Yemen: Giving Peace a Chance (International Relations Committee Report)

Lord Collins of Highbury Excerpts

Monday 1st April 2019 Lords Chamber

[Lord Collins of Highbury (Lab)]

My Lords, I too thank all members of the committee for this excellent report, and the noble Lord, Lord Howell, for his powerful introduction. Since UN Resolution 2216 the UK, alongside the US, France and others, has consistently supported the war aims of the Saudi-led coalition and has continued to authorise the sale of arms to Saudi Arabia and its partners for use in the conflict. My noble friend Lord Judd referred to the independent Yemen Data Project and it is important to note its analysis, according to which there have been 18,000 air strikes on Yemen since the start of the conflict up to April 2018. It found that roughly one-third hit civilian targets, one-third hit military targets and one-third hit targets of unknown designation. A UN expert panel report released last September said that all sides in the conflict may have committed breaches of international humanitarian law.

As we heard so powerfully in the debate, as a result of the conflict and the Saudi blockade, Yemen has been sinking deeper into a humanitarian crisis. Your Lordships’ committee rightly concluded that the situation is “unconscionable”. This side has long called for all UK arms sales to Riyadh to be suspended because of the evidence of breaches in international humanitarian law in the conflict. The Government argue that it is “on the right side” of IHL because of the Saudi-led coalition’s processes for investigating possible errors. As the noble Lord, Lord Alton, reminded us, your Lordships’ committee said that the Government are,

“narrowly on the wrong side”.

As we heard from the noble Lord, Lord Howell, its conclusion on the likelihood of civilian casualties was based on the volume and type of arms being sold by the UK to Saudi Arabia.

As we heard, the UK has licensed more than £4.7 billion-worth of arms to Saudi Arabia, and £860 million-worth to its coalition partners, since the conflict in Yemen commenced. We are the second-largest exporter of arms to Saudi Arabia after the US and, as we have heard, the fifth-largest donor of humanitarian aid. This year we have committed an additional £200 million of aid, bringing our total commitment to more than £770 million since the conflict began. As the noble Lord, Lord Howell, said, it is that contradiction which the Government must address as a matter of urgency, and I hope that the Minister will respond specifically to his question.

Last Tuesday, my right honourable friend Emily Thornberry, shadow Foreign Secretary, asked an Urgent Question in the other place, following press reports at the weekend that members of British Special Forces were engaged in gun battles with the Houthi rebels in Yemen while providing support to the coalition forces. One disturbing allegation in the Mail on Sunday report was that our forces were providing support to locally recruited, Saudi-funded militia and that many of the fighters—up to 40%, it was alleged—were children as young as 13 years old. If these allegations are true, it would confirm that our forces were not just party to this conflict but witnesses to war crimes. In response, Mark Field said in the other place:

“I am keen that we get to the bottom of those allegations”.—[Official Report, Commons, 26/3/19; col. 187.]


In a subsequent letter to Emily Thornberry on Friday, he wrote:

“We have an ongoing defence engagement relationship with Saudi Arabia which includes training courses, advice and guidance. However, we are not a member of the SLC and do not have any role in Coalition policy. We are committed to supporting the legitimate security needs of Saudi Arabia, including defending itself against ballistic missiles fired by Houthis into civilian areas, and guarding against the danger of regional escalation. To this end UK personnel are involved in providing information, advice and assistance to Saudi Arabia on mitigating the threat from Houthi missiles as well as assisting them in other areas including on measures to support compliance with International Humanitarian law”.


He said that,

“the UK’s position on child soldiers is categorical … We raise allegations of human rights abuses or violations of IHL, including the use of child soldiers, with all parties to the conflict in Yemen. We have been clear that all parties must comply with IHL”.

Have the Minister or the Government been given evidence of breaches of international humanitarian law by Saudi coalition forces from British sources? That was raised by the committee. If we have been, how does he think we should meet our international treaty obligations? Surely we must act on such evidence, and we should all condemn the failure to do so, as we have heard in the debate.

