) (Con)
I call the next speaker: Baroness Goudie.
The Deputy Chairman of Committees (Lord Bates) (Con)
If we cannot reach the noble Baroness, Lady Goudie, we will go to the noble Baroness, Lady Bowles.
The Deputy Chairman of Committees (Lord Bates) (Con)
Baroness Bowles, I do apologise. Can we can just pause for a moment while we try to reconnect with the previous speaker?
Baroness Goudie (Lab) (V)
Thank you, my Lords, I am so sorry: I forgot to unmute. I welcome the reports of the noble Baroness, Lady Taylor, the noble and learned Lord, Lord Goldsmith, and the noble Earl, Lord Kinnoull, on the setting up of the new committee. I tend to agree with a number of my colleagues that it ought to be partly made up with Members of the House of Commons. Further, we must talk and be involved with the devolved Parliaments. This is very important, particularly in respect to Northern Ireland.
I am a member of the European Union Security and Justice Sub-Committee, where we have been looking at a number of these issues over the last 12 months. I wish to concentrate today on the final recommendation of the committee report Scrutiny of International Agreements, which draws attention to the fact that the CRaG Act applies only to international agreements that are binding under international law. This leaves a scrutiny gap because it excludes scrutiny of both political agreements and agreements with non-state entities. Important examples of political agreements excluded from scrutiny are memoranda of understanding, which are the same as treaties in terms of political commitment.
Paragraph 71 of the report highlights
“Air Services Agreements, which had been treaties between the EU and third countries”
but, as part of the Brexit process, have been converted into memoranda of understanding and not published. Air service agreements are important in facilitating international, commercial air-transport servicing and granting economic bilateral rights. These agreements have been around almost as long as flight itself. This scrutiny gap must be plugged. Proper scrutiny must not be circumvented. The committee’s recommendation is helpful so far as it goes, but it is too weak in asking only for consideration to be given. There are likely to be further examples of EU treaties under third countries being replaced by UK arrangements with those countries.
Aid Impact
Baroness Goudie Excerpts(3 years, 8 months ago)
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The Senior Deputy Speaker (Lord McFall of Alcluith)
I call the noble Baroness, Lady Cox. No? I call the noble Baroness, Lady Goudie.
Baroness Goudie (Lab) [V]
My Lords, I welcome the review. I very much hope that as part of it, unlike what has happened previously, the gender and disability lenses are looked at along with culture, and that there is respect for all countries in the projects that we are working on. I feel that this is very important. Further, I know this is not quite right, but there is spending in Scotland and Wales on development, and maybe we could include this in some way as an exception.
Baroness Sugg (Con)
My Lords, ICAI’s reports have led to much substantive action in key areas, including the use of data and the preparation of results, as well as helping us to mainstream our policies on gender, making sure that all our policies are inclusive and that we reach the poorest and leave no one behind. We will encourage ICAI to continue to assist us on those measures. I also take the opportunity to reiterate the point that advancing gender equality and women’s rights are of course a core part of the new Government’s mission.
Environmental Protection (Plastic Straws, Cotton Buds and Stirrers) (England) Regulations 2020
Baroness Goudie Excerpts(3 years, 10 months ago)
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Baroness Goudie (Lab) [V]
My Lords, I welcome these regulations and I support my noble friend Lord McConnell regarding the development goals. Britain could clearly be leading the way on the development goals on plastic. Next year—because it has been postponed—we are hosting COP 26. By doing this we could show the rest of the world that we are banning all forms of plastic for consumers and for building, because we have seen what it is doing to our sewers, to our oceans and to Antarctica. We must protect the environment not only for ourselves but for our children and further generations. I hope that the Government will ensure that there is enough funding for local authorities to enforce these regulations.