Asked by: Fleur Anderson (Labour - Putney)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with Nigerian counterpart on (a) reports of violence against Christians in Nigeria and (b) the defence of the rights to freedom of religion or belief in Nigeria.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell
The UK Government condemns all incidents of violence across Nigeria and is committed to defending freedom of religion or belief for communities of all faiths. I [Minister Andrew Mitchell] discussed the effects of insecurity on communities with President-elect Tinubu in December 2022. Additionally, in July 2022, at the UK's Ministerial Conference on Freedom of Religion or Belief, the Nigerian High Commissioner reiterated his Government's commitment to freedom of religion or belief. Our High Commission in Nigeria regularly engages with Nigerian officials and local communities on this. We will continue to encourage the Nigerian Government to assist affected communities and implement long-term solutions.
Asked by: Fleur Anderson (Labour - Putney)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with his Pakistani counterpart regarding the arrest of Azam Swati.
Answered by Leo Docherty
The UK Government continues to regularly engage the Government of Pakistan at a senior level on the need to respect human rights and uphold the rule of law. Where there are allegations of human rights violations, we expect these to be fully investigated in line with due process. We do not comment on Pakistan's internal domestic affairs.
Asked by: Fleur Anderson (Labour - Putney)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with his Pakistani counterpart regarding the arrest of Dr Shahbaz Gil.
Answered by Leo Docherty
The UK Government continues to regularly engage the Government of Pakistan at a senior level on the need to respect human rights and uphold the rule of law. Where there are allegations of human rights violations, we expect these to be fully investigated in line with due process. We do not comment on Pakistan's internal domestic affairs.
Asked by: Fleur Anderson (Labour - Putney)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent steps the Government has taken to work with the international community to ensure that people in Sudan who have been impacted by the recent violence have access to (a) drinking water, (b) food, (c) shelter and (d) healthcare.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell
The humanitarian situation in Sudan is worsening. The FCDO's top humanitarian priority is to secure workable humanitarian access, including security assurances for humanitarian agencies. There can be no international aid without safe and reliable access. We are coordinating with the international humanitarian system to support the UN to be able to scale-up delivery within Sudan so they can move quickly to respond as soon as access improves. On 4 May the UK announced an initial £5 million allocation which will help to provide urgent assistance to tens of thousands of refugees and returnees in South Sudan and Chad fleeing violence in Sudan. The UK is a committed donor in Sudan, having spent over £250 million in humanitarian aid in the last five years.
Asked by: Fleur Anderson (Labour - Putney)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent steps his Department has taken to work with the international community restore access to immunisation services around the world.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell
The COVID-19 pandemic has dramatically impacted global health and immunisation. The UK Government is committed to supporting efforts to get routine immunisation back on track and has committed £1.65 billion to Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance from 2021-2025 to support their mission to immunise 300 million children and save up to 8 million lives from vaccine preventable diseases over this period.
Alongside our Gavi investment, we are committed to working with countries and with the wider international community, to focus efforts on building stronger primary health systems for the future as a core part of restoring immunisation services around the world.
Asked by: Fleur Anderson (Labour - Putney)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent discussions the Government has had with the European Commission on proposals for the use of e-gates for British citizens travelling to and from the EU.
Answered by Leo Docherty
Some Member States already allow British citizens to use e-gates at airports in certain circumstances.
Our priority is to minimise unnecessary delays for British citizens, including by engaging with the European Commission and Member States on the EU's Entry/Exit System to understand the impact on British citizens once operational.
Asked by: Fleur Anderson (Labour - Putney)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what diplomatic steps he is taking to support de-escalation of violence against Palestinian and Israeli civilians.
Answered by David Rutley
We continue to closely monitor the security situation in Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories (OPTs). The Foreign Secretary issued a press statement on April 7 condemning violence at Jerusalem's holy sites. In a meeting with Israeli Foreign Minister Eli Cohen on 21 March he re-stated the UK's opposition to settlements, demolitions, and evictions. This followed a phone call with Palestinian Authority Foreign Minister Malki on 7 March in which he made clear his expectation that the Palestinian Authority will call on Palestinians to refrain from violence. British diplomats in Tel Aviv and Jerusalem raise these issues with the government of Israel and the Palestinian Authority, respectively, on a regular basis, and we regularly raise these issues in international fora.
Asked by: Fleur Anderson (Labour - Putney)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with his counterpart in Pakistan on the arrest of Shahid Hussain.
Answered by Leo Docherty
Mr Hussain was released on 27 March. We are aware of reports of arrests and continue to monitor the situation on the ground. Where there are credible allegations of human rights violations, we expect these to be investigated in line with due process.
Asked by: Fleur Anderson (Labour - Putney)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what discussions he has had with his Israeli counterpart on the recently approved 7,000 new housing units in the West Bank by Israeli planning authorities.
Answered by David Rutley
The UK's position on settlements is clear. They are illegal under international law, present an obstacle to peace, and threaten the physical viability of a two-state solution. The Foreign Secretary has repeatedly raised this issue with Israeli Foreign Minister Eli Cohen, when they met in person on 21 March, and in phone calls on 10 January and 7 March. The Minister of State for the Middle East, Lord (Tariq) Ahmad of Wimbledon also raised this point with the Israeli Government during his visit to Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories (OPTs) in January. Lord Ahmad also reaffirmed the UK's opposition to Israeli settlement expansion during his 31 March meeting with Palestinian Head of Mission Zomlot.
Asked by: Fleur Anderson (Labour - Putney)
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 counterpart in Israel following reports of attacks on health workers in the Occupied Palestinian Territories.
Answered by David Rutley
We strongly condemn all forms of violence and incitement to violence directed towards healthcare workers. British Embassy Tel Aviv regularly raises the importance of regularised access to healthcare with the Israeli authorities. We recognise that under international humanitarian law, Israel, as the occupying power, has a duty of ensuring and maintaining public health to the fullest extent of the means available to it. The wounded and ill in Gaza and the West Bank should be able to access the urgent medical care they need.