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Written Question
UN Commission on the Status of Women
Monday 22nd May 2023

Asked by: Harriet Harman (Labour - Camberwell and Peckham)

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, how many of the delegates in the official UK Government delegation to the UN Commission on the Status of Women 67 were (a) women and (b) men.

Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)

The UN Commission on the Status of Women 67 (CSW67) was held in New York between 6 and 17 March. Lord (Tariq) Ahmad as Minister of State for the UN, led the UK delegation, supported by Ambassador Barbara Woodward, the UK Permanent Representative to the UN.

The official level joint FCDO-Government Equalities Office delegation of 12 people included 9 women. MPs and peers formed the UK parliamentary delegations, with 18 delegates in total. Of this, there were 17 women, including Baroness Northover, Dame Maria Miller MP, Baroness Hodgson of Abinger CBE, Caroline Nokes MP and 1 man, Elliot Colburn MP.


Written Question
Tigray: Peace Negotiations
Thursday 17th November 2022

Asked by: Harriet Harman (Labour - Camberwell and Peckham)

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment his Department has made of the progress of the African Union’s peace initiative for the conflict in the Tigray region of Ethiopia.

Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)

The UK welcomes the important step towards peace taken by the Ethiopian Government and Tigray People's Liberation Front in signing a cessation of hostilities on 2 November, and commends their choice to end the devastating two-year-long conflict.

We are grateful to the leadership shown in brokering this critical agreement by African Union Commission Chairperson Faki, African Union High Representative to the Horn of Africa Obasanjo, former South African Deputy President Mlambo-Ngcuka, former Kenyan President Kenyatta, and the South African Government in hosting the talks.


Written Question
Ethiopia: Human Rights
Tuesday 15th November 2022

Asked by: Harriet Harman (Labour - Camberwell and Peckham)

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether his Department is taking steps to help ensure that the second phase of the investigations by the International Commission of Human Rights Experts on Ethiopia has full (a) access to all parties in Ethiopia and (b) funding.

Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)

The UK is strongly supporting all efforts to ensure accountability for violations and abuses, including by the Ethiopian Human Rights Commission and the International Commission of Human Rights Experts on Ethiopia (ICHREE). The UK co-sponsored the December 2021 resolution at the Human Rights Council which established the Commission. We also co-sponsored the October 2022 resolution at the Human Rights Council to extend the Commission's mandate. We have urged all parties to cooperate with the Commission's investigation. The former Minister for Development raised this on several occasions with the Ethiopian Ambassador.


Written Question
Tigray: Armed Conflict
Monday 14th November 2022

Asked by: Harriet Harman (Labour - Camberwell and Peckham)

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether she has held discussions with her counterparts in (a) Ethiopia and (b) Eritrea on ending aerial and ground bombardment of civilians in the Tigray region of Ethiopia.

Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)

The former Minister for Development visited Ethiopia on 19-20 October. She met Ethiopia President Sahle-Work and Deputy Prime Minister Demeke and raised the protection of civilians. The British Ambassador to Eritrea has regularly raised human rights issues, and the impact of its involvement in the war in northern Ethiopia on civilians, with the Eritrean Government. The indiscriminate targeting of civilian areas, no matter the weapon used, is against international law, and is unacceptable We have made numerous public statements urging all parties to the conflict to prioritise the protection of civilians. We welcome the 2 November peace agreement.


Written Question
Tigray: Armed Conflict
Monday 14th November 2022

Asked by: Harriet Harman (Labour - Camberwell and Peckham)

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether he has made an estimate of the number of civilians that have been killed in the conflict in the Tigray region of Ethiopia.

Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)

Information on casualties from the conflict in northern Ethiopia is scarce. Since the resumption of fighting on 24 August it is likely that there have been thousands of casualties.

The UK welcomes the peace agreement and cessation of hostilities announced on 2 November between the Ethiopian Government and the Tigray People's Liberation Front (TPLF), and their commitment to scale-up the delivery of life-saving aid to Tigray. The UK calls upon the Eritrean Government to support the agreement by withdrawing its troops from Ethiopia.


Written Question
Nnamdi Kanu
Wednesday 7th September 2022

Asked by: Harriet Harman (Labour - Camberwell and Peckham)

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether her Department has provided consular assistance to Mr Nnamdi Kanu in the last 12 months; and what discussions she has had with her Nigerian counterpart on his imprisonment.

Answered by Vicky Ford

The UK Government has provided consular assistance to Mr Kanu in the last 12 months and continues to provide this. We are in contact with both the Nigerian and Kenyan authorities, Mr Kanu's family and his legal representatives. Our priority is to ensure Mr Kanu's health, welfare and fair treatment.

I [Minister Ford] have raised Mr Kanu's case with the Nigerian authorities on multiple occasions, and the former Prime Minister discussed his case with President Buhari in June at the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM). The UK Government is seeking clarification about the circumstances of Mr Kanu's arrest from the Nigerian and Kenyan Governments. The UK takes all allegations of human rights violations very seriously and raises concerns with local authorities. We continue to proactively follow up with the Nigerian authorities on Mr Kanu's case.


Written Question
Development Aid
Monday 30th May 2022

Asked by: Harriet Harman (Labour - Camberwell and Peckham)

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps Her Majesty's Ambassadors are taking to support elected women parliamentarians in the countries where they are posted.

