Asked by: Lord Alton of Liverpool (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether the conviction of Jimmy Lai represents a breach of the Sino-British Joint Declaration.
Answered by Baroness Chapman of Darlington - Minister of State (Development)
I refer the Noble Lord to the statement given to the House on 17 December 2025 on the conviction of Jimmy Lai, and to the responses in the subsequent debate, where such issues were addressed.
Asked by: Lord Alton of Liverpool (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what representations they have made to the (1) government of China, and (2) authorities in Hong Kong, regarding the admission of evidence obtained through the reported torture of Andy Li and cited during the trial of Jimmy Lai.
Answered by Baroness Chapman of Darlington - Minister of State (Development)
I refer the Noble Lord to the statement given to the House on 17 December 2025 on the conviction of Jimmy Lai, and to the responses in the subsequent debate, where such issues were addressed.
Asked by: Lord Alton of Liverpool (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what consideration the Prime Minister has given to delaying his official visit to China in January until Jimmy Lai has been released from prison.
Answered by Baroness Chapman of Darlington - Minister of State (Development)
I refer the Noble Lord to the statement given to the House on 17 December 2025 on the conviction of Jimmy Lai, and to the responses in the subsequent debate, where such issues were addressed.
Asked by: Lord Alton of Liverpool (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether it is their official policy to omit mention of the Sino-British Joint Declaration and the imprisonment of Jimmy Lai when ministers discuss the UK-Hong Kong bilateral relationship in the press.
Answered by Baroness Chapman of Darlington - Minister of State (Development)
On the contrary, ministers and officials regularly raise the continued detention of Jimmy Lai, and China's obligations under the Sino-British Joint Declaration, in interviews with the media, statements to Parliament, public speeches, the government's Six-monthly Reports to Parliament on Hong Kong, and discussions we have with our Chinese counterparts. For example, the Foreign Secretary raised Jimmy Lai's case both in her working dinner with G7 foreign ministers in Canada on 11 November, and a phone call with her Chinese counterpart, Wang Yi, on 6 November.
Asked by: Lord Alton of Liverpool (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether the Mass Atrocity Prevention Hub is operational.
Answered by Baroness Chapman of Darlington - Minister of State (Development)
I refer the Noble Lord to the answer of 2 December to question HL12019.
Asked by: Lord Alton of Liverpool (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government why a Joint Analysis of Conflict and Stability report on Sudan has not been commissioned.
Answered by Baroness Chapman of Darlington - Minister of State (Development)
As I told the Noble Lord in my answer to Question HL11438, regular and ongoing analysis of the situation in Sudan is taking place across government, with support from external experts, to inform the UK's policy-making, and as such, there has been no requirement to commission a separate analysis of the type he describes.
Asked by: Lord Alton of Liverpool (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of reports that references to genocide were removed from a risk assessment of Sudan.
Answered by Baroness Chapman of Darlington - Minister of State (Development)
Ministers in the current Government are not in a position to comment on the preparation of assessments under a previous administration, but I would note that official spokespeople for the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office have rejected the reports to which the Noble Lord refers, and explained that the UK only makes formal determinations of genocide based on the judgement of a competent court, after consideration of all the evidence available, in the context of a credible judicial process.
Asked by: Lord Alton of Liverpool (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of preliminary warnings of atrocity crimes in Darfur.
Answered by Baroness Chapman of Darlington - Minister of State (Development)
Ministers in the current Government are not in a position to comment on the preparation of assessments under a previous administration, but I would note that official spokespeople for the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office have rejected the reports to which the Noble Lord refers, and explained that the UK only makes formal determinations of genocide based on the judgement of a competent court, after consideration of all the evidence available, in the context of a credible judicial process.
Asked by: Lord Alton of Liverpool (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what action they intend to take in response to reports of drone attacks by the Sudanese army on civilians and children in the Nuba Mountains; and whether they will provide direct humanitarian assistance to the affected community.
Answered by Baroness Chapman of Darlington - Minister of State (Development)
I refer the Noble Lord to my statement on Sudan on 19 November, Official Report, vol. 850, cols. 884-887 (https://hansard.parliament.uk/lords/2025-11-19/debates/AF154555-6D0E-4F4A-B2DF-A9F4CB2F391B/GazaAndSudan), and my remarks in the House of Lords debate on 27 November, Official Report, vol. 850, cols. 1465-1468 (https://hansard.parliament.uk/lords/2025-11-27/debates/81C37BE5-A832-4CC1-A83A-A73FD1937E8C/Sudan). I will provide further updates to the House in due course, including on international efforts to end the fighting, and on the progress we are making to reach all the people and regions currently in desperate need of humanitarian support.
Asked by: Lord Alton of Liverpool (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking in response to the seizure of power by the military in Guinea-Bissau, and what assessment they have made of the location and safety of the political leaders who have been detained, targeted or disappeared since the coup.
Answered by Baroness Chapman of Darlington - Minister of State (Development)
The UK is concerned by recent developments in Guinea-Bissau and is monitoring the situation closely. It is essential that all parties respect constitutional order and democratic principles. We welcome the swift response of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) and the African Union, and support their efforts to bring about a return to constitutional order.
Following his initial detention, former President Embaló has now left Guinea-Bissau. We remain concerned over the safety of other political leaders who are still in detention or seeking refuge abroad, and we support ECOWAS efforts to ensure that the rights of all those individuals are respected.