Asked by: Lisa Cameron (Conservative - East Kilbride, Strathaven and Lesmahagow)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether supporting women and girls from marginalised religious and belief communities is a priority for his Department.
Answered by Wendy Morton
We recognise that women and girls from religious minorities can often suffer because of both their gender and their faith. That is why we ensure our human rights policy work considers the intersectionality of human rights, for example the importance of addressing the specific vulnerabilities experienced by women and girls from religious minority communities. We have no programmes that specifically target women and girls from marginalised religious or belief communities but there are programmes that benefit these women and girls.
The Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO) has publicly committed to retaining and building on the Strategic Vision for Gender Equality (https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/708116/Strategic-vision-gender-equality1.pdf) which sets out our commitment to leave no girl or woman behind, particularly those facing multiple exclusions including on the basis of their ethnicity, religion or belief.
Asked by: Lisa Cameron (Conservative - East Kilbride, Strathaven and Lesmahagow)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what programmes run by his Department specifically support women and girls from marginalised religious or belief communities; and how much was spent by those programmes in 2020.
Answered by Wendy Morton
We recognise that women and girls from religious minorities can often suffer because of both their gender and their faith. That is why we ensure our human rights policy work considers the intersectionality of human rights, for example the importance of addressing the specific vulnerabilities experienced by women and girls from religious minority communities. We have no programmes that specifically target women and girls from marginalised religious or belief communities but there are programmes that benefit these women and girls.
The Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO) has publicly committed to retaining and building on the Strategic Vision for Gender Equality (https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/708116/Strategic-vision-gender-equality1.pdf) which sets out our commitment to leave no girl or woman behind, particularly those facing multiple exclusions including on the basis of their ethnicity, religion or belief.
Asked by: Lisa Cameron (Conservative - East Kilbride, Strathaven and Lesmahagow)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent representations he has made to the UN and the international community on the treatment of Uighur women by the Chinese Government.
Answered by Nigel Adams
We are deeply concerned by distressing testimony of the treatment of Uyghur women in Xinjiang detention centres. In February, the Foreign Secretary used a personal address at the UN Human Rights Council to draw attention to the plight of Uyghur women and call for China to allow the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, or another independent expert, urgent and unfettered access to Xinjiang so that they are able to assess the situation first hand.
Asked by: Lisa Cameron (Conservative - East Kilbride, Strathaven and Lesmahagow)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether his Department makes an assessment of the environmental protections in relation to overseas projects when allocating UK foreign aid to those projects.
Answered by James Duddridge
In designing new development programmes, Foreign Commonwealth and Development Office staff are expected to identify risks to the environment and climate change and take action to avoid doing harm.
Tackling climate change and addressing biodiversity loss is a high priority for the Government. The Prime Minister announced on 11 January that the UK will commit at least £3 billion of our International Climate Finance to climate change solutions that protect and restore nature and biodiversity over the next five years. We are also acting internationally to secure more urgent action on nature with the Leaders' Pledge for Nature.
Asked by: Lisa Cameron (Conservative - East Kilbride, Strathaven and Lesmahagow)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment he has made of the effect on (a) deaf and (b) disabled children throughout the world of the decision to reduce the funding allocated to the Official Development Assistance budget.
Answered by Wendy Morton
Disability inclusion is an important issue for the FCDO and we are committed to supporting a long-term movement of change for people with disabilities around the world. We will continue to embed disability inclusion across all of our work, including through our Official Development Assistance to fight poverty, improve global health, promote girl's education and achieve the UN's Sustainable Development Goals.
We provide direct funding to programmes that support children with disabilities, including those with hearing impairments. For example, through the Girls' Education Challenge, we have helped over 117,000 girls with disabilities receive an education in countries such as Kenya, Uganda, Sierra Leone and Zimbabwe. Through UK Aid Direct, we also support Deaf Kidz International to ensure the early detection of deafness and maximise their residual hearing and life-chances, reducing their susceptibility to abuse and discrimination.
Asked by: Lisa Cameron (Conservative - East Kilbride, Strathaven and Lesmahagow)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what representations he has made to the Government of Pakistan on the new single curriculum, regarding discrimination of religious minorities; and what steps his Department is taking to ensure that the monitoring of UK aid promotes freedom of religion or belief in school syllabus and text books.
Answered by Nigel Adams
The new Single National Curriculum has the potential to be a significant step forward on inclusion and tolerance by introducing an inclusive, standards-based curriculum across all schools in the country. Work is still ongoing to reform textbooks to reflect this curriculum, and we are engaging with the Provincial and Federal Governments to ensure that the new textbooks promote diversity and inclusion.
The Minister for South Asia raised our concerns about Freedom of Religion or Belief and the protection of minority religious communities with Pakistan's Human Rights Minister, Dr Shireen Mazari, on 16 November and with Pakistan's Special Advisor to the Prime Minister for the Interior, Shahzad Akbar, on 7 December. In addition, he met with Pakistan's Minister for Education, Mr Shafqat Mahmood on 1 October, and on 8 September with the Governor of Punjab, Chaudhry Muhammad Sarwar, to discuss inclusive and tolerant education.