Answered by Vicky Ford

The Foreign Secretary has put women and girls at the centre of the UK's foreign policy. The FCDO's International Development Strategy commits us to using development and diplomatic levers to unlock the social, economic and political agency of women and girls and work to ensure women's voices are heard at all social, political and economic levels. The Westminster Foundation for Democracy are a key partner to help us deliver our objectives on women's political empowerment, including support for women in parliament, and the Foreign Secretary has agreed to increase their grant-in-aid from £5.1 million to £6.5 million per year over the next three years. The UK has joined the Global Partnership for Action on Gender Based Online Harassment Abuse, whose work will include addressing violence directed towards women in their public lives as journalists, politicians, or activists.

In 2021-22 there were 24 bilateral development programmes working both to strengthen political institutions and also having a gender focus. The UK also supports women parliamentarians through core funding to multilaterals: in 2021, the UN Development Programme assisted 30 electoral authorities to establish inclusive electoral processes and UN Women contributed to 3 laws on gender balance in elections and decision-making bodies. In addition to our development work, our embassies across the world promote women's and girls' political leadership through schemes such as 'Ambassador for a day' or the #EmbasShe initiative in the Netherlands.


Written Question
Development Aid
Monday 30th May 2022

Asked by: Harriet Harman (Labour - Camberwell and Peckham)

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 work with multilateral institutions to support elected women in parliaments overseas.

Answered by Vicky Ford

The Foreign Secretary has put women and girls at the centre of the UK's foreign policy. The FCDO's International Development Strategy commits us to using development and diplomatic levers to unlock the social, economic and political agency of women and girls and work to ensure women's voices are heard at all social, political and economic levels. The Westminster Foundation for Democracy are a key partner to help us deliver our objectives on women's political empowerment, including support for women in parliament, and the Foreign Secretary has agreed to increase their grant-in-aid from £5.1 million to £6.5 million per year over the next three years. The UK has joined the Global Partnership for Action on Gender Based Online Harassment Abuse, whose work will include addressing violence directed towards women in their public lives as journalists, politicians, or activists.

In 2021-22 there were 24 bilateral development programmes working both to strengthen political institutions and also having a gender focus. The UK also supports women parliamentarians through core funding to multilaterals: in 2021, the UN Development Programme assisted 30 electoral authorities to establish inclusive electoral processes and UN Women contributed to 3 laws on gender balance in elections and decision-making bodies. In addition to our development work, our embassies across the world promote women's and girls' political leadership through schemes such as 'Ambassador for a day' or the #EmbasShe initiative in the Netherlands.


Written Question
Bilateral Aid
Monday 30th May 2022

Asked by: Harriet Harman (Labour - Camberwell and Peckham)

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what bilateral programmes her Department has in place to support elected women in parliaments overseas.

Answered by Vicky Ford

The Foreign Secretary has put women and girls at the centre of the UK's foreign policy. The FCDO's International Development Strategy commits us to using development and diplomatic levers to unlock the social, economic and political agency of women and girls and work to ensure women's voices are heard at all social, political and economic levels. The Westminster Foundation for Democracy are a key partner to help us deliver our objectives on women's political empowerment, including support for women in parliament, and the Foreign Secretary has agreed to increase their grant-in-aid from £5.1 million to £6.5 million per year over the next three years. The UK has joined the Global Partnership for Action on Gender Based Online Harassment Abuse, whose work will include addressing violence directed towards women in their public lives as journalists, politicians, or activists.

In 2021-22 there were 24 bilateral development programmes working both to strengthen political institutions and also having a gender focus. The UK also supports women parliamentarians through core funding to multilaterals: in 2021, the UN Development Programme assisted 30 electoral authorities to establish inclusive electoral processes and UN Women contributed to 3 laws on gender balance in elections and decision-making bodies. In addition to our development work, our embassies across the world promote women's and girls' political leadership through schemes such as 'Ambassador for a day' or the #EmbasShe initiative in the Netherlands.


Written Question
Development Aid
Monday 30th May 2022

Asked by: Harriet Harman (Labour - Camberwell and Peckham)

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 support elected women in parliaments overseas.

Answered by Vicky Ford

The Foreign Secretary has put women and girls at the centre of the UK's foreign policy. The FCDO's International Development Strategy commits us to using development and diplomatic levers to unlock the social, economic and political agency of women and girls and work to ensure women's voices are heard at all social, political and economic levels. The Westminster Foundation for Democracy are a key partner to help us deliver our objectives on women's political empowerment, including support for women in parliament, and the Foreign Secretary has agreed to increase their grant-in-aid from £5.1 million to £6.5 million per year over the next three years. The UK has joined the Global Partnership for Action on Gender Based Online Harassment Abuse, whose work will include addressing violence directed towards women in their public lives as journalists, politicians, or activists.

In 2021-22 there were 24 bilateral development programmes working both to strengthen political institutions and also having a gender focus. The UK also supports women parliamentarians through core funding to multilaterals: in 2021, the UN Development Programme assisted 30 electoral authorities to establish inclusive electoral processes and UN Women contributed to 3 laws on gender balance in elections and decision-making bodies. In addition to our development work, our embassies across the world promote women's and girls' political leadership through schemes such as 'Ambassador for a day' or the #EmbasShe initiative in the Netherlands.