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Written Question
Africa: Humanitarian Aid
Monday 14th November 2022

Asked by: Liz Saville Roberts (Plaid Cymru - Dwyfor Meirionnydd)

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 implications for his policies on funding for (a) climate impacts, (b) protecting civilians from harm, (c) gender inequality, and (d) supporting inclusive peace processes of Oxfam’s request for £900 million of funding for humanitarian appeals for Ethiopia, Kenya, Somalia and South Sudan.

Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)

The FCDO is committed to promoting the protection of civilians, tackling inequality and the impact of climate change, and where possible and appropriate support peace through our humanitarian efforts. The FCDO is prioritising spending that is vital to protect against immediate threat to life and wellbeing, will prevent people falling into humanitarian need, or will prevent delays to accessing healthcare, primary education, sanitation and clean water. Ministers will make any adjustments and final aid prioritisation decisions based on additional Official Development Assistance pressures this autumn.


Written Question
Disease Control: Treaties
Thursday 26th May 2022

Asked by: Liz Saville Roberts (Plaid Cymru - Dwyfor Meirionnydd)

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps she will take to help ensure that (a) relevant stakeholders and (b) members of the public are able to feed into the UK’s position on the World Health Organisation’s new international agreement on pandemic preparedness and response.

Answered by Amanda Milling - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury

FCDO and the Department for Health and Social Care (DHSC) are engaging with a range of stakeholders during the development of the proposed new pandemic instrument. Consultations with civil society organisations have already taken place and we are committed to further consultations in the future. An effective instrument for pandemic prevention and preparedness will require a whole-of-society approach and non-state actors are vital to ensure countries are protected from health threats. We welcome public interest, and will continue to respond to the queries and ideas raised by the public.


Written Question
COE Committee of Experts of the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages: Public Appointments
Monday 23rd May 2022

Asked by: Liz Saville Roberts (Plaid Cymru - Dwyfor Meirionnydd)

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, for what reason a representative of the UK has yet to be appointed to the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages' Committee of Experts; and whether she has taken steps to help ensure the position is filled.

Answered by Vicky Ford

The FCDO is currently exploring options on how best to identify suitably qualified, independent candidates for the process of appointing a UK expert to the ECRML Committee of Experts (COMEX). We remain committed to ensuring the position is filled by an appropriate expert in due course.


Written Question
Asylum: Rwanda
Monday 25th April 2022

Asked by: Liz Saville Roberts (Plaid Cymru - Dwyfor Meirionnydd)

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether any funding for the Migration and Economic Development Partnership with Rwanda will be funded through the overseas aid budget.

Answered by James Cleverly - Home Secretary

The funding for the Migration and Economic Development Partnership with Rwanda is not from the Official Development Assistance budget.


Written Question
Travel Restrictions: Coronavirus
Thursday 28th October 2021

Asked by: Liz Saville Roberts (Plaid Cymru - Dwyfor Meirionnydd)

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 22 October 2021 to Question 58973 on Travel Restrictions: Coronavirus, whether she is aware of any countries (a) who will not acknowledge that UK citizens who have received the vaccine produced at the Serum Institute of India are fully vaccinated for the purposes of international travel and (b) to which people who received the vaccine produced at the Serum Institute cannot currently travel.

Answered by Amanda Milling - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury

We are aware of no countries or territories with border requirements which differentiate between vaccines administered in the UK. Where there have been a few instances of confusion, they have been swiftly resolved. Border regulations remain the prerogative of the receiving country and travellers should always check FCDO Travel Advice to ensure they are familiar with entry restrictions - including any self-isolation or testing requirements - prior to travel.


Written Question
Afghanistan: Refugees
Monday 25th October 2021

Asked by: Liz Saville Roberts (Plaid Cymru - Dwyfor Meirionnydd)

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether information provided to her Department through the (a) public hotline and (b) emergency email address provided to vulnerable Afghans, including the Afghan special cases, is being used for referrals and prioritisation for the Afghan citizens' resettlement scheme.

Answered by James Cleverly - Home Secretary

In its first year, the Afghan Citizens' Resettlement Scheme (ACRS) will welcome up to 5,000 vulnerable Afghans to the UK who have been forced to flee the country, with up to a total of 20,000 over a five-year period. The ACRS will provide protection for people at risk identified as in need. The Government will use available information and knowledge, including relevant information provided to emergency public numbers and email mailboxes, and will work with international partners and NGOs in the region, including the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) to implement a fair referral process.


