Asked by: James Cleverly (Conservative - Braintree)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent assessment he has made of UK diplomatic relations with Japan.
Answered by Mark Field
UK-Japan bilateral relations are the strongest they have been in years. Japan is one of our closest partners in the region. We are natural partners, with common interests as outward-looking, democratic, free-trading island nations with global reach.
During the Prime Minister's visit to Japan in August 2017, she committed to elevating the UK-Japan partnership to a new level. The Prime Minister and Prime Minister Abe agreed to enhance cooperation across three pillars of the bilateral relationship: Security and Defence; Prosperity; and Innovation. The Foreign Secretary and Defence Secretary met their Japanese counterparts in London on 14 December, as part of regular, proactive engagement with the Japanese government and business, with special emphasis on defence and security issues.
Asked by: James Cleverly (Conservative - Braintree)
Question to the Scotland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, what recent steps he has taken to transfer welfare powers to the Scottish Government.
Answered by David Mundell
We continue to progress the transfer of welfare powers in the Scotland Act 2016, most recently enabling the Scottish Parliament to legislate for carers benefits, disability benefits and payments made from the regulated social fund. I look forward to seeing how the Scottish Government use these extensive new powers.
Asked by: James Cleverly (Conservative - Braintree)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps she is taking to reform the fire service.
Answered by Brandon Lewis
The Government - in partnership with the fire sector - is delivering a radical and ambitious programme of reform to make the fire and rescue service more accountable, efficient and professional than ever before. This includes: creating a new independent inspectorate; enabling police and crime commissioners to take on local fire governance; supporting commercial transformation; driving transparency; forming a professional standards body and reforming the workforce to make it more flexible, skilled and diverse.
Asked by: James Cleverly (Conservative - Braintree)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions his Department had on the candidates for appointment for the post of Secretary-General of the Commonwealth before the most recent appointment to that post made at the Commonwealth Head of Government Meeting in November 2015.
Answered by Tobias Ellwood
We demand a lot of the Commonwealth and had high expectations for the new Secretary-General. The UK wanted the strongest possible candidate to steer the Commonwealth through reform, to ensure that it has a voice on the most pressing global challenges and to unite countries behind the Commonwealth's values such as the protection and promotion of human rights, democracy and the rule of law. We assessed candidates for the position based on this criteria. We welcomed Patricia Scotland's appointment as Secretary General in November 2015.
Asked by: James Cleverly (Conservative - Braintree)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent discussions he has had on the renovation of the official residence and offices of the Commonwealth Secretariat in London.
Answered by Tobias Ellwood
The Secretary-General's official residence is fully maintained and allowance is made in the existing Secretariat budget to provide ongoing general maintenance. It is custom to refurbish the premises on the appointment of a new Secretary General thus giving a cycle of approximately eight years. The budget for the renovation of the official residence was agreed by the Board of Governors at its meeting in June 2015, before the appointment of Patricia Scotland. Nevertheless, we welcome the Secretary-General's statement that "any work on Hill Street must represent value for money and no extravagance."
We also welcome steps by the Secretary-General to create a Commonwealth Hub through the shared use of existing premises at Quadrant House. Incorporating the Commonwealth Games Federation, the Royal Commonwealth Society and the Commonwealth Local Government Foundation will help bring these organisations together alongside the Secretariat. It will also help the Secretariat to reduce overheads while obtaining value from existing resources and developing new partnerships to better deliver outcomes.
Asked by: James Cleverly (Conservative - Braintree)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what meetings he has had with the Secretary-General of the Commonwealth in 2016; and if he will publish a summary of the content of such discussions.
Answered by Tobias Ellwood
The Minister for the Commonwealth, The Rt Hon. Baroness Anelay of St Johns DBE, met with the Secretary-General in September for discussions on a wide range of Commonwealth-related issues. Topics discussed include the Secretary-General’s policy and operational priorities, and UK plans for the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in 2018. The UK's Commonwealth Envoy has also met the Secretary-General on a number of occasions.
Asked by: James Cleverly (Conservative - Braintree)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what processes his Department has in place to hold to account the Secretary-General of the Commonwealth.
Answered by Tobias Ellwood
Meetings of the Commonwealth Secretariat's Executive Committee (ExCo) and Board of Governors provide formal opportunities to engage with the Secretary-General and her team on the actions and activities of the Secretariat, including those outlined in the Annual Results Report, the mid-term review of the Strategic Plan and updates of mandates provided by Heads of Government at the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in Malta in November 2015. ExCo also considers the annual budget and the Secretariat's actions against recommendations provided by External Auditors of the accounts. In addition to these formal meetings, the UK's Commonwealth Envoy and other representatives of my department and the Department for International Development also meet regularly with the Secretary-General and her staff to review performance and identify progress against programme delivery.
Asked by: James Cleverly (Conservative - Braintree)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent engagement his Department has had with the Commonwealth Secretariat over the efficient and transparent expenditure of funds received from the public purse.
Answered by Tobias Ellwood
Through regular attendance at meetings of the Commonwealth Secretariat's Executive Committee (ExCo) and Board of Governors (of which we are a member), the UK is fully engaged to ensure that UK funds are allocated and spent in an efficient and transparent manner. ExCo meets three times a year to review papers, including the budget, which is presented to the Board of Governors at its annual meeting. The role of ExCo is to receive and review reports from the Secretariat on the operations of individual funds; oversee budgets and audit functions; make policy recommendations to the Board of Governors with respect to the individual funds; and make recommendations, as appropriate, on any matter referred to it by the Board of Governors.
Asked by: James Cleverly (Conservative - Braintree)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what contribution from the public purse has been made to the Commonwealth Secretariat in each of the last five years; and how much the UK is expected to so provide in each of the next five years.
Answered by Tobias Ellwood
The UK remains the largest financial contributor to the Commonwealth Secretariat, providing around 32% of the total budget. To establish a reasonable baseline, financial contributions to the Secretariat's general budget are based on scales agreed at the UN. The Foreign and Commonwealth Office's (FCO) assessed contributions for the last five years were as follows:
2011/2012 £5,168,586
2012/2013 £5,262,654
2013/2014 £5,326,331
2014/2015 £5,455,484
2015/2016 £5,469,640
UN scales of assessment 2016 - 2018 were agreed in New York in December 2015. They will form the basis for future FCO contributions to the Secretariat's general budget. Under existing Commonwealth guidelines, the budget is shared amongst the membership in accordance with three principles: Capacity to Pay, Equitable burden sharing and shared ownership and responsibility. This ensures that all members enjoy an equal voice within the organisation.
In addition to FCO assessed contributions, the Department for International Development also makes voluntary contributions to the Commonwealth Fund for Technical Cooperation and a number of Commonwealth programmes.
Asked by: James Cleverly (Conservative - Braintree)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment he has made of the use of funding from the public purse provided to the Commonwealth Secretariat.
Answered by Tobias Ellwood
We support the work of the Commonwealth Secretariat, in particular around the promotion of democratic values and development. We expect the Secretariat to use any funding we provide efficiently and effectively in line with its agreed budget, financial procedures and priorities. In addition to being considered by external auditors, the Secretariat's budget is assessed by the Commonwealth's Executive Committee and Board of Governors at regular meetings. The UK is a member of both groups, represented by the UK's Commonwealth Envoy.
We are committed to supporting the Secretary General's efforts to reform and revitalise the Commonwealth Secretariat and to working with her and our Commonwealth partners to strengthen the organisation.