Asked by: Dave Doogan (Scottish National Party - Angus and Perthshire Glens)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, how many coroners inquests have been held in (a) England and (b) Wales for the death of a UK national abroad in the last five years.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office received requests for documents to assist with coroner's inquests in England and Wales over the last five years (rounded to the nearest 100) as follows:
1,100 in 2019;
1,000 in 2020;
1,000 in 2021;
1,300 in 2022; and
1,300 in 2023.
The FCDO does not record separate figures for England and Wales. These figures may not be reflective of all deaths abroad where a coroner in England and Wales has taken forward an inquest as the FCDO may not have been contacted in every case. The Ministry of Justice produces statistics on coroners inquests: [https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/coroners-and-burials-statistics].
Asked by: Dave Doogan (Scottish National Party - Angus and Perthshire Glens)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, with reference to Bereavement abroad through homicide or culpable homicide - support: memorandum of understanding" between his Department and the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service, published on 30th September 2024, whether his Department has taken recent steps to amend its processes on the deaths of UK nationals abroad who were resident in Scotland.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO), the Police Service of Scotland, the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service, Death Certification Review Service and Victim Support Scotland details the support offered to bereaved families of British nationals who are killed through murder or culpable homicide abroad. The MoU was created to ensure that affected families resident in Scotland have clarity on the type of support available from the MoU signatories. FCDO consular staff will provide bereaved families with information on support available during initial contact with them.
Asked by: Dave Doogan (Scottish National Party - Angus and Perthshire Glens)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, how many UK nationals died in Thailand in (a) 2022 and (b) 2023; how many such deaths were due to (i) murder, (ii) manslaughter, (iii) accidental death, (iv) unknown or suspicious circumstances and (v) no recorded reason; and how many such deaths were while a person was in police custody.
Answered by Anne-Marie Trevelyan
The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) provided consular assistance in Thailand in a total of 597 new death cases in 2022 and 430 new death cases between 1 January 2023 and 16 October 2023. The data below represents the causes of death as reported to us (by the family or local authorities).
The FCDO is not responsible for determining cause of death of British Nationals overseas. Consular staff are not trained to identify nor investigate the causes of death. We do not break down numbers below five to avoid identifying individual cases. The circumstance of the death cases recorded in our case management system on the specific categories of 'accidental', 'murder or manslaughter', 'unknown' (including not recorded) and 'death in custody' are the following.
Year | Accidental | Murder or Manslaughter | Unknown / Not recorded | Death in Custody |
2022 | 8 | 155 | ||
2023 (up to 16 October) | 11 | 131 |
Asked by: Dave Doogan (Scottish National Party - Angus and Perthshire Glens)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 7 September 2023 to Question 196981 on Thailand: British Nationals Abroad, if she will publish raw, redacted data on unexplained deaths in Thailand in 2022 to enable analysis of the regions in which those deaths occurred.
Answered by Anne-Marie Trevelyan
In 2022, the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) provided consular assistance in 154 new cases in Thailand following a death where the circumstances were recorded as unknown in our case management system.
Our current case management system does not enable us to filter by regions within Thailand. However, in some cases the location of the incident is recorded. In 2022 of the 154 unknown deaths fewer than 5 case locations were recorded where the reason of death was unknown. Where our data refers to five cases or fewer we do not provide a breakdown so as to prevent the identification of individuals and their personal data, in this case to protect the bereaved families.
It is not mandatory for UK nationals to report incidents to the FCDO, or one of its diplomatic missions. The data we provide only cover incidents where we have offered consular assistance following initial triage. The FCDO publishes consular data where a breakdown by country and assistance case type can be found on gov.uk here: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/consular-data.
Asked by: Dave Doogan (Scottish National Party - Angus and Perthshire Glens)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, how many and in which regions of Thailand did deaths of UK nationals occur where the reported cause of death was recorded as unknown in 2022.
Answered by Anne-Marie Trevelyan
In 2022, the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) provided consular assistance in 154 new cases in Thailand following a death where the circumstances were recorded as unknown in our case management system.
Our current case management system does not enable us to filter results in order to isolate cases from particular regions within Thailand.