Written Question
Travel Restrictions: Coronavirus
Friday 22nd October 2021

Asked by: Liz Saville Roberts (Plaid Cymru - Dwyfor Meirionnydd)

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent assessment she has made of the potential barriers to international travel experienced by fully vaccinated UK citizens as a result of the institution and country in which their covid-19 vaccine was produced, including at the Serum Institute for India; and what discussions she has had with (a) the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care and (b) international counterparts on that matter.

Answered by Amanda Milling - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury

All doses used in the UK have been subject to rigorous safety and quality checks, including individual batch testing and physical site inspections, by the medicines regulator, the MHRA. 5 million doses of AstraZeneca/Vaxzevria deployed in the UK were manufactured by the Serum Institute of India. There have been incorrect reports that this is Covishield. This is untrue. No Covishield vaccines have been administered in the UK. All AstraZeneca/Vaxzevria deployed in the UK - regardless of site of manufacture - is the same product and appears on the NHS COVID Pass as Vaxzevria. The European Medicines Agency has authorised this vaccine and we are confident travel should not be affected.

Where there have been isolated instances of confusion about what vaccines have been deployed in the UK, officials have worked closely with other departments and international partners to clarify what vaccines have been deployed in the UK.


Written Question
Afghanistan: Refugees
Friday 22nd October 2021

Asked by: Liz Saville Roberts (Plaid Cymru - Dwyfor Meirionnydd)

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, if she will publish an update on the steps her Department is taking to facilitate the safe passage for vulnerable Afghans from Afghanistan to the UK through the Afghan citizens' resettlement scheme.

Answered by James Cleverly - Home Secretary

In its first year, the Afghan Citizens' Resettlement Scheme will welcome up to 5,000 vulnerable Afghans to the UK who have been forced to flee the country, with up to a total of 20,000 over a five-year period. The Afghan citizens' resettlement scheme (ACRS) will provide protection for people at risk identified as in need. We will work with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) to identify those we should help. The scheme is not yet open and further details will be announced in due course by the Home Office. For further information on the scheme can be found at https://www.gov.uk/guidance/afghan-citizens-resettlement-scheme.


Written Question
Afghanistan: Refugees
Friday 22nd October 2021

Asked by: Liz Saville Roberts (Plaid Cymru - Dwyfor Meirionnydd)

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what proportion of people who have contacted her Department through the (a) public hotline and (b) emergency email address for vulnerable Afghans have received a reply; and what was the nature of the information conveyed to them.

Answered by James Cleverly - Home Secretary

The FCDO received around 50,000 calls on our consular emergency lines between 11 August - 26 September, many on behalf of Afghans rather than British Nationals. Since 20 August, the average wait time was less than one minute. Since the Afghanistan crisis began, the FCDO alone have received 240,000 emails, sent to a number of our email addresses. FCDO along with the Home Office and the MOD, are working to assess cases raised in them as quickly as possible. We have processed the 30,000 emails from MPs sent on Afghanistan, including information about cases, that were received before 11 September and replied to all 650 Members so that we can focus on repatriation. We are replying to Members' correspondence after 12 September in the usual way. Of the remaining 210,000 emails, after much analysis and deduplication, we have identified more than 60,000 individual email originators and sent a response to all of them, including how to find information and support.


Written Question
Human Rights
Monday 1st March 2021

Asked by: Liz Saville Roberts (Plaid Cymru - Dwyfor Meirionnydd)

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what discussions he has had with his (a) international counterparts and (b) Cabinet colleagues on developing a strategy to support and protect human rights defenders.

Answered by Nigel Adams

The UK strongly supports human rights defenders (HRDs) worldwide to enable them to carry out their work safely and without fear. Lord (Tariq) Ahmad of Wimbledon is the Minister responsible for Human Rights at the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office. In 2019, Lord Ahmad launched the document 'UK support for Human Rights Defenders' which was drawn up with significant and important input from relevant stakeholders, including Amnesty International, and sets out how HMG engages with HRDs, and how we work with them to further human rights globally. Lord Ahmad is listening closely to Amnesty and other NGOs on their request for an HMG strategy on HRDs. In the context of the establishment of the new Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, and of the Integrated Review of Security, Defence, Development and Foreign Policy, we will be considering what more the UK can do to support HRDs going forward.