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Written Question
Chelsea Football Club: Sales
Thursday 29th February 2024

Asked by: Iain Duncan Smith (Conservative - Chingford and Woodford Green)

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, what steps his Department is taking to ensure the delivery of £2.5 billion from the sale of Chelsea Football Club.

Answered by Leo Docherty - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for the Armed Forces)

The proceeds from the sale of Chelsea FC are currently frozen in a UK bank account while independent experts establish a foundation to manage and distribute the money. A licence from the Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation will then be needed to move the funds to the foundation. We want this money to reach Ukraine as quickly as possible and remain open to any arrangement that clearly delivers this.


Written Question
Sanctions
Tuesday 27th February 2024

Asked by: Iain Duncan Smith (Conservative - Chingford and Woodford Green)

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, whether he has made an assessment of the potential merits of (a) enabling Parliament to exercise oversight of sanctions policy and (b) imposing a duty on His Majesty's Government to lay an annual report before Parliament on sanctions and other related measures adopted on the basis of a relevant human rights purpose as defined by the Sanctions and Money Laundering Act 2018 Section 1(f).

Answered by Anne-Marie Trevelyan - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)

UK sanctions regimes are established through secondary legislation and are subject to Parliamentary oversight via the scrutiny processes set out in the Sanctions and Anti-Money Laundering Act 2018 ("SAMLA").

Ministers are also routinely held accountable for the UK's sanctions policy through select committees and Parliamentary Questions. The government will shortly publish a Post-Legislative Scrutiny Memorandum for SAMLA, following the publication of the UK's first sanctions strategy in February 2024.

In 2022, Parliament amended SAMLA to streamline some of the processes SAMLA originally established, including for reporting.

We have set out the UK government's approach to using sanctions as a foreign and security policy tool in our strategy published on 22 February (https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/deter-disrupt-and-demonstrate-uk-sanctions-in-a-contested-world-uk-sanctions-strategy). The strategy explains how we continue to strengthen our sanctions to deter and disrupt malign activity and to protect the UK.


Written Question
Taiwan Strait: Air Routes
Monday 19th February 2024

Asked by: Iain Duncan Smith (Conservative - Chingford and Woodford Green)

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, what discussions he has had with the International Civil Aviation Organisation on changes to the M503, W122 and W123 flight paths in the Taiwan Strait.

Answered by Anne-Marie Trevelyan - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)

The UK has regular discussions within the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) regarding the importance of communication and coordination in the protection of air safety, especially when it comes to changes to airspace such as this.

We do not support any unilateral attempts to change the status quo in the Taiwan Strait and have underscored the importance of peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait alongside partners in previous G7 Foreign and Development Ministers' and Leaders' communiques.

The UK's longstanding policy on Taiwan has not changed. We consider the Taiwan issue one to be settled peacefully by the people on both sides of the Taiwan Strait through constructive dialogue, without the threat or use of force or coercion.


Written Question
Taiwan: Air Routes
Monday 19th February 2024

Asked by: Iain Duncan Smith (Conservative - Chingford and Woodford Green)

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, if he will make an assessment of the implications for his policies of the recent changes to the M503, W122, and W123 flight paths around Taiwan.

Answered by Anne-Marie Trevelyan - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)

The UK has regular discussions within the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) regarding the importance of communication and coordination in the protection of air safety, especially when it comes to changes to airspace such as this.

We do not support any unilateral attempts to change the status quo in the Taiwan Strait and have underscored the importance of peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait alongside partners in previous G7 Foreign and Development Ministers' and Leaders' communiques.

The UK's longstanding policy on Taiwan has not changed. We consider the Taiwan issue one to be settled peacefully by the people on both sides of the Taiwan Strait through constructive dialogue, without the threat or use of force or coercion.


Written Question
Taiwan Strait: Air Routes
Monday 19th February 2024

Asked by: Iain Duncan Smith (Conservative - Chingford and Woodford Green)

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, whether he has had discussions with his counterpart in China on changes to the M503, W122 and W123 flight paths around Taiwan Strait.

Answered by Anne-Marie Trevelyan - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)

The UK has regular discussions within the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) regarding the importance of communication and coordination in the protection of air safety, especially when it comes to changes to airspace such as this.

We do not support any unilateral attempts to change the status quo in the Taiwan Strait and have underscored the importance of peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait alongside partners in previous G7 Foreign and Development Ministers' and Leaders' communiques.

The UK's longstanding policy on Taiwan has not changed. We consider the Taiwan issue one to be settled peacefully by the people on both sides of the Taiwan Strait through constructive dialogue, without the threat or use of force or coercion.


