Asked by: Lord Singh of Wimbledon (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government whether the International Ministerial Conference on Freedom of Religion or Belief in July resulted in any consensus of action to address the root causes of discrimination against and persecution of those holding different faiths and beliefs.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon
The Conference explored the many facets of freedom of religion or belief (FoRB) through seventeen themed panel sessions and gave a platform to those persecuted for their religion or belief. Forty-seven governments, international organisations and other entities made pledges to take action in support of FoRB. Thirty-four countries joined the UK in signing up to one or more of a set of non-legally binding statements protecting and promoting FoRB for all. The statements and co-signatories are available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/international-ministerial-Conference-on-freedom-of-religion-or-belief-2022-Conference-statements
Asked by: Lord Singh of Wimbledon (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government why they invited Pakistani clerics Hassan Haseeb-ur-Rehman and Muhammad Naqib-ur-Rahmam to the International Ministerial Conference on Freedom of Religion or Belief in July; and what assessment they made of the effect those invitations would have on religious harmony and social cohesion in the UK and beyond.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon
The UK Government consulted with international and domestic partners and set up a Conference Advisory Committee (CAC) with representatives from a range of religion or belief communities, academia and human rights groups to consider invitees to the UK-hosted Conference on Freedom of Religion or Belief (FoRB).
In the spirit of fostering a healthy dialogue and promoting open societies, we invited a wide and diverse range of participants from over 120 countries. We successfully brought together over 800 faith and belief leaders, human rights actors, civil society and 100 government delegations to agree and work towards joint action on promoting FoRB for all.
Asked by: Lord Singh of Wimbledon (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government whether any working group comprising members of different faiths was established at the International Ministerial Conference on Freedom of Religion or Belief in July to highlight important commonalities between different faiths and eradicate the myth of irreconcilable differences.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon
The UK Government is committed to defending freedom of religion or belief (FoRB) for all and promoting respect between different religious and non-religious communities. As part of our ongoing commitment to promoting FoRB, we hosted an International Ministerial Conference on FoRB on 5-6 July 2022.
No specific working groups were set up during the Conference, however, we worked closely with our international and domestic partners in the run up to the Conference and set up a Conference Advisory Committee with representatives from a range of religion or belief communities, academia and human rights groups. We successfully brought together over 800 faith and belief leaders, human rights actors, civil society and 100 government delegations to agree and work towards joint action on promoting FoRB for all. As outlined in our Written Ministerial Statement following the Conference ( https://questions-statements.parliament.uk/written-statements/detail/2022-07-15/hlws204), we will continue to build coalitions of government and civil society actors focussed on key themes from the Conference, drawing on the convening power of the International Religious Freedom or Belief Alliance to promote FoRB for all.
Asked by: Lord Singh of Wimbledon (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government whether any working group was set up at the International Ministerial Conference on Freedom of Religion or Belief in July to address cultural practices that stigmatise other faiths and beliefs.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon
The UK Government is committed to defending freedom of religion or belief (FoRB) for all and promoting respect between different religious and non-religious communities. As part of our ongoing commitment to promoting FoRB, we hosted an International Ministerial Conference on FoRB on 5-6 July 2022.
No specific working groups were set up during the Conference, however, we worked closely with our international and domestic partners in the run up to the Conference and set up a Conference Advisory Committee with representatives from a range of religion or belief communities, academia and human rights groups. We successfully brought together over 800 faith and belief leaders, human rights actors, civil society and 100 government delegations to agree and work towards joint action on promoting FoRB for all. As outlined in our Written Ministerial Statement following the Conference ( https://questions-statements.parliament.uk/written-statements/detail/2022-07-15/hlws204), we will continue to build coalitions of government and civil society actors focussed on key themes from the Conference, drawing on the convening power of the International Religious Freedom or Belief Alliance to promote FoRB for all.
Asked by: Lord Singh of Wimbledon (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government, in preparation for the International Ministerial Conference on Freedom of Religion or Belief, what steps they will take to help protect the lives of Sikh families remaining in Afghanistan.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon
We continue to raise human rights, including rights of religious and ethnic minorities, in our meetings with the Taliban, including in visits of senior officials to Kabul in October 2021 and February 2022. We call on them to respect international law and uphold human rights of all Afghans. We are also encouraging them to engage in dialogue with a range of Afghans and to establish inclusive governance which better represents Afghanistan's diverse ethnic and religious groups. We continue to work closely with international partners to hold those responsible for human rights abuses to account. We supported a UN Human Rights Council resolution to establish a Special Rapporteur for Afghanistan (appointed April 2022) and worked through the UN Security Council to strengthen human rights reporting and monitoring in the new mandate for the UN Assistance Mission to Afghanistan (UNAMA).
