Asked by: Esther McVey (Conservative - Tatton)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, if he will take steps to establish a Special Envoy for Freedom of Religion and Belief on a statutory footing.
Answered by Anneliese Dodds - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The Government will champion freedom of religion or belief (FoRB) for all abroad. No one should live in fear because of what they do or do not believe in. Envoy roles will be decided upon in due course. There are currently no plans to legislate on Envoy roles during this parliamentary session. We continue to use the strength of our global diplomatic network, including dedicated staff within the FCDO, to promote and protect FoRB around the world.
Asked by: Esther McVey (Conservative - Tatton)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, if he will make an assessment of the implications for his policies of calls to establish an international commission of inquiry into religious persecution and violence in (a) Nigeria and (b) other severely affected countries in Sub-Saharan Africa.
Answered by Anneliese Dodds - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK continues to champion freedom of religion or belief (FoRB) for all, including in Sub-Saharan Africa. No one should live in fear because of what they do, or do not believe in. We work to uphold the right to FoRB multilaterally, including through our position at the UN, and bilaterally. The UK Government remains committed to supporting Nigeria to address ongoing security challenges, including violent extremism and intercommunal violence, which continue to impinge on the rights of Nigerians to FoRB.
Asked by: Esther McVey (Conservative - Tatton)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether it is his policy to support the establishment of an international commission of inquiry by the UN on religious persecution in Sub-Saharan Africa.
Answered by Anneliese Dodds - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK continues to champion freedom of religion or belief (FoRB) for all, including in Sub-Saharan Africa. No one should live in fear because of what they do, or do not believe in. We work to uphold the right to FoRB multilaterally, including through our position at the UN, and bilaterally. The UK Government remains committed to supporting Nigeria to address ongoing security challenges, including violent extremism and intercommunal violence, which continue to impinge on the rights of Nigerians to FoRB.
Asked by: Esther McVey (Conservative - Tatton)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, if he will publish the legal advice upon which he relied to block arms exports to Israel.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The Government has published a summary of the international humanitarian law (IHL) process, used to assess and review Israel's compliance with IHL. This summary was informed by legal advice, and alongside the Foreign Secretary's Oral Statement, it outlines the decision and instances where we have deemed there are risks that UK arms might be used to commit or facilitate a serious violation of IHL. This shows an unprecedented level of transparency about a decision of this nature.[https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/summary-of-the-international-humanitarian-law-ihl-process-decision-and-the-factors-taken-into-account#:~:text=The%20government%20has%20conducted%20a%20thorough%20review%20of%20Israel%E2%80%99s%20compliance].
Asked by: Esther McVey (Conservative - Tatton)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, how many Afghan translators were used by the UK in Afghanistan over the last 20 years.
Answered by Nigel Adams
We are unable to provide a precise figure for the number of translators who assisted the UK in Afghanistan over the last 20 years, in order to ensure they and their families' safety. Through the Afghan Relocations and Assistance Policy (ARAP), as of 28 August, 8589 Afghans who worked for us have been evacuated and are being resettled, including interpreters and their immediate families, enabling them to build new lives in the UK. The ARAP scheme is being accelerated for those staff still in Afghanistan.
Asked by: Esther McVey (Conservative - Tatton)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, if the Government will include imports of coal from Russia in the list of sanctions against that country; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Wendy Morton - Shadow Minister (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK is committed to playing a leading role in sanctions against Russia. Sanctions are one of a range of measures we have taken, in concert with others, to defend our security and enhance our capabilities against Russian malign activity. During the transition period, EU sanctions on Russia will continue to apply in the UK. These measures do not currently include sanctions on the import of coal.
Asked by: Esther McVey (Conservative - Tatton)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, how much funding from the public purse has been allocated to his Department for financial year 2018-19 for planning for the UK leaving the EU without a deal; and how much of that funding has been spent.
Answered by Alan Duncan
HM Treasury has already allocated over £4.2 billion of additional funding to departments and the devolved administrations for EU exit preparations so far. This includes the £1.5 billion of additional funding HM Treasury announced at Autumn Budget 2017 for 2018/19. A full breakdown of how this was allocated to departments can be found in the Chief Secretary's Written Ministerial Statement, HCWS540, laid on the 13th March (https://www.parliament.uk/business/publications/written-questions-answers-statements/written-statement/Commons/2018-03-13/HCWS540/). This money will be paid out in Supplementary Estimates 18/19 later this financial year.
The Foreign and Commonwealth Office has been allocated £29.6 million by HM Treasury for 2018-19 to support essential EU Exit preparedness. Through HMT funding and a process of internal reprioritisation we have strengthened our diplomatic network in the UK and across Europe so that it is better able to represent and promote British interests and engage with our European partners in support of a successful EU Exit. We have stepped up our No Deal planning in recent weeks, however it is not possible to identify the amount of money spent specifically on No Deal preparations as data is not stored in this way.