Asked by: Baroness Hoey (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they plan to make representations to the government of the United States about recognising Somililand.
Answered by Lord Collins of Highbury - Lord in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The UK, alongside others in the international community, does not recognise Somaliland's unilateral declaration of independence. We believe that the settlement of Somaliland's status is an issue for Somalia and Somaliland to decide through a consultative process and dialogue, in which we encourage both Mogadishu and Hargeisa to engage.
Asked by: Baroness Hoey (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what is their response to the Commonwealth Secretary-General's letter inviting heads of government of all Commonwealth member states to make known to her by 26 November their views on Zimbabwe’s request to re-join the Commonwealth.
Answered by Lord Collins of Highbury - Lord in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The UK has always been clear that we would like to see Zimbabwe return to the Commonwealth when the time is right. However, currently we do not share the Secretariat's assessment of Zimbabwe's progress or readiness in line with the shared values and principles laid out in the Commonwealth Charter. Whilst we recognise there has been progress, we believe further steps are needed on democracy, governance and human rights before Zimbabwe makes a formal application to re-join the Commonwealth. We note some of the findings in the Commonwealth Election Observation Report and support the recommendations. We would encourage a further Commonwealth assessment mission to Zimbabwe in 2025 to follow up on these areas. The UK strongly values our partnership with Zimbabwe and stands ready to support further reforms in this regard, through the Commonwealth and other fora.
Asked by: Baroness Hoey (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of whether the introduction by the European Union of its Entry/Exit System and its European Travel Information and Authorisation System will affect travel between Great Britain and Northern Ireland.
Answered by Baroness Chapman of Darlington - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The Entry/Exit System (EES) and European Travel Information and Authorisation System (ETIAS) are EU systems and do not apply in any part of the UK, including Northern Ireland. EES and ETIAS will not apply in Ireland as it is not part of the Schengen Area. We do not foresee any implications for travel between Great Britain and Northern Ireland.
Asked by: Baroness Hoey (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the (1) timeliness, and (2) value for money of election monitoring missions undertaken by Commonwealth Observer Groups since 2016.
Answered by Lord Collins of Highbury - Lord in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The UK values the Commonwealth Secretariat's work on elections, including their election observation missions. This work plays a vital role in supporting resilient democratic institutions across the Commonwealth, in line with the values of the Commonwealth Charter. The Commonwealth Secretariat regularly provides updates on its work to all Commonwealth members and together they work to ensure effectiveness and value for money across Commonwealth programmes.
Asked by: Baroness Hoey (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what representations have been made to the Commonwealth to accelerate the publication by the Commonwealth Observer Group to the 2023 Zimbabwe Harmonised Elections of its final report on its findings on those elections.
Answered by Lord Collins of Highbury - Lord in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The Commonwealth Secretariat deploys independent Commonwealth Observer Groups to monitor elections. It is the responsibility of the Commonwealth Secretary-General to approve the publication of Commonwealth Election Observation Reports. Whilst we hope to see the report on the 2023 Zimbabwe Harmonised Elections soon, we do not wish to influence the independent Commonwealth process.
Asked by: Baroness Hoey (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what consideration they have given to any proposals for Zimbabwe to be readmitted as a member of the Commonwealth.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon
The decision on whether Zimbabwe re-joins the Commonwealth is for all Commonwealth members. The UK will review all final election observation reports, as well as the Secretary-General's report on membership readiness, before making any further assessment of Zimbabwe's readiness for readmission to the Commonwealth.
Asked by: Baroness Hoey (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of their financial support for Zimbabwe in the light of concerns that its Presidential election was not free and fair.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon
As set out in the Minister for Development and Africa's statement on 31 August, the UK shares the view of the Election Observation Missions' preliminary statements that the pre-election environment and election day fell short of regional and international standards. Specific issues included a lack of transparency in the tallying of results, as well as the arrests of domestic observers. The UK remains committed to supporting Zimbabwe and its people on a path to long-term, inclusive, and resilient development, democracy, and prosperity. No UK Official Development Assistance (ODA) is channelled directly through Government of Zimbabwe systems. Instead, we work primarily through multilateral organisations, notably United Nations agencies, as well as international NGOs and the private sector ensuring maximum impact and targeted support reaches the most vulnerable Zimbabweans.
Asked by: Baroness Hoey (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what representations have been made to the Commonwealth Secretariat to ensure that the Commonwealth will have election monitors in place in Zimbabwe before the elections on 23 August.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon
As the Minister for Development and Africa said to President Mnangagwa during their meeting on 5 May, it is important that the people of Zimbabwe can choose their government through peaceful and credible elections. Independent observation by international and domestic missions will play an important role in assessing electoral conduct against regional and international standards. The UK welcomes Zimbabwe's announcement that invitations have been sent to observer missions. The UK is supportive of the Commonwealth sending an electoral observation mission to Zimbabwe and FCDO is engaging closely with the Commonwealth Secretariat and Commonwealth partners to that end, including on possible UK support.
Asked by: Baroness Hoey (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government how much funding they have provided to BBC Media Action in each of the past ten years, and for what purpose; and how they assess BBC Media Action’s value, effectiveness, and operational range.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon
Between 2013 and 2022 FCDO and its predecessor departments provided BBC Media Action with £137 million (see table). This funding has supported work in Africa, Asia, Eastern Europe and the Middle East. As media freedom is under threat globally, FCDO funding has enabled BBC Media Action to support independent media and public platforms for discussion, and to tackle misinformation and disinformation. Their work has improved people's access to health information, and helped them cope with effects of climate change, conflict and disasters. In Ukraine, FCDO funding to BBC Media Action has provided independent media with training, equipment and other types of support to enable them to keep reporting throughout the conflict.
Year | Total funding (FCO, DFID, FCDO) |
2013 | £27.7m |
2014 | £25.7m |
2015 | £14.8m |
2016 | £20.5m |
2017 | £10.1m |
2018 | £7.6m |
2019 | £7.8m |
2020 | £8.6m |
2021 | £8.3m |
2022 | £6.1m |
TOTAL | £137.2m |
Asked by: Baroness Hoey (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government how many members sit on each of the sub-groups established under the Joint Consultative Working Group of the Windsor Framework; and who they are.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon
The structured sub-groups of the Joint Consultative Working Group are co-chaired by a designated official from the lead UK Government department and European Commission Directorate-General respectively. Where appropriate and by decision of the co-chairs, experts or other persons who are not members of delegations may be invited to attend meetings of the working group in order to provide information on a particular subject. As with the meetings themselves, the delegations for each structured sub-group are confidential unless otherwise decided by the co-chairs.