Asked by: Lord Scriven (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Collins of Highbury on 6 November (HL1953), whether the review mentioned in the Answer has been conducted; if not, when it is expected to conclude; and whether its findings will be made publicly available in the interests of transparency.
Answered by Lord Collins of Highbury - Lord in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
As mentioned in my answer to HL1953, the FCDO is committed to transparency. We are currently reviewing how to improve the quality of transparency data published about the Gulf Strategy Fund, to build on the Thematic Summaries already published annually to Gov.uk. Publication of the summary for 2023/24 will follow this review. The review is underway and is expected to conclude in January 2025, it is in the form of advice which is internal to the FCDO and will not be published.
Asked by: Lord Scriven (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government which Government Ministers and officials (1) were consulted, (2) were informed, and (3) provided advice, on the appointment of King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa to the Honorary Knights Grand Cross of the Royal Victorian Order; and, if so, when.
Answered by Lord Collins of Highbury - Lord in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
Awards in the Royal Victorian Order are made personally by The King. With advice from His Majesty's Government, The King invested King Hamad of Bahrain with his Honorary Knighthood at Windsor Castle on 11 November 2024 in the year of his Silver Jubilee.
Asked by: Lord Scriven (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the recommendation of the Sub-Committee on Accreditation of the Global Alliance of National Human Rights Institutions to re-accredit the National Institute for Human Rights of Bahrain with “B” status; and what are the implications of that for their funding for the National Institute for Human Rights of Bahrain under the Gulf Strategy Fund.
Answered by Lord Collins of Highbury - Lord in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The UK plays no role in recommendations made by the Global Alliance of National Human Rights Institutions. The Gulf Strategy Fund (GSF) does not provide direct funding to the Bahrain National Institute for Human Rights (NIHR). All GSF projects are delivered through implementing partners who provide training or technical assistance to local beneficiaries.
Asked by: Lord Scriven (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government which Government Ministers and officials attended the dinner held for King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa at Windsor Castle on 11 November.
Answered by Lord Collins of Highbury - Lord in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The dinner held for King Hamad Bin Isa Al Khalifa at Windsor Castle was a private event hosted by His Majesty The King. Guests included the Secretary of State for Defence, the Lord Chancellor, Chief of Defence Staff and the British Ambassador to Bahrain.
Asked by: Lord Scriven (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Collins of Highbury on 9 August (HL537), when the annual summary of projects funded by the Gulf Strategy Fund in 2023–24 will be published.
Answered by Lord Collins of Highbury - Lord in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The FY2023/24 annual summary will be published following the conclusion of the review. Future annual summaries will be prepared and published in line with the findings and recommendations of the review.
Asked by: Lord Scriven (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what representations they have made to authorities in Bahrain regarding allegations of mistreatment, suspension of telephone calls, and solitary confinement of (1) Mohamed Ramadan, (2) Zuhair Ebrahim Jasim Abdullah, (3) Mohamed Radhi Hasan, and (4) Husain Ebrahim Marzooq, who are on death row in Jau Prison.
Answered by Lord Collins of Highbury - Lord in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
We continue to discuss the use of the death penalty with the Bahrain authorities and have not made representations recently on the cases mentioned. We are aware that investigations are ongoing into allegations of mistreatment.
Asked by: Lord Scriven (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what is the total value of gifts and hospitality given to UK diplomats, embassy staff and ministers, by (1) Saudi Arabia, (2) Bahrain, (3) the United Arab Emirates, (4) Qatar, and (5) Kuwait in the last two years.
Answered by Lord Collins of Highbury - Lord in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The FCDO publishes quarterly data on gifts and hospitality received by ministers and senior officials on GOV.UK. Providing the complete information requested would exceed the word limit for responses to written parliamentary questions but the FCDO publishes quarterly data information which can be found at:
https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/fcdo-ministerial-gifts-hospitality-travel-and-meetings
and
Information relating to gifts and hospitality received by embassy staff is held locally, but is not centrally collated, as this would incur a disproportionate cost to the department.
The FCDO expects all members of staff to always maintain the highest standards of propriety, in line with the Civil Service Code and the Diplomatic Service Code.
Asked by: Lord Scriven (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what representations they have made to the government of Pakistan regarding the sentencing to death of Shagufta Kiran for blasphemy.
Answered by Lord Collins of Highbury - Lord in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
Pakistan is a FCDO human rights priority country. We work to protect and promote human rights in Pakistan through our diplomatic engagement and programme funding. This includes regularly raising our opposition to the death penalty and concerns about the misuse of blasphemy laws, both in principle and in relation to specific cases. Minister Falconer, Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for the Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan and Pakistan, underlined the importance of promoting religious tolerance and harmony with Pakistan's Human Rights Minister Azam Tarar on 4 September.
Asked by: Lord Scriven (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they have made a decision on continuing the Gulf Strategy Fund; if not, when the decision will be made; and what criteria were or will be considered during the policy review.
Answered by Lord Collins of Highbury - Lord in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The Gulf Strategy Fund has an allocation of £6m for the Financial Year 2024/25. Funding for future years will be decided once we know the outcome of the Spending Review.
Asked by: Lord Scriven (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they will review the Gulf Strategy Fund to increase transparency of how the funds are used, including by publishing details of the implementers and beneficiaries of the fund.
Answered by Lord Collins of Highbury - Lord in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
The FCDO is committed to Transparency. We are currently reviewing the transparency of the Gulf Strategy Fund, to build on the Thematic Summaries already published annually on GOV.UK. Publication of the summary for 2023/24 will follow this review.