Asked by: Dave Doogan (Scottish National Party - Angus and Perthshire Glens)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what discussions his Department has had with representatives of the Government of Pakistan on the operation of free, fair and safe elections in that country.
Answered by Leo Docherty
We respect Pakistan's democratic process and do not interfere in its domestic political affairs. We engage regularly with the Government of Pakistan, including on the upholding of democratic norms.
Asked by: Dave Doogan (Scottish National Party - Angus and Perthshire Glens)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, on how many occasions Ministers in his Department met hon. Members, broken down by political party, in the last two years.
Answered by David Rutley
The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) do not hold this information centrally and it can only be obtained at disproportionate cost.
Asked by: Dave Doogan (Scottish National Party - Angus and Perthshire Glens)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, how many UK nationals have died in Thailand in each of the last (a) five and (b) ten years; how many of those deaths were due to (i) murder, (ii) manslaughter, (iii) accidental death, (iv) unknown or suspicious circumstances and (v) no recorded reason; and how many of those deaths were while a person was in police custody.
Answered by David Rutley
New death cases for Thailand:
Thailand: New death cases | Total (Rounded) |
2022 (up to 22/11) | 500 |
2021 | 480 |
2020 | 460 |
2019 | 490 |
2018 | 490 |
2017 | 460 |
2016 | 450 |
2015 | 360 |
2014 | 340 |
2013 | 400 |
2012 | 360 |
New death cases by category for Thailand:
Thailand: New death cases by category | Death > Unknown | Death > Accidental | Death > Murder or Manslaughter | Death > Hospital Death | Death > Natural Death | Death > Suicide | Death > Road Traffic Accident | Death > Infectious Disease | Death > Drowning |
2022 (up to 22/11) | 135 | 7 | 239 | 112 | 6 | 10 | |||
2021 | 121 | 12 | 0 | 218 | 114 | 6 | 8 | 0 | |
2020 | 112 | 6 | 239 | 84 | 9 | 6 | |||
2019 | 144 | 13 | 221 | 94 | 12 | ||||
2018 | 159 | 13 | 179 | 122 | 6 | ||||
2017 | 159 | 22 | 120 | 132 | 11 | 0 | 9 | ||
2016 | 195 | 12 | 69 | 152 | 11 | 8 | 0 | ||
2015 | 103 | 13 | 0 | 213 | 10 | 15 | 0 | 0 | |
2014 | 102 | 14 | 0 | 200 | 11 | 15 | 0 | 0 | |
2013 | 87 | 25 | 0 | 261 | 13 | 7 | 0 | 0 | |
2012 | 96 | 34 | 0 | 222 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0
|
Death in Custody:
Between 2012 and 2015, there were no new death in custody cases recorded for Thailand. Between 2016 and 2022 so far, there have been fewer than 5 new death in custody cases each year for Thailand.
Asked by: Dave Doogan (Scottish National Party - Angus and Perthshire Glens)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, when her Department next plans to update the guidance for UK nationals travelling to and living in Thailand.
Answered by Amanda Milling
FCDO Travel Advice is under constant review. Alongside our travel advice, we have our “Living in Thailand” Guide, which provides additional comprehensive guidance for UK nationals resident in Thailand or planning to relocate to Thailand [last updated 4 April 2022].
Asked by: Dave Doogan (Scottish National Party - Angus and Perthshire Glens)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what representations he has made to his Chinese counterpart on a resumption of pork exports from UK pig processing plants whose licenses were voluntarily surrendered due to the covid-19 pandemic.
Answered by Nigel Adams
The UK Government is committed to supporting the UK agricultural industry and restoring all exports of pork products to China. In July I [Minister Adams] met representatives from the relevant UK companies, and we understand that a number of companies, from a range of countries, share similar concerns. Foreign Secretary raises trade issues whenever he speaks to State Councillor Wang Yi, including most recently on 19 August. I [Minister Adams] made representations to the Chinese Ambassador on 8 September. In addition, the Secretary of State for International Trade and Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs have each written to their Chinese counterparts. Finally, Her Majesty's Ambassador to China and officials in the British Embassy in Beijing have lobbied repeatedly on this issue.