Written Question
Jimmy Lai
Friday 9th February 2024

Asked by: Iain Duncan Smith (Conservative - Chingford and Woodford Green)

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, what assessment he has made on the implications for his policies of the press release of the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights entitled, Hong Kong SAR: UN expert warns against admission of evidence, allegedly secured through torture, in Jimmy Lai case, published on 31 January 2024; and when he last made representations to the Hong Kong authorities on the Jimmy Lai case.

Answered by Anne-Marie Trevelyan - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)

We are aware of media reports and a submission to the UN Special Rapporteur on Cruel, Inhumane, Degrading Treatment or Punishment alleging mistreatment of Andy Li while he was detained in mainland China. We take all allegations of torture and mistreatment very seriously and are looking into this further. Article 15 of the Convention against Torture, which China has ratified, prohibits the use of statements established to have been made as a result of torture in court proceedings. Diplomats from our Consulate-General are attending Mr Lai's court proceedings as the trial continues. The Foreign Secretary raised Jimmy Lai's case with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi on 5 December.


Written Question
Jimmy Lai
Friday 9th February 2024

Asked by: Iain Duncan Smith (Conservative - Chingford and Woodford Green)

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, what assessment he has made on the implications for his policies of the press release of the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights entitled, Hong Kong SAR: UN expert warns against admission of evidence, allegedly secured through torture, in Jimmy Lai case, published on 31 January 2024; and when he last made representations to the Hong Kong authorities on the Jimmy Lai case.

Answered by Anne-Marie Trevelyan - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)

We are aware of media reports and a submission to the UN Special Rapporteur on Cruel, Inhumane, Degrading Treatment or Punishment alleging mistreatment of Andy Li while he was detained in mainland China. We take all allegations of torture and mistreatment very seriously and are looking into this further. Article 15 of the Convention against Torture, which China has ratified, prohibits the use of statements established to have been made as a result of torture in court proceedings. Diplomats from our Consulate-General are attending Mr Lai's court proceedings as the trial continues. The Foreign Secretary raised Jimmy Lai's case with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi on 5 December.


Written Question
Ukraine: Religious Freedom
Tuesday 30th January 2024

Asked by: Iain Duncan Smith (Conservative - Chingford and Woodford Green)

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, whether he has had recent discussions with his Ukrainian counterpart on religious freedom in the context of the decision to prohibit the Ukrainian Orthodox Church.

Answered by Leo Docherty - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for the Armed Forces)

We are deeply disturbed by the impact of Russia's illegal war on Freedom of Religion or Belief (FoRB) in Ukraine. This includes widespread destruction of religious sites, and the imposition of restrictive Russian laws in the temporarily controlled territories. The UK is carefully tracking the development of the draft law on religious organisations. The British Embassy in Kyiv continues to actively engage with Ukrainian religious organisations and representatives on the issue. We welcome the Ukrainian Government's assurances that the law is not aimed at restricting FoRB, and their ongoing consultation with religious communities in Ukraine on the terms of the law.


Written Question
Diplomatic Service: Passports
Wednesday 17th January 2024

Asked by: Iain Duncan Smith (Conservative - Chingford and Woodford Green)

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, with reference to the Written Statement of 9 January 2023 on Diplomatic Passport Policy, HCWS173, what his Department’s policy is on the (a) eligibility for and (b) use of (i) diplomatic and (ii) official passports; and how long such passports last once issued.

Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)

Policy remains that diplomatic or official passports (linked to the nature of accreditation), are issued to UK civil servants and qualifying dependants on postings to UK diplomatic missions or consular posts.

These passports are normally valid for:

  • Foreign Commonwealth and Development Office staff - 10 years;
  • Other HMG staff - 6 years;
  • Other HMG staff on loan to the FCDO - posting length + 6 months.

They should generally be used only to enter and exit the country/countries of accreditation or for duty travel to some countries operating restrictive visa regimes, or where using such a passport would exempt the need for a visa.


Written Question
Diplomatic Service: Passports
Wednesday 17th January 2024

Asked by: Iain Duncan Smith (Conservative - Chingford and Woodford Green)

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, with reference to the Written Statement of 9 January 2023 on Diplomatic Passport Policy, HCWS173, if he will list individuals with (a) a diplomatic and (b) an official passport other than members of HM Diplomatic Service and their families.

Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)

Diplomatic passports are issued to UK civil servants (and their families) accredited overseas with diplomatic or consular status. Official passports are given to those with administrative and technical status.

A limited number of exceptions have been made to issue diplomatic passports to officials travelling on government business for security reasons.

Some military personnel have received short-validity official passports or, more rarely, diplomatic passports where these are required to fulfil their functions.