Asked by: Apsana Begum (Labour - Poplar and Limehouse)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, whether his Department has made a recent estimate of the number of (a) schools, (b) hospitals and (c) refugee camps in Gaza that have been struck by bombs since 8 October 2023.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
Hamas is putting Palestinian civilians at grave risk by embedding themselves in the civilian population and civilian infrastructure. The UK is aware of reports of Hamas using schools and other infrastructure, such as healthcare facilities, as bases and command nodes.
This does not absolve parties from their responsibility to ensure that their actions are compliant with international humanitarian law, and minimise harm to civilians. The UK is particularly clear that civilian buildings must not be targeted and extra care must be taken in relation to hospitals and other locations such as places of worship.
Asked by: Apsana Begum (Labour - Poplar and Limehouse)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, what information his Department holds on the number of (a) civilians, (b) women and (c) children that have been killed in Sudan since April 2023.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
Humanitarian organisations estimate that over 12,000 people have been killed and over 32,000 people have been injured since the outbreak of conflict in Sudan on 15 April 2023. This is likely to be an underestimate, due to considerable access constraints for humanitarian organisations, which makes accurate casualty reporting challenging. The UK continues to work with Quad countries (Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, US, UK), regional partners, the Intergovernmental Authority on Development, the African Union and the UN to bring the warring parties together and secure an end to hostilities and unfettered humanitarian access.
Asked by: Apsana Begum (Labour - Poplar and Limehouse)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to help protect the human rights of women in Pakistan.
Answered by Leo Docherty - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for the Armed Forces)
Protecting women's rights is central to the UK Government's human rights engagement in Pakistan. We continue to urge the government of Pakistan to guarantee the rights of all people in Pakistan, particularly the most vulnerable, including women, minorities and children, as laid down in the Constitution of Pakistan and in accordance with international standards. In parallel, UK programme funds are helping to address gender based violence by raising awareness of early and forced marriages and making digital spaces safer for women. The British High Commission in Islamabad will continue to support civil society and NGOs in lobbying the Government of Pakistan to honour in practice its international commitments.
Asked by: Apsana Begum (Labour - Poplar and Limehouse)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether he has had recent discussions with his counterpart in Pakistan on the arrest of former Prime Minister Imran Khan.
Answered by Leo Docherty - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for the Armed Forces)
The UK does not comment or interfere with judicial cases in Pakistan, they are a matter for Pakistan's legal system. The UK has a close and longstanding relationship with Pakistan. We support democratic principles and adherence to the rule of law. In a letter to caretaker Foreign Minister Jilani on 21 August, Lord (Tariq) Ahmad of Wimbledon, Minister for South Asia, impressed the need for Pakistan's citizens to be able to exercise their democratic rights and participate in peaceful, inclusive, credible elections.
Asked by: Apsana Begum (Labour - Poplar and Limehouse)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, if he will make an assessment of the implications for his policies of the adequacy of the preparations to ensure the (a) accountability, (b) transparency and (c) fairness of the forthcoming general election in Bangladesh; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK is a strong supporter of plural, contested and transparent elections in Bangladesh, with free and fair process to support accountability. We regularly raise with the Government of Bangladesh, in public and private, the need to take meaningful steps to ensure a transparent and accountable electoral process in 2024. The Foreign Secretary met Prime Minister Hasina in May, and raised the importance of free, fair and participatory elections, and the need for inter-party dialogue. In June, Minister Trevelyan met with Bangladesh State Minister Alam and reiterated the need for ensuring the elections were transparent and accountable. We welcome Bangladesh's commitment to international election observation. Under the FCDO's five-year £23 million governance programme we have been identifying pre-election interventions including the potential for funding local elections observation. The UK will continue to engage with the Government of Bangladesh to support efforts towards a stable, prosperous and democratic Bangladesh.
Asked by: Apsana Begum (Labour - Poplar and Limehouse)
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 counterpart in Bangladesh on allowing international election observers to observe the forthcoming general election.
Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK is a strong supporter of plural, contested and transparent elections in Bangladesh, with free and fair process to support accountability. We regularly raise with the Government of Bangladesh, in public and private, the need to take meaningful steps to ensure a transparent and accountable electoral process in 2024. The Foreign Secretary met Prime Minister Hasina in May, and raised the importance of free, fair and participatory elections, and the need for inter-party dialogue. In June, Minister Trevelyan met with Bangladesh State Minister Alam and reiterated the need for ensuring the elections were transparent and accountable. We welcome Bangladesh's commitment to international election observation. Under the FCDO's five-year £23 million governance programme we have been identifying pre-election interventions including the potential for funding local elections observation. The UK will continue to engage with the Government of Bangladesh to support efforts towards a stable, prosperous and democratic Bangladesh.
Asked by: Apsana Begum (Labour - Poplar and Limehouse)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what discussions he has had with his counterpart in Bangladesh on (a) transparency and (b) accountability ahead of that country's elections in 2024.
Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK is a strong supporter of plural, contested and transparent elections in Bangladesh, with free and fair process to support accountability. We regularly raise with the Government of Bangladesh, in public and private, the need to take meaningful steps to ensure a transparent and accountable electoral process in 2024. The Foreign Secretary met Prime Minister Hasina in May, and raised the importance of free, fair and participatory elections, and the need for inter-party dialogue. In June, Minister Trevelyan met with Bangladesh State Minister Alam and reiterated the need for ensuring the elections were transparent and accountable. We welcome Bangladesh's commitment to international election observation. Under the FCDO's five-year £23 million governance programme we have been identifying pre-election interventions including the potential for funding local elections observation. The UK will continue to engage with the Government of Bangladesh to support efforts towards a stable, prosperous and democratic Bangladesh.
Asked by: Apsana Begum (Labour - Poplar and Limehouse)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether he has had recent discussions with his US counterpart on their decision to restrict visas to Bangladeshi citizens who undermine democratic election processes in Bangladesh.
Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
We are aware of the decision of the US to restrict the issuance of visas for any Bangladeshi individual believed to be responsible for, or complicit in, undermining the democratic election process in Bangladesh. We share the desire for free, fair and participatory elections. All UK visa applications are considered on their individual merits, and in line with UK immigration rules and guidance.
Asked by: Apsana Begum (Labour - Poplar and Limehouse)
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 effect of the merger between Three and Vodafone on his Department's contracts with Vodafone.
Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
As an open economy, this Government welcomes and encourages investment where it supports the Prime Minister's goal of boosting UK growth and jobs, meets our stringent legal and regulatory requirements, and does not compromise our national security. The Government has robust powers under the National Security & Investment Act, which it introduced, to block or impose remedies on transactions that pose a national security risk. As you will appreciate, we cannot comment on specific acquisitions nor the applicability of the National Security and Investment regime. It is the responsibility of Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) to assess the impact on consumers and competition in the market, with input from sectoral regulators. The Investment Security Unit works closely with the Competition and Markets Authority on cases that are being considered for both national security and competition reasons. A memorandum of understanding has been agreed between the Investment Security Unit and the CMA to assist joint working. [https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/operation-of-the-national-security-and-investment-act-2021-memorandum-of-understanding/mou-between-beis-and-the-cma-on-the-operation-of-the-national-security-and-investment-act-2021]
Asked by: Apsana Begum (Labour - Poplar and Limehouse)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to help deliver public owned health care in Bangladesh.
Answered by Anne-Marie Trevelyan - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK's health programmes in Bangladesh aim to address the fundamental challenges in public healthcare provision. The FCDO's £84 million 'Better Health in Bangladesh Programme' provides financial and technical assistance to the Government of Bangladesh's national health sector programme. Our support helps empower women and girls through better sexual and reproductive health and rights, family planning, nutrition services and screening for cervical cancer. We also support the Government of Bangladesh to include health in the National Adaptation Plan (NAP) on Climate Change and tackling antimicrobial resistance (AMR). We will maintain our strong partnership with Bangladesh's Ministry of Health and its departments to deliver our commitment on ending preventable deaths, through need-based and responsive technical assistance support.