Asked by: Lisa Cameron (Conservative - East Kilbride, Strathaven and Lesmahagow)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent representations he has made to his Pakistani counterpart on the abduction, rape, forced conversion and marriage of girls who belong to minority religions.
Answered by Nigel Adams
The UK Government strongly condemns the abduction, rape, forced conversion and forced marriage of women and girls from religious minorities in Pakistan. We regularly raise our concerns on these issues with the Government of Pakistan. The Minister for South Asia raised our concerns about child, early and forced marriage and forced conversion of women and girls from minority religious communities, with Pakistan's Minister for Human Rights, Dr Shireen Mazari, on 19 October. He raised our concerns about human rights, including Freedom of Religion or Belief, with Pakistan's Minister for Human Rights on 16 November and with Pakistan's Special Advisor to the Prime Minister for the Interior, Shahzad Akbar, on 7 December.
Asked by: Lisa Cameron (Conservative - East Kilbride, Strathaven and Lesmahagow)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether his Department has made an assessment of the findings of the report Violence and Discrimination against Women of Religious Minority Backgrounds in Pakistan published by the Coalition for Religious Equality and Inclusive Development on 25 November 2020; and whether his Department has made representations to the Government of Pakistan on that matter.
Answered by Nigel Adams
We welcome the Coalition for Religious Equality and Inclusive Development's report titled 'Violence and Discrimination against Women of Religious Minority Backgrounds in Pakistan' published on 25 November. We regularly raise our concerns on human rights issues, including Freedom of Religion or Belief, women and girls' rights and gender equality, with the Government of Pakistan. The Minister for South Asia raised our concerns about child, early and forced marriage and forced conversion of women and girls from minority religious communities, with Pakistan's Minister for Human Rights, Dr Shireen Mazari, on 19 October. He raised our concerns about human rights, including Freedom of Religion or Belief, with Pakistan's Minister for Human Rights on 16 November and with Pakistan's Special Advisor to the Prime Minister for the Interior, Shahzad Akbar, on 7 December.
Asked by: Lisa Cameron (Conservative - East Kilbride, Strathaven and Lesmahagow)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, with reference to reports of attacks on Christian communities in Nigeria and increasing Islamic terrorist attacks in Burkina Faso, Congo, Kenya, Uganda and other countries in West and Central Africa, what support his Department has provided to multi-national responses to (a) resist extremism and (b) protect vulnerable minority Christian communities.
Answered by James Duddridge
We condemn all criminal and terrorist attacks on civilians, whatever their religion or belief. Attacks have caused immense suffering to local communities. The UK supports multi-national responses to tackle the threats from different terrorist groups in North East Nigeria, the Lake Chad Basin and East Africa. For example, we support Nigeria and its neighbours in the fight against Boko Haram and Islamic State West Africa in North East Nigeria and the wider Lake Chad Basin by helping fund the Lake Chad Basin Regional Stabilisation Facility to strengthen community security, provide basic services and support livelihoods. We have provided funding and operational support for the Multinational Joint Task Force, a regional force coordinating military efforts for regional security. In the Sahel, we are providing logistical support to the French-led counter-terrorism Operation Barkhane. We are increasing focus on the protection of civilians through our deployment to the UN peacekeeping mission in Mali (MINUSMA) and as one of the largest humanitarian donors. Additionally, the UK supports regional security and efforts to counter the threat posed by Al-Shabaab in East Africa, including through UK military training to forces from troop contributing countries to the African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM) and the Somali National Army. We are delivering a three year programme to strengthen regional, national and community level efforts to prevent radicalisation and recruitment across East Africa, including Kenya and Uganda. Across the continent, the UK continues to be a committed contributor to and supporter of UN peacekeeping operations.
The UK is committed to defending freedom of religion or belief for all (FoRB) globally, and promoting respect between communities. Where we have concerns, we raise them directly with governments, including at Ministerial level. Defending FoRB was a core pledge in our successful campaign to be re-elected to the UN Human Rights Council, and we will continue to use our position to stand up for individuals who are persecuted for their faith, belief, or because they have no religious belief. We work within the UN, the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), Council of Europe and other multilateral fora to promote and protect FoRB for all where it is threatened. In November 2020, the Minister responsible for human rights, Lord Ahmad (Tariq) of Wimbledon, underlined the UK's commitment to FoRB, speaking at the Ministerial to Advance Freedom of Religion or Belief and the Ministers' Forum of the International Religious Freedom or Belief Alliance.
Asked by: Lisa Cameron (Conservative - East Kilbride, Strathaven and Lesmahagow)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, how many voluntary redundancies have been sought involving staff previously employed on permanent Department for International Development (DfID) contracts in (a) London (b) East Kilbride and (c) overseas offices following the merger of his Department with DfID.
Answered by Nigel Adams
There have been no voluntary redundancy offers made to staff who were previously employed by the Department for International Development following the merger.