Asked by: Lisa Nandy (Labour - Wigan)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Deputy Foreign Secretary, whether he has had discussions with his Thai counterpart on support for refugees from the conflict in Myanmar.
Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The Foreign Secretary discussed the current situation in Myanmar with the Thai Prime Minister and Thai Foreign Minister during his visit to Thailand in March 2024. Discussions covered the delivery of humanitarian assistance to all in need inside Myanmar, and support those fleeing across the border. The UK continues to provide humanitarian assistance to people displaced by the conflict in Myanmar. Since September 2022, we have provided essential support to more than 85,000 Myanmar refugees in Thailand.
Asked by: Lisa Nandy (Labour - Wigan)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Deputy Foreign Secretary, whether he has made an assessment of the adequacy of the fundamental rights of (a) women and girls and (b) children following changes to the Somali constitution lowering the age of maturity; and whether he has made representations to the Somali government on that issue.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
Proposed changes in the Somali constitution to lower the age of maturity have been delayed. This followed extensive engagement by the UK and others in the international community. The UK is closely following the on-going constitutional review process in Somalia and we have encouraged the Federal Government of Somalia (FGS) to ensure the process has broad based support amongst the Somali people, civil society, and marginalised groups. In addition, we continue to regularly raise human rights concerns with our Somali partners.
Asked by: Lisa Nandy (Labour - Wigan)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Deputy Foreign Secretary, what recent steps his Department has taken to increase collaboration with (a) French, (b) German and (c) US overseas development agencies.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
Our recent White Paper sets out the importance we place on partnerships to support development. The UK has longstanding and close development relationships with France, Germany and the USA. We are strengthening our partnerships through bilateral Strategic Development Dialogues, held with France in October 2023, Germany and the US in February and March 2024 respectively. They allow in-depth exchange at senior levels, and are designed to strengthen collaboration and identify joint areas of action.
Strategic Development Dialogues are underpinned by regular engagement overseas and between capitals at official and Ministerial levels. I personally met Minister Zacharopoulou at COP28, spoke with Minister Keul in February and met USAID Administrator Samantha Power in Washington in April.
Asked by: Lisa Nandy (Labour - Wigan)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Deputy Foreign Secretary, what recent discussions he has had with his Asian Pacific counterparts on climate change mitigation measures.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
Climate change remains a central focus of our diplomatic relations. The FCDO ministerial team have and will continue to engage with counterparts in the Asia Pacific including those most vulnerable to climate change and essential to the green transition. In March, the Foreign Secretary discussed climate change with the Australian Foreign Minister at AUKMIN (the Australia-UK Ministerial Meeting) and launched the UK Partnering for Accelerated Climate Transitions (UK PACT) Country Fund in Thailand, worth up to £6 million. The region includes key partners like Australia, whom we work with through the UNFCCC as members of the Umbrella Group; developing countries we are supporting with their climate transitions (such as Indonesia and Vietnam, where we are leading JETPs - Just Energy Transition Partnerships); major emitters such as China and India; and the Pacific Island Countries, who are uniquely vulnerable to climate impacts and a strong moral voice on climate.
Asked by: Lisa Nandy (Labour - Wigan)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Deputy Foreign Secretary, what recent discussions has he had with partners in West Africa on partnerships relating to climate mitigation.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
The UK is a strong supporter of climate action in West Africa, helping countries transition to a low carbon economy and adapt to the impacts of climate change. The Africa Regional Climate and Nature Programme (ARCAN) is a regional programme of up to £250 million over 6 years which aims to build resilience to climate change, tackle nature and biodiversity loss and catalyse energy transition in Sub-Saharan Africa. I [Minister Mitchell] have engaged with a range of West African partners and led the UK delegation at the African Climate Summit in Nairobi in September 2023, and COP28 in Dubai in December 2023. During a visit to Accra in January 2024 I met Secretary General of the Climate Vulnerable Forum (CVF), President Nasheed, and discussed priorities for the CVF and its Vulnerable Twenty (V20) Group.
Asked by: Lisa Nandy (Labour - Wigan)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Deputy Foreign Secretary, whether he has had recent discussions with (a) his Ethiopian counterpart and (b) other international partners on ensuring the adequacy of access for humanitarian deliveries in the Amhara region of Ethiopia.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
The UK is committed to providing support to the most vulnerable and those in desperate need in Ethiopia. We have already increased our humanitarian support this financial year to £74 million. Almost 1.9 million people benefit from UK-supported programmes in Amhara, although access is currently limited. The UK is continuing to provide support where possible and consistently raises humanitarian access with the government of Ethiopia. Most recently Minister Mitchell met the Ethiopian Foreign Minister Taye on 17 April at the Ethiopian high-level pledging conference in Geneva, where the government committed to reforms to improve humanitarian operations in Ethiopia. At the conference, which was co-hosted by the UK, international partners successfully raised $610 million to meet humanitarian needs in Ethiopia, including in Amhara.