Asked by: Lord Sedwill (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they have made any representations to the governments of (1) India, or (2) China, regarding Iran’s support for militias attacking western forces and international shipping in the Middle East.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon
The Defence Secretary raised Iran backed Houthi rebels attacking international shipping in the Middle East with his Indian counterpart in January. India is contributing to international naval efforts to help secure shipping in the region. We also raised this with China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, urging them to use their relationship with Iran to convey that Iran should pressure the Houthis in line with China's call for the cessation of attacks and harassment against civilian ships.
Asked by: Lord Sedwill (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government how many Afghans who were employees of NATO and the UN during 2001–21 have been admitted to the UK under the various Afghan resettlement programmes.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon
The UK has two Afghan resettlement schemes. The Afghan Relocations and Assistance Policy (ARAP) is for Afghan citizens who worked for or with the UK Government in Afghanistan in exposed or meaningful roles and is managed by the Ministry of Defence. The Afghan Citizens Resettlement Scheme (ACRS) prioritises those who assisted the UK efforts in Afghanistan and stood up for values, such as the rule of law, and vulnerable people. The Home Office are the responsible department for ACRS.
FCDO does not hold comprehensive data on who has been resettled under either scheme. We hold data on the first stage of Pathway 3 of ACRS where FCDO acted as the referral partner for Home Office for 3 cohorts - British Council contractors, Gardaworld contractors (Embassy guards) and Chevening alumni. We also hold data on some ARAP eligible persons that FCDO has sponsored because they worked for, alongside or under contract to DFID/FCO in roles contributing to UK national security objectives. We do not hold data on the number of former NATO and UN staff who have been resettled in the UK.
Asked by: Lord Sedwill (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they have made any representations to the government of Iran regarding ceasing their support for militias attacking western forces in the Middle East.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon
The Government has long condemned Iran's political, financial, and military support to several militant and proscribed groups, including the Houthis and Iranian-aligned militia groups in Iraq and Syria. The current and former Foreign Secretaries have directly raised Iran's support for these groups with the Iranian Foreign Minister three times since 7 October 2023. They made clear in all their conversations that Iran must use its influence with groups in the region to prevent escalation and that the regime bore responsibility for the actions of groups they had supported over many years.
Asked by: Lord Sedwill (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they have made any representations to the government of Iran regarding Houthi attacks on international shipping.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon
The Government has long condemned Iran's political, financial, and military support to several militant and proscribed groups, including the Houthis and Iranian-aligned militia groups in Iraq and Syria. The current and former Foreign Secretaries have directly raised Iran's support for these groups with the Iranian Foreign Minister three times since 7 October 2023. They made clear in all their conversations that Iran must use its influence with groups in the region to prevent escalation and that the regime bore responsibility for the actions of groups they had supported over many years.
Asked by: Lord Sedwill (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask His Majesty's Government how many members of Afghanistan’s Commando Force 333 have been admitted to the UK under the various Afghan resettlement schemes (1) in 2021–22, and (2) since July 2022.
Answered by Earl of Minto - Shadow Minister (Defence)
In 2021, around 8,000 Afghans were relocated to the UK under Afghan resettlement schemes administered by the Ministry of Defence to the UK. Since July 2022, around 5,300 were relocated. Unfortunately, it is not possible to provide a breakdown of individuals relocated to the UK under ARAP by job role.
Figures covering Afghan Citizens Resettlement Scheme (ACRS) applicants will need to be provided by the Home Office.
Asked by: Lord Sedwill (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they have made any representations to the government of India about the delay in the issue of a visa to the England cricketer, Shoaib Bashir.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon
The specifics of this case are a matter for Shoaib Bashir and the Indian Government. We absolutely expect India to treat British citizens fairly at all times in its visa process. The UK Government cannot interfere in the immigration system of another country, but our relationship with India means that where we have concerns we raise them. We note Mr. Bashir's arrival in India ahead of the second test match.