Sudan

Kim Johnson Excerpts

Monday 17th April 2023 Commons Chamber

[Mr Mitchell]

There is every danger of that happening as a result of the disorder and chaos that we are witnessing. My right hon. Friend asks if there is any ideological rift between the two generals who are perpetrating this warfare. As the right hon. Member for Leeds Central (Hilary Benn) pointed out, the conflict is characterised by two powerful men fighting it out for power.

[Kim Johnson (Liverpool, Riverside) (Lab)]

I join colleagues from across the House in condemning the atrocities taking place in Sudan. Given that more than 100 civilians have already lost their lives, including three aid workers, and the conflict shows no sign of easing, will the Minister set out what steps the UK will take as the penholder for Sudan at the UN Security Council, including some specific actions?

[Mr Mitchell]

As I said earlier, the United Nations is meeting today. We are the penholder at the United Nations and we will be pressing all parties to lay down their weapons. The Intergovernmental Authority on Development—IGAD—has issued a statement about its efforts to de-escalate the situation and restore calm. In addition, there is the work of the Quad, which the Foreign Secretary spoke about this morning, and the Troika—Norway, the United States and Britain. All these entities, of which Britain is a key part, are fundamentally engaged in trying to bring the conflict to a close.

Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories

Kim Johnson Excerpts

Thursday 23rd March 2023 Commons Chamber

[Anne-Marie Trevelyan]

As I say, we are appalled by the continuing and increasing terror attacks, which are injuring both Israelis and Palestinians. We continue to share our concerns and support those who are working towards a peaceful resolution.

[Kim Johnson (Liverpool, Riverside) (Lab)]

The Minister has mentioned repeatedly the need for a de-escalation of violence. However, since the election of the most right-wing Government in Israel’s history, human rights violations have increased significantly, including the deaths of innocent children. Settlements in the occupied west bank are illegal, and the eviction of Palestinians from their homes causes unnecessary suffering and calls into question the Israeli Government’s commitment to a viable two-state solution. Will the Minister outline how she intends to ensure the Israeli Government abide by their obligations under international law? No warm words—actions speak louder than words.

[Anne-Marie Trevelyan]

As I say, the UK Government continue to ask all parties to take urgent measures to reduce tensions and de-escalate. Since the beginning of the year, both the Foreign Secretary and Lord Ahmad have spoken to many influential international partners working alongside us who have a stake in calming this very difficult situation.

Turkey and Syria Earthquake

Kim Johnson Excerpts

Tuesday 7th February 2023 Commons Chamber

[James Cleverly]

On my hon. Friend’s specific question about the size of the medical response team, I do not have that figure at the moment. It is inevitable that the numbers—both, sadly, of fatalities and injuries, and of British experts that we put in to support—will change over time. Indeed, I strongly suspect that the figures I outlined at the Dispatch Box at the start of the statement are now, sadly, already out of date. I completely take the point that he and others have made about the need for accurate, ongoing and timely information, and I will endeavour to make sure that I provide that to all Members of the House.

[Kim Johnson (Liverpool, Riverside) (Lab)]

I send my thoughts and condolences to all those who have suffered and lost loved ones in the tragedy in Syria and Turkey. This horrific disaster does not discriminate in its victims, and political obstacles must not be allowed to define who receives our support. Can the Secretary of State explain what he is doing to secure humanitarian corridors to ensure all Syrians receive humanitarian aid, and will he respond to appeals for more heavy lifting equipment and fuel to run those machines?

[James Cleverly]

The hon. Lady is absolutely right that disasters like this do not discriminate, and neither will we. We will work closely with the United Nations. Obviously, we do not have a relationship with the Assad Government in Syria, but notwithstanding that, we will work with those organisations—whether the White Helmets, the United Nations or others—that are on the ground in Syria. Of course, we will also work closely with the Turkish Government in response to that.

The Execution of Alireza Akbari

Kim Johnson Excerpts

Monday 16th January 2023 Commons Chamber

[James Cleverly]

My hon. Friend is right to pay tribute to the strong and clear stance that the House has taken in response to the brutality meted out by the Iranian regime. I assure him and the House that we will continue to work cross-Department, and internationally, on the most effective ways of curtailing Iran’s malign activity, both within Iran, in the region and globally.

