Jo Swinson

Exhibitions in Parliament’s Upper Waiting Hall offer an opportunity for a variety of topics to be explored in a balanced and non-contentious way. Exhibits must therefore meet the following criteria, that:

“their content should not be of a contentious nature, contain items of advertising, commercial interest or material likely to give offence; nor should they contain material intended to further the aims of any political party or group.”

Since being first approved, concerns have been raised in relation to the ‘Wall of Silence’ exhibition, which was due to be displayed in April 2018 in the Upper Waiting Hall. For this reason the Administration Committee decided, on 29 January 2018, to withdraw support for the exhibition because it did not meet the criterion of being uncontentious.

We will launch an updated gender pay gap viewing service in April 2018 that will allow employers to benchmark themselves against similar organisations. This will include information on the size of organisations.

The Low Pay Commission’s consultation, on the effect of a higher minimum wage for non-guaranteed hours in a contract and alternative means for tackling one-sided flexibility, launched in March.

The Low Pay Commission will publish their report, containing the findings from this consultation, in due course.

Last year, Acas published new comprehensive guidance on pregnancy and maternity discrimination and workplace rights and obligations.

This summer we have reviewed the GOV.UK guidance material on the protections for people who are pregnant or on maternity leave and we are now updating and improving signposting.

The Government has received over 400 detailed responses to the four consultations launched in February. We are very grateful to everyone who took the time to respond. Their insights have been invaluable in informing our policy development. We will be publishing our response to these consultations in due course.

The Government has received over 400 detailed responses to the four consultations launched in February. We are very grateful to everyone who took the time to respond. Their insights have been invaluable in informing our policy development. We will be publishing our response to these consultations in due course.

The following information is based on the resourcing of the Employment Agency Standards Inspectorate (EAS) for the 31^st March in each year:

2015 – 5

2016 – 11

2017 – 11

2018 – 12

The Department continues to review the resourcing needs both in the short term and in the context of wider, longer term reforms including the Taylor Review of Modern Working Practices and the strategy of the Director of Labour Market Enforcement.

The Government has received over 400 detailed responses to the four consultations launched in February. We are very grateful to everyone who took the time to respond. Their insights have been invaluable in informing our policy development. We will be publishing our response to these consultations in due course.

The UK’s National Action Plan to implement the United Nations Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights sets out a rolling programme of actions requiring both legislative and non-legislative approaches. The Department has funded one project in the last five years. The Department matched funding from the Dutch Government toward the development of the Corporate Human Rights Benchmark, a private sector-led initiative that ranks some of the world’s largest companies by their human rights policies, processes, and practices. The total spend on this project from UK Government was £60,000 in 2014/15 and £20,000 in 2015/16.

The Department, working together with the Foreign & Commonwealth Office and other departments, aims to publish in due course a summary of the actions and progress within the Government’s National Action Plan on Business and Human Rights. Our focus is on implementing the Plan as it stands and there is no intention to review it before 2020. Any future development of the Plan must be informed by wide consultations and the Government welcomes discussions with business and civil society organisations about our approach and the delivery of commitments under the Plan.

We will consult in due course.

We have started the evaluation of the Shared Parental Leave and Pay schemes and expect to be in a position to publish the findings of the evaluation in the Spring of 2019.

The evaluation will consider the barriers to parents taking Shared Parental Leave and Pay and how the schemes are being used in practice - including by self-employed mothers who qualify for Maternity Allowance. Whilst we are not planning to review the eligibility criteria at the current time, as part of the evaluation we will be speaking to range of stakeholders, including groups who are lobbying Government to extend parental entitlements to the self-employed.

We have started the evaluation of the Shared Parental Leave and Pay schemes. We will gather and analyse information from a variety of sources, including survey data which the Government will commission.

Subject to the progress of data collection, we anticipate publishing findings in Spring 2019.

Of the 169 employers instructed to self-correct further arrears in naming rounds 10 to 13, 96 employers identified a sum of self-corrected arrears greater than the sum of arrears for which they were named.

As part of a formal HMRC investigation where arrears have been identified, enforcement officers have the ability to instruct an employer to conduct a self-review across the remainder of their payroll. An employer will be required to correct any further underpayments found; and the review is assured by HMRC officers before being finalised. Self-correction is used to maximise the impact of enforcement activity, and frees up HMRC officers to start work on additional investigations.

Of the 169 employers who were instructed to self-correct further arrears in naming rounds 10-13:

• 13 employers owed total arrears of between £25,000 and £49,999
• 8 employers owed total arrears of between £50,000 and £99,999
• 5 employers owed total arrears of between £100,000 and £249,999
• 5 employers owed total arrears of more than £250,000.

The Government is committed to introducing a new statutory reporting requirement to require quoted companies to disclose and explain the ratio of the Chief Executive Officer’s total annual remuneration to the average annual remuneration of the company’s UK employees. The regulations to implement this provision (along with the other new reporting provisions being introduced as part of the corporate governance reforms announced in August 2017) are being drafted and will be laid in draft in Parliament later this year subject to other Parliamentary business.

Of the 169 employers who were instructed to self-correct further arrears in naming rounds 10-13:

• 17 employers owed arrears to more than 250 workers, of which 12 employers owed arrears to more than 500 workers.

This breakdown represents the arrears owed by a business to its workers, not the employer size.

