Asked by: Alicia Kearns (Conservative - Rutland and Stamford)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, if she will have discussions with Tottenham Hotspur on allegations that its shirt sponsorship AIA has supported Chinese authorities to imprison Hong Kongers.
Answered by Stephanie Peacock - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Culture, Media and Sport)
Sports bodies operate independently of the Government. The shirt sponsorship contract with AIA is a commercial matter for Tottenham Hotspur Football Club.
China's imposition of the National Security Law on Hong Kong has seen opposition stifled and dissent criminalised. The UK has called for the National Security Law to be repealed and for an end to the prosecution of all individuals charged under it. This Government will continue to stand with the people of Hong Kong.
Asked by: Alicia Kearns (Conservative - Rutland and Stamford)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, how many British nationals are in Iran; and whether they will be evacuated.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
We do not register numbers of British nationals (BN) overseas. We have long advised against all travel to Iran. The UK Government will not be able to evacuate or provide face-to-face assistance to BNs in Iran. If BNs intend to depart Iran across a land border and consider it safe to do so, we advise them to check the travel advice of the country they intend to enter before travelling to the border, including visa requirements. BNs requiring assistance can contact the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office 24/7.
Asked by: Alicia Kearns (Conservative - Rutland and Stamford)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether he plans to request the removal of Hungary from EUFOR following reports of the deployment of Hungarian paramilitary police to Bosnia and Herzegovnia.
Answered by Stephen Doughty - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Europe's security is critical to our own and we recognise the contribution of the European Union's (EU) military operations and missions to regional security. This includes the EU Force Bosnia and Herzegovina (EUFOR), which the UK recognises as vital for maintaining peace and security in Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH). We continue to support EUFOR's role in upholding the military aspects of the Dayton Agreement, and engage regularly with EUFOR and the EU Delegation in BiH. The composition of EUFOR and the nature of support provided in EU Common Security and Defence Policy missions remains a matter for the EU.
Asked by: Alicia Kearns (Conservative - Rutland and Stamford)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether he has had discussions with his Hungarian counterpart on Hungarian government meetings with Milorad Dodik.
Answered by Stephen Doughty - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The Foreign Secretary met his Hungarian counterpart in January, and I most recently met Deputy Foreign Minister Levente Magyar on 19 June. In both meetings, the Foreign Secretary and I raised wider European security and emphasised the importance of unity from all partners. Locally, our Embassy in Budapest has raised, with senior officials, the Hungarian government's engagement with the Republika Srpska entity's President Dodik. We encourage de-escalation, the need to uphold peace in accordance with the Dayton Agreement, and support for the territorial integrity and sovereignty of Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Asked by: Alicia Kearns (Conservative - Rutland and Stamford)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment he has made of the potential implications for his policies of reports of the deployment of Hungarian paramilitary police to Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Answered by Stephen Doughty - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK remains steadfast in our commitment to the stability, sovereignty, and territorial integrity of Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH). Any security sector support to BiH should focus on upholding peace, stability and the rule of law across the whole of BiH. We engage with all regional partners, including Hungary, to work constructively to strengthen domestic institutions, to use their influence positively with BiH's leaders, and to uphold the constitutional framework in BiH. We urge all partners to refrain from any actions that could undermine sovereignty and territorial integrity of BiH.
Asked by: Alicia Kearns (Conservative - Rutland and Stamford)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of reducing restrictions on recruitment to enable NHS Trusts to recruit more British doctors trained abroad.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
No assessment has been made. British doctors who obtained their medical degree abroad need to meet the requirements of the General Medical Council, the independent professional regulator of the medical profession, to practise medicine in the United Kingdom.
British doctors who have obtained a medical degree abroad are then able to apply for jobs in the National Health Service on the same basis as UK medical graduates.