The International Ministerial Conference on Freedom of Religion or Belief (FoRB) will bring together key members of the international FoRB community, in a programme that is themed around preventing FoRB violations and abuses and protecting and promoting FoRB for all.
Asked by: Lord Singh of Wimbledon (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they will publish the full details and minutes of the meetings of the Independent Advisory Group on hate crime held on (1) 17 September 2019, and (2) 17 January 2020, including the details already disclosed in response to requests made under the Freedom of Information Act 2000.
Answered by Baroness Williams of Trafford - Shadow Chief Whip (Lords)
In April 2020, the Home Office briefly took over full responsibility from the Ministry of Justice for the oversight of the Independent Advisory Group on hate crime.
The Home Office had some concerns about the transparency and impartiality of the IAG, and planned to work with the group to resolve these issues. However, during the summer of 2021, the IAG moved under the oversight of the NPCC and is consequently no longer a Government-affiliated body. The IAG now serves as a body solely to inform and support policing requirements on hate crime.
The minutes of the meetings have been made available in response to a freedom of information request. I will send a copy to the Noble Lord.
Asked by: Lord Singh of Wimbledon (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of (1) the article by Dr Richard Norrie and Hardeep Singh 'Meet the SAGE of hate crime', published in The Critic on 13 January, and (2) the transparency and impartiality of their Independent Advisory Group on hate crime.
Answered by Baroness Williams of Trafford - Shadow Chief Whip (Lords)
In April 2020, the Home Office briefly took over full responsibility from the Ministry of Justice for the oversight of the Independent Advisory Group on hate crime.
The Home Office had some concerns about the transparency and impartiality of the IAG, and planned to work with the group to resolve these issues. However, during the summer of 2021, the IAG moved under the oversight of the NPCC and is consequently no longer a Government-affiliated body. The IAG now serves as a body solely to inform and support policing requirements on hate crime.
The minutes of the meetings have been made available in response to a freedom of information request. I will send a copy to the Noble Lord.
Asked by: Lord Singh of Wimbledon (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the collapse of the case against Piara Singh Gill, Amritivir Singh Wahiwala and Gursharanvir Singh Wahiwala, why they certified an extradition request from the Indian authorities for these individuals.
Answered by Baroness Williams of Trafford - Shadow Chief Whip (Lords)
Extradition requests from outside the European Union are governed by Part 2 of the Extradition Act 2003 (‘the Act’). Under section 70 of the Act, if the UK has formal extradition relations with such a territory – as it does with India – and receives a valid extradition request from it, the Secretary of State must certify the request unless certain narrow exceptions in the Act apply. In this case, none of those exceptions applied and, by law, the Secretary of State was obliged to certify the extradition requests.
Certification of extradition requests by the Secretary of State is only one step in the extradition process. Requests are subsequently subject to the full scrutiny of the Court and the safeguards contained within the Extradition Act 2003.
Having considered these cases, the Court discharged the three individuals wanted by India on the grounds that a prima facie case could not be established.
Asked by: Lord Singh of Wimbledon (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the government of India's response to the protests against the proposed reforms on the sale, pricing and storage of farm produce; and what representations they have made to that government about its response.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon
The Government is conscious of concerns in India, and from communities in the UK, about India's agricultural reforms. The Foreign Secretary discussed protests on this issue with his counterpart, Minister of Exterior Affairs Dr Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, during his visit to India 14-17 December.
Our position is that the right to gather lawfully and demonstrate a point of view is common to all democracies. Democratic governments also have the power to enforce law and order if a protest crosses the line into illegality.
Asked by: Lord Singh of Wimbledon (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have, if any, to conduct an independent investigation into racism experienced by former Metropolitan Police officer Gurpal Virdi.
Answered by Baroness Williams of Trafford - Shadow Chief Whip (Lords)
Investigations into the conduct of police officers are the responsibility of the professional standards departments of police forces and, where appropriate, the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC). Such decision-making is independent of government. Complaints received from Mr Virdi were assessed by the IOPC as suitable for local investigation by the Metropolitan Police Service.