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 has he had with the Palestinian Authority on ensuring that content which promotes hatred is excluded from the Authority's school curriculum.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
I refer the Hon Member to the answer given on 29 October to question 79968.
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 she has had discussions with her counterpart in Nigeria on the detention of eight children from the Du Merci Christian orphanage; and whether she is taking diplomatic steps to secure their release.
Answered by Chris Elmore - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK government welcomed the return of eight children to the custody of the Du Merci Centre. We are aware that a further eight children remain in the custody of Kano State authorities as court proceedings are ongoing. We have raised this case at senior official level with the Nigerian authorities and stressed the need to prioritise the welfare of the children involved. The enforcement of the court ruling is however a matter for the Nigerian authorities.
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, following the Memorandum of Understanding with the Palestinian Authority of April 2025, what step she is taking to help to ensure that content which promotes (a) hatred and (b) is excluded from the Authority's school curriculum.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
I refer the Hon. Member to the answer provided to question 83047 on 29 October 2025.
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 she has made of the potential implications for her policies of the murder of Christians in Barkin Ladi Local Government Area, Plateau State, Nigeria on 14 October 2025; and what discussions she has had with her Nigerian counterpart on taking steps to end targeted attacks on Christians.
Answered by Chris Elmore - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
I refer the Rt Hon Member to the answer provided by Baroness Chapman to question HL10250 on 23 September.
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 she has had discussions with her counterpart in Burkina Faso on violence towards Christian communities in that country; and what steps she is taking to promote religious freedom in Burkina Faso.
Answered by Chris Elmore - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK is committed to supporting efforts to address the root causes of violence and discrimination in Burkina Faso.
I also refer the Right Hon. Member to the answer Minister Falconer gave on 9 July to Question 63385, concerning UK calls for action on human rights abuses, the persecution of Christians and other 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, 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.