A total of 169 employers were instructed to self-correct further arrears in naming rounds 10-13. The sectoral breakdown of those employers is presented in Table 1, below.

Table 1: Employers named under the National Minimum Wage naming scheme (rounds 10-13) and instructed to self-correct by the Low Pay Commission by sector

Notes

1. Sectors with less than 5 employers have been included in an ‘Other’ category to avoid disclosure of self-correction via the naming announcements. Sector definitions are contained within the Low Pay Commission’s autumn 2017 report (p231) -https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/661195/Low_Pay_Commission_2017_report.pdf

HM Revenue and Customs does not hold complete data on employer size, therefore a breakdown by size is not available.

Protection already exists through the Maternity and Parental Leave etc Regulations 1999. Where redundancy means that it is not practicable to continue to employ a woman on maternity leave under an existing contract, Regulation 10 requires an employer to offer appropriate alternative employment on terms which are not substantially less favourable. We are considering the implications of extending this right into the period when a new mother returns to work and into the period while she is pregnant and at work. In terms of initial consultation, we have also sought the views of the Alliance for Maternity Rights on other potential proposals.

We have mobilised Jobcentre Plus’s Rapid response Service to help workers get back into employment as soon as possible. This service is tailored to individuals’ needs and can include some or all of the following:

- Help with job searches, including CV writing and interview skills;

- Help to identify transferable skills and skills gaps, linked to the local labour market;

- Training to update skills, learn new ones and gain industry recognised certification that will improve employability;

- Help to overcome barriers to attending training, securing a job or self-employment, such as child care costs, tools, work clothes and travel costs.

It is worth noting that in June, Bunnings, the owner of Homebase, announced plans to create over 1,000 new jobs in the UK.

Local Trading Standards and their equivalent in Northern Ireland enforce the Consumer Contracts (Information, Cancellation and Additional Charges) Regulations 2013. Traders are required to comply with these rules when dealing with consumers, including the provision of basic rate customer services numbers. Alleged breaches of legislation should be reported, in the first instance, through the Citizens Advice consumer helpline who will pass on complaints to the relevant enforcement authority where necessary.

The Consumer Contracts (Information, Cancellation and Additional Charges) Regulations 2013 (CCRs), which came into force on 13 June 2014, requires the Secretary of State to review the regulations 5 years after they have come into force. These implemented the EU Consumer Rights Directive and the Department worked closely with OFCOM with regard to the characteristics of a basic rate number. The Department will review the Regulations, including the provision of basic rate customer helplines, by 13 June 2019.

Revision of these regulations is technically complex and stakeholders hold a wide spectrum of views on the proposals that have been made. We will issue the Government response only after careful consideration of all 120 responses received. The Grenfell Tower fire highlights the need for public protection to remain our priority and we are now reviewing the proposed changes in the light of that tragic event.

We will evaluate Shared Parental Leave in 2018. We anticipate commissioning survey work to measure take-up as part of this evaluation.

The Government is committed to introducing a new statutory reporting requirement to require quoted companies to disclose and explain the ratio of the Chief Executive Officer’s total annual remuneration to the average annual remuneration of the company’s UK employees. The regulations to implement this provision (along with the other new reporting provisions being introduced as part of the corporate governance reforms announced in August 2017) are being drafted and will be laid in draft in Parliament later this year subject to other Parliamentary business.

No element of the Crown Prince’s visit to the UK was funded by the UK’s Official Development Assistance, and DFID did not fund any of the visit.

During the visit, the two countries agreed to continued close cooperation on humanitarian issues, and signed three separate agreements to strengthen our shared response to global humanitarian and development challenges.

No element of the Crown Prince’s visit to the UK was funded by the UK’s Official Development Assistance, and DFID did not fund any of the visit.

During the visit, the two countries agreed to continued close cooperation on humanitarian issues, and signed three separate agreements to strengthen our shared response to global humanitarian and development challenges.

Humanitarian access to Eastern Ghouta remains severely constrained by the Assad regime. Our partners are on the ground providing life-saving support, but desperately needed aid supplies are unable to reach them. The UK continues to demand full and sustained humanitarian access into Eastern Ghouta, and to all other besieged areas in Syria.

Women and children are particularly vulnerable in conflicts. For those internally displaced in Syria to return home safely there must be an end to the conflict and a credible political settlement. This is the only viable path towards the peace and security that the Syrian people deserve. In the meantime, the UK is providing food, healthcare, water and other life-saving relief to internally displaced people across the country. Since 2012, we have delivered 20.9 million food rations that feed a person for a month, 3.3 million vaccines against deadly diseases, and 8.1 million medical consultations for those in need in Syria.

DFID’s Climate & Environment cadre currently contains 60 advisers.

The exact numbers fluctuate during the year as advisers are recruited into or leave the organisation or when existing staff are accredited to the cadre.

The information requested is published for a range of benefits administered by DWP, such as Universal Credit, Employment and Support Allowance and Housing Benefit, and available at the Department’s Stat-Xplore website:

https://stat-xplore.dwp.gov.uk

Guidance for users of Stat-Xplore is available at:

https://sw.stat-xplore.dwp.gov.uk/webapi/online-help/Getting-Started.html

Statistics are also available via the Office of National Statistics’ NOMIS website, including for benefits not currently available on Stat-Xplore such as Jobseeker’s Allowance:

https://www.nomisweb.co.uk/default.asp

Guidance for users of NOMIS can be found at:

https://www.nomisweb.co.uk/home/newuser.asp

As at August 2017, the most recent date for which figures are available, there were 649,564 women aged between 60 and 65 years of age (inclusive) in receipt of State Pension. The average weekly amount received by these women was £136.37. Of these, 582,226 received a State Pension based on their own National Insurance contributions; either a Category A pension under the pre-2016 system, or from April 2016 under the new State Pension (nSP).

