Asked by: Desmond Swayne (Conservative - New Forest West)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what discussions her Department has had with the government in Myanmar on the destruction of St Patrick’s Cathedral in Kachin State in March 2025; and what diplomatic steps she is taking to help ensure that (a) places of worship are protected and (b) religious freedom is promoted in that country.
Answered by Seema Malhotra - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK is deeply concerned by reports of attacks on places of worship, including the destruction of St Patrick's Cathedral in Kachin State. We remain committed to defending freedom of religion or belief for all communities in Myanmar, and consistently raise concerns about the treatment of religious minorities and their places of worship in international fora. In April this year, the UK co-sponsored a UN Human Rights Council resolution on Myanmar, calling for the military to fully respect and protect the human rights of all persons in Myanmar, including religious minorities.
Asked by: Desmond Swayne (Conservative - New Forest West)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, if he will make representations to the Government of Israel regarding persistent attacks by Israeli settlers on Taybeh in the West Bank.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK Government condemns settler violence. We regularly raise settler violence with Israeli ministers and officials, and we are clear that the Israeli government must clamp down on settler violence and settlement expansion. The UK has taken action to hold perpetrators and supporters of settler violence to account. On 10 June, the Foreign Secretary announced sanctions against Ben-Gvir and Smotrich in their personal capacity for inciting violence towards Palestinians. This was alongside action from our partners Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and Norway. On 20 May, the Foreign Secretary announced sanctions targeting individuals, illegal settler outposts and organisations supporting violence against Palestinian Communities in the West Bank.
Asked by: Desmond Swayne (Conservative - New Forest West)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether he has raised the religious persecution of Leah Sharibu in bilateral discussions with President Tinubu of Nigeria.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK strongly condemns Leah Sharibu's abduction and has repeatedly called for her release and the release of all those abducted by Boko Haram and Islamic State West Africa (ISWA). We have raised Leah's case with the Government of Nigeria, and the Minister for Africa will continue to do so in future engagements. More broadly, we continue to engage with the Government of Nigeria to support efforts to tackle insecurity and prevent further kidnappings, which includes support to Nigeria's anti-kidnap cell, through the UK-Nigeria Security and Defence Partnership.
Asked by: Desmond Swayne (Conservative - New Forest West)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether he has had discussions with his Syrian counterpart on the murder of Mahmood Ghassa; and what steps he is taking to support the protection of religious minorities in Syria.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK is engaging privately and regularly with the Syrian government at every level. We have consistently advocated for an inclusive political transition and underlined the importance of protecting the rights of all Syrians. I raised this with Syrian Foreign Minister Al Shaibani when we met in March and pressed the Syrian Government to take concrete action following the horrific violence committed against the Alawite community. The UK Special Representative for Syria visited Damascus last week to discuss developments.
Asked by: Desmond Swayne (Conservative - New Forest West)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, if he will take diplomatic steps to support Christians in northern Cameroon who are facing (a) violence from and (b) displacement following Boko Haram and ISWAP attacks; and what diplomatic steps he is taking to help tackle religious persecution in that region.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK is supporting the Cameroonian authorities in the fight against terrorism in the Far North region of Cameroon, and assisting communities affected by violence and displacement. This includes via regular diplomatic engagement, both bilaterally and in multilateral fora, and through frequent visits to the region to engage with communities and authorities. Over the past five years, the UK has provided £20 million in humanitarian and development assistance to Cameroon, much of it focused on the Far North, and continues to back stabilisation efforts in the Lake Chad region. More broadly, the UK Government continues to monitor civil and political rights in Cameroon and is committed to uphold the right to freedom of religion or belief (FoRB). This includes advocating for the protections of all vulnerable communities through our position at the UN, G7 and other multilateral fora as well as bilaterally with the Government of Cameroon and other influential parties.
Asked by: Desmond Swayne (Conservative - New Forest West)
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 reports of attacks on communities in Nigeria’s Middle Belt; and what steps his Department is taking to help tackle violence against religious communities in the region.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK is closely monitoring recent reports of violence in Nigeria's Middle Belt. Intercommunal violence has a devastating effect on communities. The root causes are complex and frequently relate to competition over resources, historical grievances, and criminality. We are supporting Nigeria to tackle the root causes of intercommunal conflict through our Strengthening Peace and Resilience in Nigeria (SPRiNG) programme and continue to engage in local and national peace-building efforts. The UK-Nigeria Security and Defence Partnership (SDP) is building capacity in Nigeria's security forces to tackle violence against all civilian communities, including religious communities.
Asked by: Desmond Swayne (Conservative - New Forest West)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, if his Department will make an assessment of the potential merits of issuing sanctions on people associated with the detention of Alaa Abd El-Fattah in Egypt.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The Government is committed to securing Mr El-Fattah's release and we continue to raise his case at the highest levels of the Egyptian government. The Prime Minister raised the case in a letter to President Sisi on 4 May. The National Security Adviser also raised Mr-El Fattah's case with the Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty on 27 April and the Foreign Secretary raised with him on 9 April.
Asked by: Desmond Swayne (Conservative - New Forest West)
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 ensure that the UN implements the recommendations of the Final Report of the Independent Review of Mechanisms and Procedures to Ensure Adherence by UNRWA to the Humanitarian Principle of Neutrality, published on 20 April 2024.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The government is confident that United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) is taking action to ensure it meets the highest standards of neutrality and is strengthening its procedures. £1 million of the £21 million of UK funding announced in July is earmarked to support UNRWA to implement the management reforms recommended by the Colonna review. Together with other donors, we will continue to monitor UNRWA's progress on implementation of its action plan. The FCDO will also continue to conduct our own annual assessment of UK funding to UNRWA.
Asked by: Desmond Swayne (Conservative - New Forest West)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, with reference to the oral contribution of the Second Church Estates Commissioner on 11 January 2023, Official Report, column 443, whether his Department has sought information on the (a) whereabouts and (b) wellbeing of staff from the Anglican al-Ahli Hospital in Gaza who were taken by the Israeli Defence Force.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell
It is the longstanding policy of successive UK Governments that we do not comment on individual cases. However, we are concerned over reports about Israeli detention practices. The Government is clear that administrative detention should be used only where it is justified in accordance with international law. Those under detention should either be charged or released. The UK is committed to working with Israel to secure improvements in its detention practices and repeatedly calls on Israel to abide by its obligations under international law. The safety of humanitarian personnel and healthcare workers in Gaza is critical to enable aid to reach those who need it most.
Asked by: Desmond Swayne (Conservative - New Forest West)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, if he will publish audit reports of the Palestinian Recovery and Development Programme.
Answered by David Rutley
Following Official Development Assistance (ODA) prioritisation exercises undertaken in March 2021, the UK no longer provides direct financial aid to the Palestinian Authority. All UK support to the Palestinian Authority is provided through technical advice, procured through commercial suppliers. The audits in question for the Palestinian Recovery and Development Programme relate to UK funding provided through the World Bank to the Palestinian Authority. Therefore, the UK is not the sole owner of the audit reports and is unable to release them unilaterally.