My noble friend Lady Amos—I too pay tribute to her work at the United Nations on the humanitarian fund—highlighted that we are all concerned at the fragility of the agreement reached in Stockholm. On this side we welcome the steps that the Government have made through the UN to bolster the team in Hodeidah charged with overseeing that agreement. What difference does the Minister expect that increased force to have on the ground? Are we shoring up the peace, as we hope we are?

I conclude by saying that peace will not be won on the battlefield, as the noble Lord, Lord Hannay, said. We all want the Stockholm agreement to succeed, but if it does not—if we are back to square 1 in terms of ending the war and the humanitarian crisis—will the Government consider bringing forward a new United Nations resolution requiring a nationwide ceasefire, with robust penalties against all parties who breach it?

Brexit: Bilateral Relations with European Union Member States

Lord Collins of Highbury Excerpts

Wednesday 20th March 2019 Lords Chamber

[Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon]

My noble friend speaks from experience in this regard and is absolutely right. As I said in my Answer to the Question, the strength of relationships is important. We welcome the statements from Germany and indeed this week the German Foreign Minister, who I have dealt with extensively on initiatives we are taking at the UN in areas such as preventing sexual violence, has spoken very strongly about the importance of the bilateral relationship between our two countries and the need to strengthen that further.

[Lord Collins of Highbury (Lab)]

My Lords, I understand that one key impact on our team in Brussels is that the expense accounts of our diplomats have been increased in order that they can take people out to lunch instead of meeting them inside the room. Aside from that, the key issue here is that of FCO resources being diverted to the necessary task of building up bilateral relationships. What impact is that having on our ability to act, particularly as regards hotspots in the world such as the Russian desk? Are we taking resources away from these very important areas to devote work to bilateral relationships in Europe?

[Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon]

My Lords, I assure the noble Lord that we continue to strengthen our relationships across the piece. He will recall that we are expanding our diplomatic missions in many parts of the world. I am the Minister for the Caribbean, and later this year we will announce the opening of missions and diplomatic posts there. Of course as we leave the European Union it is important that we strengthen our network of diplomats in Europe. That is why every single one of the 27 ambassadors is now at senior management level. We have also announced a broad and extensive uplift in the form of new posts within our diplomatic missions across the EU—an expansion of 550. That continues to work well. On taking people out to lunch and working outside the room, I would be delighted to take the noble Lord out to lunch.

Yemen: Women and Girls

Lord Collins of Highbury Excerpts

Thursday 7th March 2019 Lords Chamber

[Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon]

The short answer to both questions is yes. Through some of our programmes in Yemen, particularly those led by DfID, £39 million has been allocated to address issues such as forced marriage, on which Yemen is a priority country; 6,000 girls directly impacted by forced marriage have been assisted with counselling and health provision. A further £65,000 has been allocated for outreach work as far as is possible to ensure that early marriage is also addressed. I absolutely accept the noble Baroness’s point on peacekeeping. That is why the Government have committed internationally, more recently in the context of the Commonwealth, to women’s peacemaking networks. As we approach International Women’s Day, it is important that, at the UN, here and elsewhere in the world, emphasis is placed on the importance of women in conflict resolution.

[Lord Collins of Highbury (Lab)]

My Lords, the IRC report gave some horrific examples and made a series of recommendations. One was humanitarian access, particularly to health centres and hospitals that provide support to women and girls who have been subject to gender-based violence. Access to them has been restricted; they have been bombed and damaged. What exactly are the Government doing on all sides to ensure that there is proper humanitarian access?

[Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon]

I thank the noble Lord. He and I have spent a fair bit of time on this issue and will continue to work together; I think we are very much at one on it. My right honourable friend’s recent visit again highlighted the importance of peace and of supporting the efforts being made through the UN, including the UN resolution that has been passed. There are three elements to that, one of which is about ensuring humanitarian relief. Current figures show that while the ports of Hodeidah and Salif remain open, distributing that aid further remains a big issue. A second element relates to fuel supplies—some 86% of the requirements of Yemen were met last month. However, again, it is about getting those fuel supplies out. Those are the fundamentals. On girls and women and the protection of health centres, that was a priority raised by the Foreign Secretary with both sides, including representatives of the Houthi community, to ensure that as we address the fundamentals of food and humanitarian aid, protection for girls, particularly from child marriage and forced marriage, is also high up the agenda.