There are 4.7 million women aged 50+ in the UK in employment and the number of older workers in employment is at a record high with 10.1 million workers aged 50+ in the UK; an increase of 1.4 million over the last 5 years. As part of the Flexible Working Lives Strategy, the Government committed to publishing Official Annual Statistics on older workers. These can be accessed at: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/economic-labour-market-status-of-individuals-aged-50-and-over-trends-over-time-september-2017

For the period Nov 2017 - Jan 2018, the UK unemployment level for women aged 50-64 is 126,000; this represents an unemployment rate of 2.9%.

The data requested on the unemployment level for females aged 60-64 cannot be provided due to the sample size of this group. The breakdown by receipt of state pension and benefits is not held.

In 2017, the UK employment level for females aged 60-64 was 821,000; this represents an employment rate of 45.2%.

Pre-existing charges on property have no impact on the SMI loans process. SMI loans will be offered to all eligible claimants regardless of any pre-existing charges on property.

The Department only holds data on internal costs for Personal Independence Payments (PIP) Appeals.

The average internal cost of each appeal is £278.35 for new claims and £138.84 for reassessment appeals. Other costs are only obtainable at disproportionate cost.

We aim to get the decision correct every time. The Department monitors the quality and accuracy of its decision making with a robust quality assurance framework where feedback is given to individual decision makers as required.

PIP data is collated at GB (England, Scotland and Wales only) rather than UK level.

The Department only holds data on PIP awards changed and unchanged at appeal. Therefore the awards changed may include a very small number of appeals where the award may have reduced.

The table below shows the proportion of appeals against awards of Personal Independent Payment where the award was changed and unchanged at appeal for East Dunbartonshire, Scotland and Great Britain.

The table below shows the number of applicants for personal independence payments to residents of (a) East Dunbartonshire (Parliamentary Constituency), (b) Scotland and (c) Great Britain who were awarded (i) no support for mobility needs, (ii) the standard mobility component and (iii) the enhanced mobility component in each quarter for which data is available.

Note that PIP data is collated at GB rather than UK level

(a) East Dunbartonshire (Parliamentary Constituency)

(b) Scotland

(c) Great Britain

‘# ‘used to avoid the release of confidential data including instances where there are fewer than 5 cases

The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) is the independent body responsible for providing authoritative, evidence-based guidance for the National Health Service. The NICE clinical guideline on antenatal care was published in 2008 and states that fetal presentation should be assessed by abdominal palpation at 36 weeks or later. The guideline also states that evidence does not support the routine use of ultrasound scanning after 24 weeks of gestation and therefore should not be offered.

The evidence considered by NICE in developing its recommendations can be found in NICE’s full guideline at the following link:

https://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/cg62/evidence/full-guideline-pdf-196748323

However, NICE is currently updating this guideline, including its recommendations relating to monitoring fetal growth and wellbeing and expects to publish final updated guidance in December 2020 with a public consultation in summer 2020.

The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) Quality Standard relating the best antenatal care (QS22) states that women with a suspected breech presentation at 36 weeks or later should be referred for confirmatory ultrasound assessment. Quality Standard 22 was published in September 2012 and was most recently updated in April 2016.

Quality Standards are important in setting out to patients, the public, commissioners and providers what a high-quality service should look like in a particular area of care. Whilst providers and commissioners must have regard to NICE QSs in planning and delivering services, they do not provide a comprehensive service specification and are not mandatory.

Our number one priority is for patients to continue to have access to medicines, including medical radioisotopes such as krypton and technetium, whatever the European Union exit outcome, and we have robust contingency plans in place.

Leaving the EU with a deal remains the Government’s top priority. However, as a responsible Government we must plan for every possible outcome including ‘no deal’. The Department has published guidance to industry and the health and care system to allow them to make informed plans and preparations. This is available on GOV.UK.

The Department has worked with the pharmaceutical industry to ensure that planes are contracted to bring in medical radioisotopes under the appropriate specialist conditions and suppliers are working closely with the National Health Service to minimise any potential impact of changes to delivery times.

We are confident that if everyone does what they need to do, the supply of medicines and other medical products, including medical radioisotopes, will be uninterrupted.

Our number one priority is for patients to continue to have access to medicines, including medical radioisotopes such as krypton and technetium, whatever the European Union exit outcome, and we have robust contingency plans in place.

Leaving the EU with a deal remains the Government’s top priority. However, as a responsible Government we must plan for every possible outcome including ‘no deal’. The Department has published guidance to industry and the health and care system to allow them to make informed plans and preparations. This is available on GOV.UK.

The Department has worked with the pharmaceutical industry to ensure that planes are contracted to bring in medical radioisotopes under the appropriate specialist conditions and suppliers are working closely with the National Health Service to minimise any potential impact of changes to delivery times.

We are confident that if everyone does what they need to do, the supply of medicines and other medical products, including medical radioisotopes, will be uninterrupted.

This information is not available.

