Asked by: Derek Thomas (Conservative - St Ives)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, when his Department plans to commission a new Joint Analysis of Conflict and Stability assessment for the (a) Democratic Republic of Congo and (b) Uganda border regions.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
Conflict analysis is an integral way in which HMG ensures UK policy and programming is both effective and conflict sensitive. The last Joint Analysis of Conflict and Stability (JACS) assessment for Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) was in 2017. There has not been one undertaken for Uganda. There are no plans in place to commission a new JACS at present, but we regularly review the need for cross HMG conflict analysis and will continue to do so.
Asked by: Derek Thomas (Conservative - St Ives)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of the level of the UK's pledge to the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, TB and Malaria on the UK’s international reputation.
Answered by Amanda Milling - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
The Global Fund is a high performing organisation that, with partners, has saved 44 million lives to date. The UK is proud to be the organisation's third largest donor historically, investing £4.1 billion since 2002. We are currently reviewing the Global Fund's 7th replenishment investment case in line with delivering the International Development Strategy.
Asked by: Derek Thomas (Conservative - St Ives)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, if she will publish in full the three year review of the progress made in respect of the recommendations set out in the Bishop of Truro’s Support for Persecuted Christians Review commissioned by her Department in 2019.
Answered by Vicky Ford
In line with recommendation 22, the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office commissioned an independent review to assess the implementation of the Bishop of Truro's recommendations. The independent report will be published in due course.
Asked by: Derek Thomas (Conservative - St Ives)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, with reference to the arrest of Pastor Glushko of the Mariupol Evangelical Church by Russian forces, what recent assessment she had made of freedom of (a) religion and (b) belief violations in Ukraine.
Answered by James Cleverly - Home Secretary
The FCDO is aware of reports of violations and abuses of Freedom of Religion or Belief (FoRB) in Ukraine as a result of Russian aggression. We call on Russia to end its violations of human rights. We use our public communications and position in multilateral fora to raise abuses and violations of human rights in Ukraine. The UK is committed to defending FoRB for all, and promoting respect between different religious and non-religious communities.
Asked by: Derek Thomas (Conservative - St Ives)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps her Department is taking to (a) invest in global health systems and (b) maintain access to critical routine immunisations.
Answered by Amanda Milling - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) is working to deliver the objectives set out in our recently published Health Systems Strengthening Position Paper. This includes mainstreaming of health systems strengthening approach across all the UK's health influencing activities and investments through country programmes, research and multilaterals such as the World Health Organisation, Global Fund and Gavi. The UK's £1.65 billion commitment to Gavi's core immunisation programme 2021-25 is the largest of any donor, and will support Gavi to immunise 300 million children and save up to 8 million lives, and enable countries to restore immunisation services during and after the pandemic.
Asked by: Derek Thomas (Conservative - St Ives)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps her Department has taken on implementing recommendation 21B of the Bishop of Truro’s Review into Christian persecution catalyst for action.
Answered by Vicky Ford
The Bishop of Truro's review provided recommendations for a Government response to support members of all faiths, beliefs, and those of no religious belief. We have taken forward the 22 recommendations in a way that makes a real change for everyone persecuted for their religion or belief.
Recommendation 21 focuses on sharing lessons across Government from implementing the recommendations of the Truro Review, and proposes agenda items for a Cabinet discussion. Proposed agenda item b focuses on championing the prosecution of ISIS perpetrators of sex crimes against Yazidi and Christian women, not only as terrorists. The UK was the driving force behind the establishment of the UN Investigative Team for Accountability of Daesh (UNITAD), providing £2 million to support investigations into violence against minority communities and developing a platform for witnesses and survivors to submit information securely in relation to Daesh crimes. In May 2022, the Minister of State responsible for human rights, Lord (Tariq) Ahmad of Wimbledon, sent an update note to his ministerial counterparts in Government outlining the UK's support for Yazidi and other minority communities in Iraq to rebuild their lives after Daesh, secure justice, and exercise the right to freedom of religion or belief.
Asked by: Derek Thomas (Conservative - St Ives)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what discussions she has had with her Indian counterpart on (a) abductions, (b) forced conversions and (c) forced marriages of women and girls in India; and what steps she is taking to help support that Government in ending those practices.
Answered by Vicky Ford
We engage with India on a range of human rights matters, including at Ministerial level, working with Union and State Governments and with Non-Governmental Organisations. Reports of human rights abuses or discrimination against religious minorities are matters for the Indian police and local legal system and should be investigated thoroughly, promptly, and transparently.
The UK Government works through UN partners UNFPA and UNICEF to support the actions by the Indian Government and civil society to end child marriage. The first phase of the UK's support to the UN Global Programme to End Child Marriage (2015-20) helped five Indian states to implement evidence-based action plans, provided over four million girls with life skills training, and nine million community members to explore alternatives to child marriage. In November 2021, the UK announced £18 million of new funding to prevent child marriage across 12 focus countries, including India.
Asked by: Derek Thomas (Conservative - St Ives)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps her Department is taking to implement the recommendations in the final report of the Bishop of Truro’s Independent Review into persecuted Christians before the three year review in 2022.
Answered by Vicky Ford
Promoting freedom of religion or belief is one of the UK's longstanding human rights priorities. We are making good progress on implementing the Bishop of Truro's 22 recommendations to support members of all faiths, beliefs and those of no religious belief.
We have achieved thirteen of the recommendations, a further six are close to being achieved and we are making good progress on the remaining three.
Asked by: Derek Thomas (Conservative - St Ives)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps her Department has taken to (a) identify eligible applicants to the Afghan Citizens Resettlement Scheme in Afghanistan who meet the criteria for vulnerable minorities and (b) provide that information to the Home Office.
Answered by James Cleverly - Home Secretary
The ACRS will prioritise those who have assisted the UK efforts in Afghanistan, and vulnerable people, including those from ethnic and religious minority groups.
In the first year, under the third pathway of the ACRS, the FCDO will refer to the Home Office a number of at-risk British Council and Gardaworld contractors and Chevening alumni for resettlement.
The process for deciding who from within these groups should be referred is being developed. It will have proper regard for risk, including risk resulting from minority status or identity.
Asked by: Derek Thomas (Conservative - St Ives)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what support his Department has given the UK Overseas Territories in the Caribbean to ensure that future built developments incorporate climate resilience.
Answered by Wendy Morton
Following the destruction caused by hurricanes in 2017, the UK Government has funded construction work in several Overseas Territories (OTs), with a focus on building back with improved hurricane and seismic resilience. In Montserrat, the UK is investing in resilient infrastructure through the Capital Infrastructure Programme for Resilient and Economic Growth (CIPREG), including projects such as the recently laid fibre optic cable link that will bolster Montserrat's resilience against extreme weather. Additionally, with funding from the cross-Government Conflict, Stability and Security Fund, the Joint Nature Conservation Committee (JNCC) has supported OTs in the Caribbean to build response and resilience models to hurricane related flood risks. This includes opportunities to maximise the role and value of the natural environment, including coastal vegetation, mangroves and coral reefs, to minimise flood damage, and the use of vulnerability mapping to inform on-island planning processes for new infrastructure and residential developments. The JNCC is also working with individual OTs to develop monitoring programmes capable of recognising changes to their marine and terrestrial environments, including those related to climate change.
Through the UK Government funded Darwin and Darwin Plus Initiatives, the UK continues to support the ability of the OTs to increase their resilience and ability to adapt in the face of climate change by funding individual projects, such as efforts to improve coastal ecosystem resilience in Anguilla and restoration of mangroves in the British Virgin Islands.