Nord Stream 2 Pipeline

Lord Collins of Highbury Excerpts

Thursday 28th February 2019 Lords Chamber

[Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon]

As my noble friend may well be aware, Germany is still pursuing and moving forward with Nord Stream 2. The operational challenge at the moment comes from Denmark, which has not yet given approval for the pipeline to be near where Nord Stream 1 is laid. That process continues, and in that regard we continue to work with Denmark as well. On my noble friend’s wider point about NATO, yes, of course it was set up for the purposes of the defence of Europe and the western alliance. I am delighted and proud of the commitment that the United Kingdom makes, as we continue to invest in it. We have asked other European partners, including Germany, to ensure they pay their dues to NATO.

[Lord Collins of Highbury (Lab)]

My Lords, I welcome the response from the Minister but, as the Prime Minister has said on many occasions, we should engage but beware. If this has been raised with the German Government, what has the response been on how this matter is moved forward? We are maintaining sanctions and have condemned Russia for its actions in Crimea and Ukraine. Is it not about time that we heard from the Minister what response we are getting from our allies?

[Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon]

First and foremost, this is an issue of European security. In that regard, we have been working with the European Union. However, as I have already indicated from the Dispatch Box, Germany is certainly looking to proceed with Nord Stream 2 but there are caveats. Work has been done: for example, the noble Lord, Lord Collins, will be aware of the work done on the gas directive. The whole issue is one of monopoly. Gazprom currently controls a major source of European energy supplies. We believe that is incorrect and that belief is shared by our European partners. The work done on the gas directive will guarantee that once the new pipeline is operational, it can be managed more effectively by European regulation.

Kimberley Process Certification Scheme (Amendment) (EU Exit) Regulations 2019

Lord Collins of Highbury Excerpts

Thursday 28th February 2019 Lords Chamber

[Lord Foulkes of Cumnock]

There was someone in the Chair too, yes indeed. This is symptomatic of what is going on at the moment. I believe the noble Lord, Lord Collins, described it in Committee as an “SI stampede”. I have described it on occasion as a veritable tsunami of statutory instruments. I think we were told yesterday that 740 statutory instruments have been laid, but most have not yet gone to the committees, let alone to the Grand Committee and to the House. This is an astonishing situation. As my noble friend Lord Hain said—as did the noble Baroness, Lady Northover—this is a very important statutory instrument. We have important statutory instruments, Lord Speaker—sorry, I mean noble Lords, but maybe one day we will be able to address him properly; we have them simultaneously in Grand Committee and here. How can we possibly carry out our proper duty of scrutiny?

This is being pushed through because one woman is so adamant and determined to have her own way and treats both Houses of Parliament like rubber stamps. She appears more like an elected dictator than a Prime Minister in a Cabinet Government in a parliamentary democracy. It is getting totally out of hand.

[Lord Collins of Highbury (Lab)]

My Lords, before the Minister rises, how can I resist making a contribution? The debate in Grand Committee lasted for some considerable time despite there being only the two of us; we were able to debate the issue in quite a lot of depth. One point raised, which the Minister ought to address today, is that we may await the consent of the other nations to join the convention: is there a potential gap, if we fall out of the EU, in not being a full member of the convention?

[The Minister of State, Foreign and Commonwealth Office (Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon) (Con)]

I think we are at risk of having as long a debate as we did in Grand Committee. I am glad to see that the diamonds issue is creating a lot of interest in your Lordships’ House, in contrast to that day in Grand Committee.

