UK Ambassador to USA: Leaked Emails

Debate between Alan Duncan and Christian Matheson

Monday 8th July 2019 Commons Chamber

[Sir Alan Duncan]

Appointments in any subsequent Administration will be a matter for that Administration. We will of course have to wait to see who is in it.

[Christian Matheson (City of Chester) (Lab)]

In common with other right hon. and hon. Members, I have had meetings with Sir Kim Darroch in the past, and they have been both a pleasure and an honour. We have a convention in this place that we do not name officials, which is why today’s statement is all the more frustrating. Does the Minister share my concern that this is part of a trend? A clique within British politics is undermining the civil service, as was referenced by my right hon. Friend the Member for Wolverhampton South East (Mr McFadden). It has attacked Olly Robbins and called for him to be sacked; it has attacked Sir Mark Sedwill; and now it is deliberately seeking to undermine our ambassador to Washington. Is it not about time we put a stop to these people who are undermining how British politics works?

[Sir Alan Duncan]

I agree with the hon. Gentleman. Standards of decency are slipping, and they need to be restored.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Alan Duncan and Christian Matheson

Tuesday 14th May 2019 Commons Chamber

[Sir Alan Duncan]

It has been the case for many years that we have been prepared to part with some of the sovereign base land. In that sense, our position remains unchanged.

[Christian Matheson (City of Chester) (Lab)]

I have a constituent who was assaulted by bouncers at a club in Cyprus and is now in the regional neurological centre with severe injuries. The authorities in Cyprus have dragged their feet during the investigation, but they have suggested that the perpetrators may have melted away across the border into northern Cyprus, where they are out of touch. Does the Minister agree that the continued division poses a threat to British tourists in Cyprus?

[Sir Alan Duncan]

I extend my sympathy and concern following that assault. It is not the first such case in which people who are believed to have perpetrated a violent crime have fled to the north in order to exclude themselves from Cyprus’s jurisdiction. I hope that we are offering sufficient consular support, where appropriate, and we will of course follow up any other diplomatic efforts that we can make to pursue those who committed the crime.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Alan Duncan and Christian Matheson

Tuesday 2nd April 2019 Commons Chamber

[Christian Matheson (City of Chester) (Lab)]

6. What assessment he has made of the progress on the Colombia peace process.

[The Minister for Europe and the Americas (Sir Alan Duncan)]

Since 2016, Colombia has made significant progress in its peace process; the FARC is now a political party and the last elections were the safest in decades. I reaffirmed our full support for the peace process with the Colombian Foreign Minister on 4 February in Ottawa. The UK has expressed concern to the Colombian Government over delays in the transitional justice system, which is a critical part of the peace process. We continue to support the process through the conflict stability and security fund.

[Christian Matheson]

I understand that there were a couple more paramilitary killings last week. Did the Minister read the report by Michel Forst, the UN special rapporteur, who has said that the national landscape continues to be plagued by violence, particularly gender-based violence? Will the Minister put the problem of the continuing structural gender-based violence in Colombia on the agenda for the November conference on the preventing sexual violence initiative?

[Sir Alan Duncan]

Yes, I certainly will, because preventing sexual violence against women is one of the UK’s human rights priorities in Colombia. Indeed, Foreign Office officials recently met the hon. Member for Bishop Auckland (Helen Goodman) to discuss that. I hope that illustrates once again the extent to which we are really working together across the House to tackle these vexed problems at all levels, in every way we can.