This information is not held centrally.

The Department is working very closely with all the manufacturers of adrenaline auto-injectors, the Medicines and Health products Regulatory Agency, and NHS England to improve the situation as quickly as possible. Supplies of EpiPen 0.3mg and the alternative adrenaline auto-injectors are currently available in volumes that are sufficient to meet normal United Kingdom requirements and further deliveries of all three brands of adrenaline autoinjectors are expected in the coming weeks. Comprehensive information and guidance, with input from National Health Service allergy experts has been cascaded to all healthcare professionals, schools, patient groups and frontline NHS services, which provides information about the supply issue, management options and advice to share with patients.

The Department is working very closely with all the manufacturers of adrenaline auto-injectors, the Medicines and Health products Regulatory Agency, and NHS England to improve the situation as quickly as possible. Supplies of EpiPen 0.3mg and the alternative adrenaline auto-injectors are currently available in volumes that are sufficient to meet normal United Kingdom requirements and further deliveries of all three brands of adrenaline autoinjectors are expected in the coming weeks. Comprehensive information and guidance, with input from National Health Service allergy experts has been cascaded to all healthcare professionals, schools, patient groups and frontline NHS services, which provides information about the supply issue, management options and advice to share with patients.

Departmental officials are in regular contact with Mylan, the United Kingdom licensed supplier of Epipens, as there have been ongoing supply issues affecting this product. Supplies are currently available of the 0.3mg, although limited, and are being closely managed to ensure that pharmacies can obtain stock to fulfil prescription for patients. Mylan anticipates that supplies will stabilize in the fourth quarter of 2018.

Departmental officials have been in regular contact with the United Kingdom licensed supplier of Epipens, Mylan, and are working closely with them to resolve the supply situation as quickly as possible. Mylan’s contract manufacturer, Meridian Medical Technologies is a Pfizer company. The Department has had no specific discussions with representatives of Pfizer with regard to the adequate provision and number of Epipens.

Supplies are currently available, although limited, and are being closely managed to ensure that pharmacies can obtain stock to fulfil prescriptions for patients. Officials have shared information about the current supply position for Epipens with colleagues in the Scottish Government.

Departmental officials have been in regular contact with the United Kingdom licensed supplier of Epipens, Mylan, and are working closely with them to resolve the supply situation as quickly as possible. Mylan’s contract manufacturer, Meridian Medical Technologies is a Pfizer company. The Department has had no specific discussions with representatives of Pfizer with regard to the adequate provision and number of Epipens.

Supplies are currently available, although limited, and are being closely managed to ensure that pharmacies can obtain stock to fulfil prescriptions for patients. Officials have shared information about the current supply position for Epipens with colleagues in the Scottish Government.

Departmental officials have been in regular contact with the United Kingdom licensed supplier of Epipens, Mylan, and are working closely with them to resolve the supply situation as quickly as possible. Mylan’s contract manufacturer, Meridian Medical Technologies is a Pfizer company. The Department has had no specific discussions with representatives of Pfizer with regard to the adequate provision and number of Epipens.

Supplies are currently available, although limited, and are being closely managed to ensure that pharmacies can obtain stock to fulfil prescriptions for patients. Officials have shared information about the current supply position for Epipens with colleagues in the Scottish Government.

The outcome of the February 2018 Guinean municipal elections has been heavily disputed, resulting in an increase in political tensions in the country. In this context, we are aware of reports of shooting at the vehicle convoy of the opposition party leader, Cellou Dalein Diallo, in Conakry late last year. Together with EU and other international partners we are monitoring the situation closely. The international community continues to urge dialogue between the political parties and essential preparation for forthcoming legislative elections. Peaceful elections will be essential to reassuring investors and other partners, and not least the people of Guinea.

The UK has actively supported proposals for three new EU thematic sanctions regimes in order to strengthen our international resilience to hybrid threats. These regimes are in different stages of development in the EU.

The chemical weapons regime was adopted at the Foreign Affairs Council on 15 October, and on 21 January the EU adopted the first listings under that regime in response to the use of chemical weapons in Salisbury and Syria. These actions demonstrate the resolve of the UK and our allies to tackle the proliferation and use of chemical weapons in contravention of global norms.

We welcomed the October European Council conclusions which gave a mandate for work on EU cyber sanctions. We are coordinating with EU partners to support the development of a cyber sanctions regime. We are also very supportive of ongoing policy discussions following the Dutch initiative to establish an EU global human rights sanctions regime. This will strengthen the EU’s ability to tackle human rights violations and abuses, wherever they may occur, and allow the EU to respond quickly and appropriately.

As set out in the statement of 13 December 2018 [HCWS1177] by the Foreign Secretary and his predecessor’s update to the House on 9 July 2018, the UK was at the forefront of significant successful diplomatic efforts last year to secure, fund and implement decisions to enable the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) to attribute responsibility for chemical weapons attacks in Syria, and more widely at the request of an affected State Party. In accordance with the terms of the June Decision, on 15 November 2018, the Director General of the OPCW set out the measures that the OPCW will implement to provide technical expertise on attribution to requesting States Parties and set out his proposals to establish independent, impartial, expert arrangements to assist with this. We continue to work with international partners in supporting the OPCW Director General and the OPCW Technical Secretariat to put in place structures and staffing to take forward their mandated attribution work, a significant step forward in international efforts to end use of chemical weapons.

