Asylum Seekers: Croatia and Bosnia-Herzegovina

Baroness Warsi Excerpts

Wednesday 18th November 2020 Lords Chamber

[Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay (Con)]

My Lords, we work with the UNFPA and the International Organization for Migration on just these issues, and we have seen some positive results from that work. Our aid is now helping 55 public health centres in Bosnia and Herzegovina, and more than 600 service providers, decision-makers and leaders from civil society.

[Baroness Warsi (Con) [V]]

My Lords, could my noble friend inform the House of the Government’s understanding of the Bosnian Government’s capability and capacity to support migrants who have been turned into a political football by Italy, Slovenia and Croatia? What impact is such behaviour by EU states breaching their legal obligations towards refugees having on the political stability of Bosnia-Herzegovina?

[Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay (Con)]

My noble friend is right—as I said, we want people to be treated with the respect and dignity that should be accorded to our fellow humans, not as political footballs, as she says. Along with our other international partners, the UK has urged Bosnian politicians to work together to address these challenges. We are working with the authorities in Bosnia and Herzegovina, providing £500,000 of aid through the Conflict, Stability and Security Fund, and engaging at all levels, including with the Minister of Security in Bosnia and Herzegovina.