Asked by: Ben Lake (Plaid Cymru - Ceredigion)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, if he will increase humanitarian aid to Sudan.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
The UK continues to provide assistance to people in need in Sudan through our humanitarian aid package of £38 million for 2023-2024. In 2024/2025, the UK bilateral Official Development Assistance to Sudan will double to £89 million.
Asked by: Ben Lake (Plaid Cymru - Ceredigion)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, whether the Government has made representations to the Government of Israel on the (a) treatment and (b) appeal for early release on medical grounds of Ahmad Manasra.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
The Government maintains regular engagements with many international partners, including the Government of Israel and other organisations, over issues relating to the occupation, including the treatment of Palestinian children in detention. We remain committed to working with Israel to secure improvements to the practices surrounding children in detention.
The Government continues to call on Israel to abide by its obligations under international law, most recently in the Prime Minister's call with Prime Minister Netanyahu on 15 February.
Asked by: Ben Lake (Plaid Cymru - Ceredigion)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, whether he has had discussions with international human rights organisations on the case of Ahmad Manasra.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
The Government maintains regular engagements with many international partners, including the Government of Israel and other organisations, over issues relating to the occupation, including the treatment of Palestinian children in detention. We remain committed to working with Israel to secure improvements to the practices surrounding children in detention.
The Government continues to call on Israel to abide by its obligations under international law, most recently in the Prime Minister's call with Prime Minister Netanyahu on 15 February.
Asked by: Ben Lake (Plaid Cymru - Ceredigion)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, if he will raise with the Moroccan Ambassador the potential release of detained Saharawi human rights activists.
Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK Government is committed to the promotion and protection of human rights worldwide, including in Morocco and Western Sahara, and we raise human rights issues with the Moroccan Government accordingly. We have consistently supported language in the relevant UN Security Council Resolutions which encourages the parties to continue their efforts to enhance the promotion and protection of human rights in Western Sahara. The UK Government consistently urges all states to uphold international law and international human rights standards and to avoid any action that may endanger human life. We regularly discuss migration and treatment of refugees with partners, including through our embassies, and we remain committed to supporting them to manage this effectively.
Asked by: Ben Lake (Plaid Cymru - Ceredigion)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, if he will take legislative steps to ratify the Global Ocean Treaty.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
The UK was pleased to be among the first signatories to the Biodiversity Beyond National Jurisdiction (BBNJ) Agreement when it opened for signature at the UN on 20 September 2023 and the Agreement was laid before Parliament for scrutiny on 16 October 2023. Work is in hand on the legislation and other measures needed to translate the detailed and complex provisions of the Agreement into UK law before we can ratify the Agreement, which will be taken forward when parliamentary time allows.
Asked by: Ben Lake (Plaid Cymru - Ceredigion)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent steps he has taken to help ensure that (a) stakeholders and (b) the public are able to feed into (i) the UK’s position and (ii) responses to amendments submitted by other countries on the World Health Organisation’s Pandemic Preparedness Treaty.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
From the beginning of negotiations on the pandemic instrument, the UK has engaged with academics, civil society organisations, trade associations and other non-state actors to aid policy development in specific areas. Additionally, the Bureau of the Intergovernmental Negotiating Body (INB) and the World Health Organisation have encouraged and facilitated non-state actor participation, informal consultations and formal public hearings, and have considered formal written submissions. Non-state actors, as nominated by Member States, can contribute to open INB sessions on the instrument. The UK will continue to engage with stakeholders throughout the negotiating process.
Asked by: Ben Lake (Plaid Cymru - Ceredigion)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 30 March 2023 to Question 174402 on Development Aid to India, if he will hold discussions with (a) his Indian counterparts and (b) representatives of the World Bank on the (i) land procurement process for and (ii) impact on famers of the development solar park in Madhya Pradesh.
Answered by Anne-Marie Trevelyan - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
India's energy choices are crucial to global climate change outcomes. The UK Government welcomes India's commitment to expanding renewables at an unprecedented speed and its international leadership on initiatives such as the International Solar Alliance. We are supporting India's efforts to achieve its climate goals and Net Zero by 2070, including through a guarantee to the World Bank to provide an additional $1 billion of climate finance and British International Investment Partnerships.
As with all major infrastructure projects undertaken around the world, understanding and mitigating the social and environmental impacts on affected communities (including through consultation) forms an important part of the project. The World Bank has an Environmental and Social Framework (ESF) for protecting people and the environment and the Government monitors the Bank's adherence to these standards.
Asked by: Ben Lake (Plaid Cymru - Ceredigion)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 30 March 2023 to Question 174402 on Development Aid to India, what steps his Department has taken to monitor the World Bank’s adherence to the Environmental and Social Framework; and if he will publish his Department’s conclusions.
Answered by Anne-Marie Trevelyan - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
India's energy choices are crucial to global climate change outcomes. The UK Government welcomes India's commitment to expanding renewables at an unprecedented speed and its international leadership on initiatives such as the International Solar Alliance. We are supporting India's efforts to achieve its climate goals and Net Zero by 2070, including through a guarantee to the World Bank to provide an additional $1 billion of climate finance and British International Investment Partnerships.
As with all major infrastructure projects undertaken around the world, understanding and mitigating the social and environmental impacts on affected communities (including through consultation) forms an important part of the project. The World Bank has an Environmental and Social Framework (ESF) for protecting people and the environment and the Government monitors the Bank's adherence to these standards.
Asked by: Ben Lake (Plaid Cymru - Ceredigion)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with his Indian counterpart on the land procurement process being undertaken to develop a solar park in Madhya Pradesh under the Madhya Pradesh Solar Policy; and how much UK aid has been invested in solar projects in that state.
Answered by Leo Docherty - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for the Armed Forces)
India's energy choices are crucial to global climate change outcomes. The UK Government welcomes India's commitment to expanding renewables at an unprecedented speed and its international leadership on initiatives such as the International Solar Alliance. We are supporting India's efforts to achieve its climate goals and Net Zero by 2070, including through a guarantee to the World Bank to provide an additional $1 billion of climate finance and British International Investment Partnerships.
The World Bank has an Environmental and Social Framework (ESF) for protecting people and the environment and the Government monitors the Bank's adherence to these standards.
Asked by: Ben Lake (Plaid Cymru - Ceredigion)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, how much aid the UK has given India (a) directly and (b) via contributions to multilateral organisations in each of the last five years; and what proportion of that aid was for investment in renewable energy.
Answered by Leo Docherty - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for the Armed Forces)
The UK has given no direct financial aid to the Government of India since 2015. Figures for UK bilateral and imputed share of multilateral Official Development Assistance (ODA) to India are as follows:
2017 - £90.1 million bilateral and £159.5 million multilateral
2018 - £94.6 million bilateral and £177.5 million multilateral
2019 - £107.5 million bilateral and £83.1 million multilateral
2020 - £94.8 million bilateral and £69.5 million multilateral
2021 - £90.6 million bilateral and estimated £69.5 million multilateral
In addition, £1 billion was invested through British Investment International between 2016-2021. We do not hold data on the proportion of the bilateral or multilateral ODA invested in renewable energy.