[Kim Johnson (Liverpool, Riverside) (Lab)]

I send my sincere condolences to the family and loved ones of Mr Akbari. The use of the death penalty is appalling under all circumstances, as are the practices of torture and prolonged solitary confinement, all of which Mr Akbari was subjected to while being held by the Iranian authorities. Amnesty has called for the UK Government to work with international bodies to fully investigate Mr Akbari’s allegations of torture and all other ill treatment, and to pursue the criminal investigation of officials reasonably suspected of involvement in crimes under international law. Will the Foreign Secretary today agree to take up those calls for justice?

[James Cleverly]

I assure the hon. Lady that we will not rest until this regime is held to account for the brutality and atrocities that it has meted out to its own people, and we will do so in close co-operation with our friends in the international community.

Bhopal Gas Explosion Investigations

Kim Johnson Excerpts

Tuesday 15th November 2022 Westminster Hall

[Kim Johnson (Liverpool, Riverside) (Lab)]

It is a pleasure to serve under your chairship, Ms McVey. I start by thanking my hon. Friend the Member for Stockport (Navendu Mishra) for securing this important debate, and by putting on record thanks to my union, Unison, for all its work to support the International Campaign for Justice in Bhopal and the victims and survivors of that devastating incident.

That tragedy—the world’s greatest industrial disaster—exposed half a million people to toxic gas, with around 25,000 deaths to date as a result of that exposure. I also commend Rajkumar Keswani, who tried tirelessly to highlight the site’s health and safety dangers well before the tragedy took place. I do not want to reiterate what my hon. Friend has already mentioned but, suffice it to say, all this should not have happened: the deaths of thousands of people from immediate exposure to the chemical gas from the Union Carbide factory; the tens of thousands who lost their lives in indescribable circumstances since; and the hundreds of thousands suffering to this day with debilitating and deadly illnesses and diseases. Those responsible must be brought to justice.

This is a case of criminal corporate negligence, aided in the evasion of scrutiny and justice by Governments that protect profits and power over the people they are supposed to serve. The strength and bravery of campaigners in the pursuit of justice against the odds have been incredible. They should have the support and solidarity of every Member who stands for truth, justice and accountability.

Although the chemical explosion happened in 1984, nearly four decades ago, this living, breathing crisis is still creating new victims. It has created untold suffering for those who suffered the immediate impact, their children and their grandchildren, with the impact on future generations casting a dark shadow over the community. Rates of cerebral palsy, muscular dystrophy, autism and severe learning difficulties have exploded, and the situation is getting worse, not better. Hundreds of thousands are still suffering in pain, through cancer, stillbirths, miscarriages, lung and heart disease, and the slow and painful deaths of the families and communities, with no respite, support, compensation or justice.

The poison is still pumping through the veins of the survivors and their children. Even now, decades later, the mortality rate for gas-exposed victims is still 28% higher than average. Victims of the gas are twice as likely to die from cancers, lung disease and TB; three times more likely to die from kidney diseases; and more than 60% more likely to have serious illnesses. Rates of infertility, stillbirths, abortions, early menopause, and fertility have been disastrous, with immense social repercussions.

Those long-term health impacts are devastating, yet the meagre compensation paid out to victims after years of campaigning, amounts to little more than three and a half years of healthcare bills. Not one single arrest has been made. No one has been forced to help alleviate the ongoing environmental destruction, and the communities there are still forced to live in poisoned surroundings—forced to consume contaminated water, breathe poisoned air and live in areas still covered in toxic chemicals. No clean-up operation has ever been attempted.

Of the nine Indian officials who were convicted in 2010 for their role, none has served any time behind bars. No one from Union Carbide has ever been jailed for the gross negligence that led to the gas explosion, and the company has repeatedly refused to face justice and answer its court summonses. We all know that justice delayed is justice denied.

I will end by paying tribute to the International Campaign for Justice in Bhopal, and to everyone who has campaigned for a just response and settlement for the victims, and taken up their cause. Appropriate compensation—at a minimum of $8,000—must be made to each Bhopal survivor. Union Carbide must finally attend the criminal court case in Bhopal district that it has dodged for nearly a decade. The companies involved must hand over their findings and all studies on the effects of the methyl isocyanate, and the results of their investigations into the contamination of soil and groundwater in and around the Bhopal factory.