I summoned the Zimbabwean Ambassador on 17 January to express our concern at the ongoing situation there, and to urge the security forces to stop using disproportionate force and to investigate any cases of alleged human rights violations and abuses. On 30 January, I spoke to Zimbabwean Foreign Minister Moyo, repeating our calls for an end to human rights violations and abuses and a full investigation into all allegations, including arbitrary arrests.

We will continue to call on the Government of Zimbabwe to investigate all allegations of human rights violations and abuses and urge them to follow the due process of law.

The British Embassy team continue to attend court cases in Harare and Bulawayo and are in regular contact with the legal teams of a number of individuals who have been arrested.

I travelled to South Africa on 30 January and raised Zimbabwe with key regional interlocutors, emphasising the need for urgent action by the international community.

I also attended the EU-AU Ministerial meeting in Brussels on 21 January and discussed a range of issues, including Zimbabwe at the meeting.

I will continue to raise the political and security situation in Zimbabwe with key counterparts, including those from Commonwealth states, as I did with the Foreign Minister of Mozambique on 3 February.

​

I raised the need for all those arrested to be given a fair trial with the Zimbabwean Foreign Minister Moyo on 30 January. Our Ambassador has reinforced this message in Harare, in meetings with Home Affairs Minister Mathema on 23 January and Foreign Minister Moyo on 25 January.

Following his recent arrest, the British Embassy have been monitoring Pastor Evan Mawarire’s court hearings. We were pleased to see he was released on bail on 30 January.

​We agree that climate change is exacerbating conflict in Mali and the broader Sahel region, particularly by increasing competition over land and resources. The causes of conflict in Mali are, however, wider than climate change and include in particular issues around governance, demography, terrorism and organised crime.

The Government has a duty to inform citizens and businesses about how leaving the EU might affect them, and to advise on the steps they may need to take to prepare for EU Exit.

We have developed a cross-departmental public information campaign to help achieve this. Over the coming weeks, we will be using a range of channels to direct UK citizens, businesses, EU citizens living in the UK and UK nationals living in the EU to a dedicated area on GOV.UK at Gov.uk/EUexit

Information on the costs associated with this campaign will be released in due course as part the normal data transparency releases by the Cabinet Office.

We list nearly all of our ODA-funded programmes on gov.uk and on the Department for International Development's Development Tracker website. Information on a small number of policy programmes is not in the public domain due to the need to protect national security and the safety and security of beneficiaries, partners or partner governments.

We are aware of historical reports related to the presence of extremist groups in Sudan, including the presence of Al-Qaida. The Government of Sudan has in recent years taken steps to address the presence of such groups, and to meet the bilateral requirements set by the US Government for Sudan to be removed from the US State Sponsor of Terrorism List. We continue to encourage the Government of Sudan to address drivers of radicalisation and ensure that all forms of extremism are tackled in compliance with human rights standards. Through bilateral engagement including our biannual Strategic Dialogue we continue to raise issues of concern and discuss areas where we could work together on a range of issues, including counter terrorism and countering violent extremism.

The UK strongly supports the G5 Sahel Joint Force and condemns the attack against the Force's Headquarters in Sevare in June 2018. The UK has contributed 15.5% of the €100m of EU support to date for the Force, as well as £2m in bilateral funds. We assess that the G5 Sahel Joint Force is having a positive impact against the Islamist terrorist threat, evidenced by a number of effective joint operations since November 2017. The challenge is nevertheless significant and it is urgent that the Force becomes fully operational and the international community makes good on pledges of financial support for the G5 Sahel Joint Force.

The UK strongly supports the G5 Sahel Joint Force and condemns the attack against the Force's Headquarters in Sevare in June 2018. The UK has contributed 15.5% of the €100m of EU support to date for the Force, as well as £2m in bilateral funds. Since October 2012, there have been reports of significant numbers of foreign terrorists, including Algerian and Sudanese fighters, operating in Gao and Timbuktu. We assess that the G5 Sahel Joint Force is having a positive impact against the Islamist terrorist threat, evidenced by a number of effective joint operations since November 2017. The challenge is nevertheless significant and it is urgent that the Force becomes fully operational and the international community makes good on pledges of financial support for the G5 Sahel Joint Force.

​The British Government strongly supports the right to freedom of religion or belief, which is restricted in Saudi Arabia. Our views are well known.

A major component of Saudi Arabia's Vision 2030 is educational reform. As the Saudi Minister of Education recently commented, this will take a number of years. During the visit of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman to the UK in 2018, we signed a Memorandum of Understanding that will enable a partnership in developing educational curricula.

We closely monitor freedom of religion or belief issues in Saudi Arabia.

For the 2018-19 financial year, the department intends to spend through the Magna Carta Fund a total of £107,000 supporting business and human rights projects. Information for projects relating to business and human rights in previous financial years is not readily available; we will write to the Hon Member in due course.

​The Cross-Whitehall Steering Group on Business and Human Rights is chaired jointly by officials from the Foreign and Commonwealth Office and the Department for Business Energy and Industry Strategy and is attended by representatives from the Ministry of Justice, the Department for International Trade, UK Export Finance, the Home Office, the Department for International Development, the Department for Exiting the European Union, the Department for Work and Pensions, the Government Equalities Office, the Department for Communities and Local Government, Crown Commercial Services, and with the Devolved Administrations. It builds on the commitments which the UK Government made in response to the Joint Parliamentary Committee on Human Rights report 'Human Rights and Business 2017: Promoting responsibility and ensuring accountability'.

