Asked by: Blair McDougall (Labour - East Renfrewshire)
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 potential implications for his policies of recent incursions by the Coastguard of the People's Republic of China into the restricted waters of the Kinmen islands.
Answered by Catherine West - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK's longstanding position on Taiwan has not changed. The UK has a clear interest in peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait. We consider the Taiwan issue one to be settled peacefully by the people on both sides of the Taiwan Strait through constructive dialogue, without the threat or use of force or coercion. We do not support any unilateral attempts to change the status quo, including increased Chinese assertiveness towards Taiwan.
Asked by: Blair McDougall (Labour - East Renfrewshire)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, with reference to the statement by the Chinese Embassy to the UK entitled Embassy Spokesperson on a Taiwan-related motion concocted by a handful of British MPs, published on 29 November 2024, what the Government's policy is on whether Taiwan is a province of China.
Answered by Catherine West - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK's longstanding position on Taiwan, as set out in the 1972 Communiqué, has not changed and remains the position of this government.
Asked by: Blair McDougall (Labour - East Renfrewshire)
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 Falun Gong community in China.
Answered by Catherine West - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The environment for freedom of religion or belief across China is restrictive, which includes the persecution of Falun Gong practitioners.
This Government will champion freedom of religion or belief for all abroad. We will work to uphold the right to freedom of religion or belief through our position at the UN, G7 and other multilateral fora, and through bilateral engagement. For example, the Prime Minister and Foreign Secretary both raised human rights recently with their counterparts, President Xi and Foreign Minister Wang, respectively.
Asked by: Blair McDougall (Labour - East Renfrewshire)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if she will issue guidance to (a) HSBC and (b) Standard Chartered on the validity of British National (Overseas) passports for Hong Kongers to use to secure early withdrawals of their Mandatory Provident Fund savings after permanently leaving Hong Kong.
Answered by Tulip Siddiq - Economic Secretary (HM Treasury)
This government is deeply committed to supporting members of the Hong Kong community who have relocated to the UK. We are aware that individuals who have chosen to take up the British National (Overseas) route are having difficulties accessing their Mandatory Provident Fund from Hong Kong.
Whilst documentary requirements for withdrawing funds are a matter for the Hong Kong authorities, officials have raised this issue directly with the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government and the Hong Kong MPF Schemes Authority. We have urged them to facilitate early draw down of funds as is the case for other Hong Kong residents who move overseas permanently and have made clear such discrimination of BN(O)s is unacceptable.
Asked by: Blair McDougall (Labour - East Renfrewshire)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, if he will have discussions with international counterparts on the use of force against pro-democracy protesters in Georgia.
Answered by Stephen Doughty - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
In his 9 December statement the Foreign Secretary strongly condemned the excessive use of force against protesters and journalists in Georgia. He also outlined the suspension of programme support to the Georgian government as a result of the crackdown. In my 3 December statement, I made clear our support for the Georgian people's European future, and I condemned the excessive force used against protesters and journalists. Protesters in Georgia are making clear their opposition to Georgian Dream's decision to stall the country's progress towards EU membership, directly undermining the Georgian Constitution. We are in regular contact with international partners regarding the situation. I continue to call on the Georgian authorities to listen, de-escalate, and reverse this harmful trajectory away from European values.
Asked by: Blair McDougall (Labour - East Renfrewshire)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, if he will make it his policy to support a female appointment as General Secretary of the United Nations.
Answered by Stephen Doughty - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK supports a merit-based appointment for UN Secretary-General, based on principles of transparency and inclusiveness. The Government would like to see women's representation strengthen across the multilateral system, and we welcome the Secretary-General's ambition for gender parity. We encourage member states to nominate women for the top jobs. The UK is proud to continue to support the objectives of the UN's Senior Women Talent Pipeline (SWTP), including programme funding totalling £50,000 in the current financial year.
Asked by: Blair McDougall (Labour - East Renfrewshire)
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 the United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detention Opinion No. 34/2024 on Jimmy Lai published on 26 September 2024.
Answered by Catherine West - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The FCDO takes the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention's Opinion very seriously. The UK Government has consistently called for Jimmy Lai's release and raised concerns about his case directly with the Hong Kong and Chinese authorities.
The Prime Minister raised Jimmy Lai with President Xi at last week's G20 Summit in Brazil and the Foreign Secretary raised his case with Wang Yi during his visit to Beijing on 18 October.
Asked by: Blair McDougall (Labour - East Renfrewshire)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether his Department's China audit will engage with Hong Kong BNO status holders that live in the UK.
Answered by Catherine West - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Work on the audit is underway and will involve consultation with a range of experts within and beyond government.
The audit will examine the UK's interests with respect to China. This will improve our ability - both inside and outside of Government - to understand and respond to the challenges and opportunities China poses. The audit is due to report in early 2025.
Asked by: Blair McDougall (Labour - East Renfrewshire)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what support her Department has provided to British citizens from Hong Kong living in the UK who have had bounties placed on their heads by the Chinese government.
Answered by Dan Jarvis - Minister of State (Home Office)
It is the first duty of government to keep its citizens safe. Attempts to intimidate and silence individuals in the UK by foreign powers, including China, are unacceptable. The protection of individuals’ freedoms, and safety is of the upmost importance. Where individuals are identified as being of heightened risk, we are proactive in the deployment of protective security guidance and other measures as appropriate. Anyone who is concerned for their safety should contact the police in the first instance.
Asked by: Blair McDougall (Labour - East Renfrewshire)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what support her Department provides to UK residents threatened by agents of authoritarian regimes overseas.
Answered by Dan Jarvis - Minister of State (Home Office)
The first duty of any government is to keep the country safe and protect its citizens. The UK does not tolerate attempts by any state to threaten or intimidate UK residents. We continually assess potential risks and take the protection of individuals’ rights, freedoms, and safety very seriously. This involves taking a proactive approach to countering the most acute forms of state-directed threats to individuals.
We will continue to implement measures in the National Security Act 2023, which make the UK a harder target for those states which seek to conduct hostile acts.
Home Office officials work closely with operational partners, the FCDO and other government departments to ensure that UK residents are safe and secure. Where individuals have concerns for their safety, they are advised to contact their local police in the first instance.