The Indian national and state governments must provide free healthcare to survivors, and fund research into the long-term health damage caused by exposure to toxic gas and contaminated groundwater. They must provide living costs for the survivors and widows of the disaster. Union Carbide must also take responsibility for cleaning the remaining hazardous waste, in line with international standards, and provide compensation for environmental health damages.

That is the bare minimum that we should be demanding for the survivors of the tragedy, whose lives have been torn apart. Criminal negligence has destroyed their lives and those of their children, grandchildren and future generations. They have already waited nearly 40 years. We cannot allow justice to be denied any longer.

Oral Answers to Questions

Kim Johnson Excerpts

Tuesday 8th November 2022 Commons Chamber

[David Rutley]

They are indeed remarkable women, and we want to underline the fact that these are grassroots protests in Iran. We have taken strong action: we have sanctioned the morality police in its entirety, as well as both its chief and the head of the Tehran division. However, it is not our practice to speculate on future sanctions designations, as doing so would reduce the impact of those designations.

[Kim Johnson (Liverpool, Riverside) (Lab)]

11. If his Department will request that the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons conduct an investigation into the alleged use of chemical weapons by Turkey in northern Iraq.

[Lloyd Russell-Moyle (Brighton, Kemptown) (Lab/Co-op)]

17. If his Department will refer allegations of the use of chemical weapons by Turkey in northern Iraq to the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons for investigation.

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs (Leo Docherty)]

The Government are aware of reports that Turkish forces have used white phosphorus in northern Iraq. However, we have no direct evidence to support those claims. Of course, we take all allegations of this nature seriously, and we are committed to upholding the chemical weapons convention.

[Kim Johnson]

A Turkish CHP opposition Member of Parliament who asked the question about the alleged use of chemical weapons has received a summary of proceedings to prosecute him for terrorism. Does the Minister agree that it is time for us to follow in the footsteps of the Belgian Supreme Court by revisiting our designation of the PKK as a terrorist organisation? Does he also agree that not doing so gives cover to Turkey’s human rights abuses against Kurds living both within and beyond its borders?

[Leo Docherty]

The hon. Lady mentions the PKK. We should be very clear that we regard the PKK to be a terrorist organisation—that is why we have proscribed it—and that we believe Turkey has a legitimate right to defend itself against this form of terrorism.

Oral Answers to Questions

Kim Johnson Excerpts

Tuesday 21st June 2022 Commons Chamber

[Kim Johnson (Liverpool, Riverside) (Lab)]

On Sunday, Francia Márquez, an internationally recognised environmental and human rights campaigner, made history by becoming the first black woman to be elected Vice-President of Colombia. Colombia is the most dangerous place in the world to be an environmental activist. Will the Minister commit herself to working with Francia Márquez and her new colleagues to ensure that the social and environmental rights of Colombia’s indigenous population are protected, and that UK aid for environmental programmes prioritises the protection of activists?

[Vicky Ford]

We work in Colombia on projects to promote peace and stability and also on projects to promote the environment and tackle climate change, and we will continue to do so.

Violence against Religious Groups: Nigeria

Kim Johnson Excerpts

Monday 6th June 2022 Commons Chamber

[Vicky Ford]

I discussed the rising insecurity with both the vice-president and the Foreign Minister when I was in the country in February. There has since been an extensive dialogue between our two countries on how we can help. I know they are deeply concerned about the rising insecurity both in Nigeria and across the Sahel, and about how it could impact on Nigeria. Nigeria is at the beginning of the presidential election process, and one of the main parties has chosen its leading candidate and the other is yet to do so. There is a concern that there is sometimes increased instability and increased violence during an election period, which is why it is so important that we all call for calm.

We urge our constituents from the diaspora to call for calm across the religious divide. I witnessed during my childhood in Northern Ireland how important it is to work across the religious divide and to call for calm, and to call for those who did this heinous crime to be held to account in accordance with the law.