Since the update of the National Action Plan, the Cross-Whitehall Steering Group on Business and Human Rights has met five times and also liaise between its meetings.

Our shared focus is implementing the National Action Plan on Business and Human Rights as it stands and on sustaining the UK's high standards in protection of human rights. There is no intent to review the Plan before at least 2020. Foreign and Commonwealth Office and the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy officials liaise frequently on the Plan and its implementation. We are clear that any future development of the Plan, must be informed by wide consultations, including with business representatives, about our approach and the delivery of commitments, so officials intend new engagement early in the New Year.

Foreign and Commonwealth officials discuss the implementation of the National Action Plan regularly at working level, with officials from the Department for Business Energy and Industrial Strategy, and through the Cross-Whitehall Steering Group on Business and Human Rights, taking all relevant developments into account.

The African Union's Election Observation Mission found that the elections were conducted in a relatively orderly manner in most of the country but violence affected polling in the Anglophone regions. I was concerned by reports of violence and casualties on polling day in Anglophone regions and by how difficult it was for citizens to vote there. I called on all parties to follow proper procedure for tallying results and exercise restraint.

We are aware of reports of increase in violence in the Anglophone region, especially in the lead up to the Presidential elections which took place on 7 October. The situation there is such that it is difficult to obtain an accurate account of what is happening or verify social media reports. We continue to engage with the Government of Cameroon on this and wider issues and deliver the message that we want to see an end to violence and a meaningful process to address the core issues in the Anglophone region of Cameroon. We will also continue to underline that all parties have a responsibility to work for peace and stability and to use only legal and peaceful means to voice grievances.

We have noted Amnesty International's recent report on the Anglophone regions of Cameroon. We are deeply concerned by this and other reports of violence in the region. It remains incredibly challenging to secure access to the region to obtain an accurate account of what is happening on the ground. Reporting in social media is equally challenging to verify. The British Government wants to see an end to the violence, political prisoners released and a meaningful process of national dialogue to address the core issues. All parties have a responsibility to work for peace and stability and to use only legal and peaceful means to voice grievances.

​We are monitoring closely the case of Israa al-Ghomgham and other political activists. We continue to raise our concerns on human rights with the Saudi authorities in private.

The Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs and officials have been in touch with both Governments to express our concern over the dispute and its potential implications. We have and will continue to urge restraint and de-escalation through the appropriate diplomatic channels.

The Government continues to promote human rights across the Middle East, both bilaterally and with key international partners such as Canada. The UK frequently expresses concerns on human rights issues to Saudi Arabia at the most senior levels. We can only bring about the changes we would like to see by working with countries. We do not shy away from raising legitimate human rights concerns, and we make this point very clearly in public and in private.

The UK is a close partner to both Canada and Saudi Arabia and enjoys positive and constructive diplomatic relations with both countries. It is in the UK’s interest that we have both public and private conversations on matters of mutual concern.

The Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs and officials have been in touch with both Governments to express our concern over the dispute and its potential implications. We have and will continue to urge restraint and de-escalation through the appropriate diplomatic channels.

The Government continues to promote human rights across the Middle East, both bilaterally and with key international partners such as Canada. The UK frequently expresses concerns on human rights issues to Saudi Arabia at the most senior levels. We can only bring about the changes we would like to see by working with countries. We do not shy away from raising legitimate human rights concerns, and we make this point very clearly in public and in private.

The UK is a close partner to both Canada and Saudi Arabia and enjoys positive and constructive diplomatic relations with both countries. It is in the UK’s interest that we have both public and private conversations on matters of mutual concern.

The Foreign Secretary and officials have been in touch with both Governments to express our concern over the dispute and its potential implications. We have and will continue to urge restraint and de-escalation through the appropriate diplomatic channels.

The Government continues to promote human rights across the Middle East, both bilaterally and with key international partners such as Canada. The UK frequently expresses concerns on human rights issues to Saudi Arabia at the most senior levels. We can only bring about the changes we would like to see by working with countries. We do not shy away from raising legitimate human rights concerns, and we make this point very clearly in public and in private.

The UK is a close partner to both Canada and Saudi Arabia and enjoys positive and constructive diplomatic relations with both countries. It is in the UK’s interest that we have both public and private conversations on matters of mutual concern.

​The UK is providing £1.3 million this financial year to the UN's Verification and Inspection Mechanism (UNVIM) to facilitate commercial shipping and assure the Coalition that weapons are not coming into Yemen on large commercial ships docking at Red Sea ports. We have also deployed UK maritime experts to Djibouti to further boost the inspections process, increasing the proportion of ships physically inspected more than ten-fold (from 8 per cent to 90 per cent).

The UN Verification and Inspection Mechanism (UNVIM) facilitates commercial imports into Yemen's Red Sea ports of Hodeidah and Saleef, and is an important mechanism taking into account the arms embargo enacted by UN Security Council Resolution 2216. UNVIM only applies to commercial vessels.

​I refer the Hon. Member to answer of 11 July 2018 (PQ 160284).

