Asked by: Carla Denyer (Green Party - Bristol Central)
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 (a) respond to the humanitarian situation in Somalia and (b) help mitigate (i) regional and (ii) humanitarian impacts.
Answered by Chris Elmore - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK is a major humanitarian donor to Somalia. Last financial year the UK contributed £65 million to humanitarian efforts in Somalia, reaching over 1.6 million people. These funds provide emergency cash support, water and sanitation services and specialised health and nutrition treatment. They will also fund efforts to boost the climate resilience of communities, to mitigate the risk of natural disaster, and provide assistance for people already displaced by extreme weather. The UK is driving efforts to reform the humanitarian system in Somalia to improve impact and value for money, including increasing Somalia's access to international climate finance.
Asked by: Carla Denyer (Green Party - Bristol Central)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, how much and what proportion of the £120m funding increase for Sudan is going to (a) local and (b) national organisations; and what steps he is taking to ensure that the funding strengthens the longer-term resilience of communities.
Answered by Chris Elmore - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
National organisations in Sudan are leading the humanitarian response to the brutal conflict. Recognising their critical role in delivery, the UK's humanitarian programme partners with national organisations. For example, the UK is one of the largest contributors to the UN's Sudan Humanitarian Fund and the Mercy Corps Cash Consortium, which provides vital support to Mutual Aid Groups and Emergency Response Rooms who operate on the ground. In addition, through our Sudan Stability and Growth Programme, we are supporting long-term efforts to promote community resilience and poverty reduction by enabling reforms in economic growth, governance, and local conflict management.
Asked by: Carla Denyer (Green Party - Bristol Central)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps she is taking to (a) monitor and (b) assess the risk posed by climate emissions to UK (i) financial stability and (ii) pension funds.
Answered by James Murray - Chief Secretary to the Treasury
The Bank of England’s Financial Policy Committee (FPC) is responsible for identifying and addressing risks to the UK financial system. The FPC’s latest remit was set out by the Chancellor in November 2024. It sets out that the Committee should regard the risks posed by climate change, including physical and transition risks, as relevant to its primary objective, and consider how these risks could impact financial stability over the near and long term, including where appropriate through its stress testing frameworks. The remits for the Financial Policy Committee and Prudential Regulation Committee also make clear that they should support the Government’s approach to accelerate the transition to a climate resilient, nature positive, and net zero economy.
Asked by: Carla Denyer (Green Party - Bristol Central)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what recent progress his Department has made to develop the Violence Against Women and Girls Taskforce.
Answered by Louise Sandher-Jones - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence)
Defence is developing a Violence Against Women and Girls (VAWG) Taskforce to provide a clear, trauma-informed and survivor-centred approach to tackling sexual harassment and abuse, simplifying access to support and strengthening partnerships with NHS Sexual Assault Referral Centres, local authorities and specialist charities. We have identified two regional locations that will each have a small team of specialised posts dedicated to delivering initiatives focussed on prevention, education and support; these have an anticipated pilot launch date of December 2025.
Asked by: Carla Denyer (Green Party - Bristol Central)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many asylum seekers were dispersed in the asylum system while in the late stages of pregnancy in (a) 2022, (b) 2023 and (c) 2024; and how many of those dispersals were at the request of (i) the pregnant woman and (ii) her treating clinician.
Answered by Alex Norris - Minister of State (Home Office)
The Home Office did not record this data in a reportable format for the years requested but has since developed a tool that should enable the Department to do so in the future. This is still being tested given the complexities involved.
Asked by: Carla Denyer (Green Party - Bristol Central)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many requests for deferred biometric enrolment from student visa applicants in Gaza have been (a) received, (b) refused and (c) accepted since 7 October 2023.
Answered by Mike Tapp - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)
The Home Office does not currently publish data regarding the number of biometric deferral requests submitted or approved.
The Home Office has put in place systems to issue expedited visas, with biometric checks conducted prior to arrival in the UK for all Chevening scholars from Gaza. We are in the process of doing the same for a group of students in Gaza who have been awarded fully funded scholarships covering course fees and living costs at UK universities so they can start their studies in Autumn 2025. The Government is doing everything it can to support their safe exit and onward travel to the UK. The situation on the ground in Gaza makes this extremely challenging.
Asked by: Carla Denyer (Green Party - Bristol Central)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether plans to extend the qualifying period for indefinite leave to remain will be applied to (a) UK Ancestry Visa holders and (b) other visa holders with the right to vote in general elections.
Answered by Mike Tapp - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)
Settlement in the UK is a prerequisite for becoming a British citizen and brings lifelong benefits. Settlement is also an important step in integrating and contributing to local communities and the wider country.
We will therefore reform the current rules around settlement so that individuals must earn their right to a privileged immigration status in the UK through the long-term contribution they bring to our country. We will be consulting on the earned settlement scheme later this year and will provide details of how the scheme will work after that.
Asked by: Carla Denyer (Green Party - Bristol Central)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, pursuant to the Answer of 8 April 2025 to Question 44154 on Family Proceedings, when she plans to publish her Department's review of the presumption of parental involvement.
Answered by Sarah Sackman - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
The Government recognises that the review into the presumption of parental involvement is eagerly awaited. It is right that we take the necessary time to consider the findings. The review is now complete and will be published shortly, alongside the accompanying research reports and our next steps.
Asked by: Carla Denyer (Green Party - Bristol Central)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what steps he has taken to monitor the impact of the data breach relating to the Afghan relocations and assistance policy on the human rights of those listed in the leaked data including (a) those of Afghan nationality, (b) their families and (c) British officials.
Answered by Louise Sandher-Jones - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence)
As recognised by the Rimmer Review, the human rights picture in Afghanistan was dire, prior to and regardless of the data loss incident, which occurred under the previous Government.
However, while Afghanistan remains a dangerous place, the Rimmer Review does conclude that it is "highly unlikely" that merely being on the dataset would be grounds for targeting, and that it is unlikely that family members will be targeted simply because the principal appears in the dataset. It also concludes that the dataset is unlikely to substantially change an individual's existing exposure given the volume of data already available to the Taleban and the fact that links to the former Government are widely known.
It is worth noting that in a small number of cases, the names of British officials have been named on the dataset. The risk to these individuals, who are in the UK, is considered to be extremely low. The Ministry of Defence continues to make all reasonable efforts to contact those affected to provide security advice and support.
Asked by: Carla Denyer (Green Party - Bristol Central)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if she will take steps to ensure that leasehold owners who were unable to sell their properties in the 2020-21 financial year due to cladding remediation works can qualify for the temporarily reduced Stamp Duty Land Tax rates that were in place during that period.
Answered by James Murray - Chief Secretary to the Treasury
Stamp Duty Land Tax (SLDT) rates were reduced from July 2020 to September 2021 in response to exceptional circumstances in the housing market. The SDLT rates applicable to a purchase are those in place on the date of the transaction. SDLT remains an important source of Government revenue, raising around £12 billion each year to help pay for the essential services the Government provides.
A refund of the higher rate of SDLT paid when purchasing additional property can be claimed in exceptional circumstances, or if an old main residence is sold within three years of the purchase of the new main residence. This includes those paying higher rates of SDLT because they have been unable to sell a main residence due to issues with unsafe cladding. HMRC consider each individual case on its own merits.