[Kim Johnson (Liverpool, Riverside) (Lab)]

I send my condolences to the family and loved ones of the people murdered at St Francis’s Catholic church in Owo, and to the long-established Nigerian community who worship at St Clare’s Catholic church in my Liverpool, Riverside constituency. What steps are being taken to ensure that increased poverty and food insecurity do not become a driver for further violence and instability in Nigeria and the wider region?

[Vicky Ford]

The hon. Lady makes an important point about the impact of the rising cost of living on not only Nigeria but across the region and the continent of Africa. Putin’s horrific and illegal war in Ukraine has pushed up world food prices, which is having a real impact on the world’s poorest, including many in Africa. The main thing the UK has done is use our position as a lead shareholder in the World Bank to unlock $170 billion of funding, which is an unprecedented package of support to help the poorest countries in the world cope with the rising cost of food and fuel. A lot of that funding is going out rapidly, and we encourage that it goes to the poorest countries first. Putin’s actions are having an impact on the world‘s poorest, including in Nigeria and across the continent of Africa.

Shireen Abu Aqla

Kim Johnson Excerpts

Monday 16th May 2022 Commons Chamber

[Vicky Ford]

This is an important point. Israel does have a legitimate right to self-defence and the right to defend its citizens from attack, but it is absolutely vital that all actions are proportionate and in line with international humanitarian law, and they must make every effort to avoid civilian casualties.

[Kim Johnson (Liverpool, Riverside) (Lab)]

I send my condolences to Shireen’s family, friends and colleagues at Al Jazeera. She was unlawfully killed while doing the job she loved and was greatly respected for, while clearly identified as a journalist, in what can only be described as a targeted attack for reporting actions of Israeli forces in the occupied territory of Jenin. Does the Minister agree that an international criminal court should undertake a full independent, not just impartial, investigation, and that swift action should be taken to bring those responsible to justice?

[Vicky Ford]

I thank the hon. Member for reminding us that there are family and friends involved. I add my condolences and those of the Government to the family and friends of Shireen. In losing such a talented person in such an awful situation, my thoughts are with them. We have called for an immediate investigation that does need to be fair and impartial, because it needs to have the trust of all those in the area. That is why it is so important that it happens soon.

Commission on Race and Ethnic Disparities

Kim Johnson Excerpts

Thursday 17th March 2022 Commons Chamber

[Kemi Badenoch]

No, the action plan will not be looking at that. No recourse to public funds was outside the terms of reference for the commission, and the action plan is very much based within those terms of reference.

I challenge what the right hon. Gentleman says about no recourse to public funds, because it is important that we do not conflate migration and ethnicity. No recourse to public funds was based on nationality, and during the pandemic I distinctly remember, even in the Treasury, that we took many policy decisions to overcome any barriers that people might have had. I cannot speak specifically about what the Work and Pensions Committee has looked at, but I am sure officials from that Department will take those points away. If more can be done within that policy, I am sure that we will look at that, but that would fall outside my terms of reference for the Equality Hub.

[Kim Johnson (Liverpool, Riverside) (Lab)]

The highly discredited Commission on Race and Ethnic Disparities report stated that Britain “no longer” had a system that was “deliberately rigged” against black people, but as the first black MP for Liverpool, I would beg to differ. I have little faith that the “Inclusive Britain” report with its 70 practical actions will change how police powers work. The Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill will give more power to the police to stop and search, and it will not stop them from strip-searching young girls. Can the Minister explain in detail how local scrutiny will prevent that from happening?

[Kemi Badenoch]

I will continue to rebut the assertion that the report is widely discredited; it was discredited only in certain quarters, in the same way that our environmental policy will never meet the test for the likes of Insulate Britain and Extinction Rebellion. The fact is that we are doing something that will be great for the vast majority of people in this country. The report will change the way we look at race in this country. We are in government and we are taking these ambitions forward.

On her question on local scrutiny, the commission looked at the way that policing was taking place in communities. It accepted that there was a “lack of trust”—a trust deficit; I think the hon. Lady would agree with that. The commission put forward a recommendation that we will be trialling and piloting. I cannot give specific details of how that will happen, because I am not a Home Office Minister, and the actions of the police are independent and we cannot get involved in their operational decisions. If the hon. Lady has suggestions on how that can be improved or tackled, I am very willing to hear them.