We are in constant contact with the Coalition about the campaign in Yemen, as part of our diplomatic effort to find a solution which brings political stability to Yemen and ends cross-border threats to Yemen's neighbours. On Hodeidah, we have set out clearly international concerns on the importance of maintaining the flow of humanitarian supplies. I discussed this with my Saudi counterpart over the weekend. The Coalition have made clear that they recognise the humanitarian imperative and are prioritising the humanitarian response.

We are now doing everything we can to work with the UN, non-governmental organisations and the Coalition to respond to humanitarian needs in the days ahead.

We continue to urge all parties to facilitate access for essential imports of food, fuel and medical supplies into the country including through Hodeidah port.

​It is crucial that humanitarian and commercial imports continue to flow through Hodeidah and Saleef ports, which service the vast majority of Yemen's food needs. We urge all parties to facilitate access for essential imports of food, fuel and medical supplies into the country including through Hodeidah port. As in all aspects of the conflict, all parties must respect international humanitarian law and protect civilians.

On 11 January, the Foreign Secretary discussed Iran's response to the protests with Foreign Minister Zarif. In addition, on 5 January, we supported the proposal to discuss the protests at the UN Security Council where we set out our human rights concerns strongly.

The Foreign Secretary has made clear that the Iranian people should be able to freely express themselves and to demonstrate peacefully within the law. We look to the Iranian authorities to permit this. We are concerned by reports of mass arrests and deaths in custody, and by restrictions on freedom of expression, in particular the suspension of popular messaging application, Telegram.

On 11 January, the Foreign Secretary discussed Iran's response to the recent protests with Foreign Minister Zarif. He underlined the point he had made in his January statement, emphasising in particular that there should be a meaningful debate about the issues protestors were raising and that international obligations on human rights should be observed.

​In January next year the UK will launch the fourth iteration of its National Action Plan (NAP) on Women Peace and Security (WPS), a high level strategy that guides our cross- Whitehall work on WPS, and the implementation of UN Security Council Resolution 1325.
Through practical support, diplomatic action, defence, and development assistance, the UK is contributing to the four pillars of WPS in a number of ways.
The government is committed to promoting the participation of women in political processes, for example supporting women's participation in the Syrian, Somalian and Colombian peace processes. The Foreign & Commonwealth Office's first Special Envoy for Gender Equality, Joanna Roper is prioritising girls' education and women's empowerment, ensuring women and girls' fundamental rights are protected. The UK remains committed to improving peacekeeping efforts, to prevent conflict, and to prevent all forms of violence against women and girls if it breaks out; UK Peacekeepers are now given pre-deployment training on gender, and efforts are in place to get more women into peacekeeping missions. The UK's ambition is for gender to be mainstreamed throughout all International relief and recovery efforts, which are designed to meet the specific needs of women and girls. This will be reflected in DfID's upcoming Strategic Vision.
The FCO, MOD and DfID, with support from the cross- government Stabilisation Unit, work closely and collaboratively to implement UNSCR 1325, and to deliver the above. The WPS working group also works transparently with civil society and the UK Parliament.

The Government monitors events in Bahrain closely. We regularly raise human rights concerns with the Bahraini authorities in private and public and will continue to do so. Where we have concerns on specific cases we raise these at an appropriately senior level. We continue to encourage the Government of Bahrain to deliver on its international and domestic human rights commitments.

We encourage those with concerns about treatment in detention to report these to the relevant human rights oversight bodies.

The British Government is reviewing the proposed Blue Belt Charter.

The Government is already a global leader in marine protection through the implementation of the Blue Belt programme around the UK and the UK Overseas Territories. Through this programme we are on course to deliver over four million square kilometres of protected ocean by 2020, preserving unique environments and meeting international obligations for the global conservation of oceans.

The human rights situation in Iran, including the harassment and persecution of Christians, is of serious concern. The Foreign Secretary raised human rights concerns with the Iranian Government as a notable element of his visit to Iran on 9-10 December, as did I during my visit on 5 August.​​

​On 21 September, I met the Cambodian Foreign Minister, Prak Sokhonn, at the UN General Assembly. I raised our concerns regarding the political situation in the country, including Kem Sokha's arrest. The UK urges the Government of Cambodia to take immediate steps to ensure free, fair and credible elections next year. We call for Kem Sokha to be released so that fully participatory legitimate elections can take place.

The FCO supports a number of programmes in these important areas. We are working with a range of Cambodian and international organisations to help strengthen the impact of their human rights work in Cambodia and are improving the capacity of regional networks in Cambodia to enhance their cooperation with the relevant authorities on governance and accountability.

Gender equality runs through all programmes supported by the FCO. In Cambodia we have focussed in particular on the Preventing Sexual Violence Initiative (PSVI), freedom of expression and women's involvement in politics. In line with our foreign policy priority to be a global leader in the fight against modern slavery, we are also supporting the development of a toolkit on how to properly collect and handle data for modern slavery cases which will be used by front line practitioners in government and civil society in Cambodia.

Additionally, the UK has for some years been one of the most active countries in supporting the Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia (ECCC) which is prosecuting the senior and most responsible Khmer Rouge leaders. This is being done through the UK's voluntary monetary contributions to the court and also through supporting awareness raising programmes across Cambodia to demonstrate the importance of the rule of law.

​In January next year the UK will launch the fourth iteration of its National Action Plan (NAP) on Women Peace and Security (WPS), a high level strategy that guides our cross- Whitehall work on WPS, and the implementation of UN Security Council Resolution 1325.
Through practical support, diplomatic action, defence, and development assistance, the UK is contributing to the four pillars of WPS in a number of ways.
The government is committed to promoting the participation of women in political processes, for example supporting women's participation in the Syrian, Somalian and Colombian peace processes. The Foreign & Commonwealth Office's first Special Envoy for Gender Equality, Joanna Roper is prioritising girls' education and women's empowerment, ensuring women and girls' fundamental rights are protected. The UK remains committed to improving peacekeeping efforts, to prevent conflict, and to prevent all forms of violence against women and girls if it breaks out; UK Peacekeepers are now given pre-deployment training on gender, and efforts are in place to get more women into peacekeeping missions. The UK's ambition is for gender to be mainstreamed throughout all International relief and recovery efforts, which are designed to meet the specific needs of women and girls. This will be reflected in DfID's upcoming Strategic Vision.
The FCO, MOD and DfID, with support from the cross- government Stabilisation Unit, work closely and collaboratively to implement UNSCR 1325, and to deliver the above. The WPS working group also works transparently with civil society and the UK Parliament.

Information relating to knife amnesty bins and amnesty days is not collected centrally. The use of knife amnesties and bins are an operational decision for individual police forces.

It is also open to police forces to deploy surrender bins at any time as well as during the coordinated weeks of national action that take place as part of Operation Sceptre. In the previous phase of the operation in September 2018, 8,781 knives were surrendered using amnesty bins or personally handed in at police stations.

The number of enforced returns from the UK by year and country of destination is published in table rt_05 (returns data tables, volume 5) in ‘Immigration Statistics, year ending December 2018’, available from the GOV.uk website at:

https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/781118/returns5-dec-2018-tables.ods

Deportations are a subset of enforced returns. They may occur either following a criminal conviction, or when it is judged that a person’s removal from the UK is conducive to the public good. Information on those deported is not separately available. The published statistics refer to enforced returns, which include deportations, as well as cases where a person has breached UK immigration laws, and those removed under other administrative and illegal entry powers who have declined to leave voluntarily. Most illegal immigrants are removed from the UK under administrative or illegal entry powers and not deported.

Regular updates are made to the handbook to ensure the content remains factually correct. There is no planned date for publishing an updated edition.

The Home Office manages the Life in the United Kingdom contract and approves the content of each publication.

The Department is reviewing the content of the handbook to ensure it re-flects modern society and British values – including the diversity of the UK.

The Home Office manages the Life in the United Kingdom contract and approves the content of each publication.

The Department is reviewing the content of the handbook to ensure it reflects modern society and British values including the diversity of the UK.

Schedule 3 to the Counter-Terrorism and Border Security introduced new powers that would allow ports and border officers to stop, question, search and detain persons at UK ports to determine whether they are or have been engaged in hostile activity.

The Bill completed its parliamentary passage on Tuesday 22 January but has not yet received Royal Assent. Following Royal Assent, the Schedule 3 powers will not come into force until the associated statutory guidance has been subject to public consultation, debated by both Houses of Parliament and subsequently commenced by regulations.

These powers were identified as a key gap in the capability of UK law enforcement to tackle the threat from hostile activity and the Government is pleased that Parliament has supported their passage in the Bill.

Once in force, the powers will be subject to the scrutiny and oversight of the Investigatory Powers Commissioner who will report annually on their exercise.

A reply to the Hon. Member for East Dunbartonshire's letter of 19 April 2018, reference JS2981, was sent by post on 10 September 2018.

On 8 March we launched a 12 week public consultation on proposals for a landmark domestic abuse Bill and a supporting package of practical action to transform the response to domestic abuse. The consultation closed on 31 May. Over 3,200 responses to the consultation were received. The responses to the consultation are being considered and a draft Bill will be published later this session.

The specific data requested is not available. Where a case is defined as non-straightforward due to its complexity (for example Human Right Claims) the case sits outside service standards.

Published information on visa processing times within service standards is available at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/international-operations-transparency-data-august-2017

The Home Office does not hold information on the staffing costs associated with the processing of visa applications where the applicant has paid the optional priority visa service fee. The cost of processing visa applications varies by application type, as set out in the published unit costs and fees table, which can be accessed via the link below

https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/606616/Unit_cost_table_2017.pdf

Information on performance against service standards is published as part of the transparency data at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/international-operations-transparency-data-august-2017.

The latest data shows that for 2017 Q1, 96.5% of straightforward applications were completed within Service standards.

I refer the Hon. Member to the answer given to the Hon. Member for Glasgow North West on the 26^th June 2017, UIN 41.

The specific data requested is not published by the Home Office.

Published data on visa processing times, including the percentage of visas processed within published service standards, is published online at the following address: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/migration-transparency-data (then listed by publication date under ‘UK Visas & Immigration’).

The data requested is not published by the Home Office.

The Immigration Rules for the admission to the UK of adult dependent relatives were upheld as lawful by the Court of Appeal on 24 May 2017 in Britcits v The Secretary of State for the Home Department [2017] EWCA Civ 368. We will update the relevant guidance as appropriate in due course.

On 8 March we launched a 12 week public consultation on proposals for a landmark domestic abuse Bill and a supporting package of practical action to transform the response to domestic abuse. The consultation closed on 31 May. Over 3,200 responses to the consultation were received. The responses to the consultation are being considered and a draft Bill will be published later this session.