I welcome and thank the noble Baroness, Lady Northover, for her support of the Government’s position. We are agreed, irrespective of the differences and questions that have been raised, about the importance of continuing the Kimberley process. As the noble Lord, Lord Hain, himself has said—I acknowledge that he was instrumental in starting this process—successive Governments have continued with our membership because, plainly and simply, it is the right thing to do. Certainly the Government’s planning and programme is a reflection of the fact that there should be no gap. When we leave the EU, there should be a continuation of our membership of the Kimberley process, and appropriate programmes have been set up to ensure that that happens.

I cannot leave this Dispatch Box without responding to the noble Lord, Lord Foulkes, who raised the issue of the Prime Minister. The Prime Minister is leading our country at perhaps one of the most challenging times that our history has faced, certainly in my lifetime. What is needed right now is a good deal to allow us to leave the EU. The more time that we spend debating SIs and prolonging the process through unnecessary debate, the more that we will not achieve that end. What is required now is for the whole country, this House and the other place to get behind the deal, do the deal and get behind the Prime Minister, who is leading our country in most challenging times. I say to the noble Lord that I know the Prime Minister; I have known her for 27 years. She is a lady of principle and passion, and she is showing both.

Kimberley Process Certification Scheme (Amendment) (EU Exit) Regulations 2019

Lord Collins of Highbury Excerpts

Wednesday 13th February 2019 Grand Committee

[The Minister of State, Foreign and Commonwealth Office (Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon) (Con)]

My note here starts with: “My Lords”. I am also addressing the public, but I am glad that the Deputy Chairman of Committees is also present, so the term applies most appropriately.

During the 1990s, the trade in conflict diamonds was a significant cause of instability, particularly in Africa. The Kimberley Process Certification Scheme is an important tool for reducing conflict, in Africa and elsewhere. Great strides have been made since its inception in 2002, and today more than 99% of the global supply chain of rough diamonds is certified as conflict-free.

From the beginning of the Kimberley process, the United Kingdom has been represented by the European Union. Together with our European partners and other participants, the UK has been active in our support of the Kimberley process and its principles: to increase transparency, to ensure trade is limited to Kimberley process participants, and, importantly, to apply effective controls.

The Kimberley process is not a treaty and has no basis in international law. Instead, it is simply a grouping of interested states—the “participants”—that have decided to enact domestically a uniform process for verifying the trade in rough diamonds at their borders. They then made the political decision to permit the trade in rough diamonds only with similarly minded states to establish the Kimberley process. The legal effects of the Kimberley process come from domestic legislation, hence this legislation is essential if we are to continue to participate in the process after we leave the European Union—as we intend to do.

As noble Lords will be aware, until 29 March 2019, the UK remains a full EU member state, subject to all the rights and obligations of membership. Those include trade arrangements that fall within the EU’s common commercial policy, including the Kimberley process. Under the terms of the withdrawal agreement, we have agreed with the EU that it will notify international partners that the UK is to be treated as a member state during the implementation period. This would mean that the UK would continue to participate, represented by the EU, and the UK trade in Kimberley process-compliant rough diamonds would continue. In the event that we are unable to enter into an implementation period, our participation through the EU would end and UK trade would be frozen until our application for participation was approved by other participants in the Kimberley process.

In either case, the legislation would ensure that we continue to comply with the requirements of the Kimberley process. It would secure our borders, prevent any non-compliant rough diamonds from entering the UK supply chain and send a strong message to would-be smugglers that the United Kingdom is not a recipient of conflict diamonds. It would also reassure the Kimberley process body of the UK’s commitment to the scheme, ahead of our application for independent participation. The instrument does not undermine the wider EU withdrawal negotiations, nor does it assume no deal. Instead it lays the groundwork for our future relationship with, and independent participation in, the Kimberley process. Essentially, it enables business as usual.

This matters because maintaining our relationship with the Kimberley process is an intrinsic element of our international commitments to conflict prevention. It is also pivotal in how we support UK business to operate responsibly in post-conflict and other difficult environments. The Kimberley process is not perfect, but as an independent participant, the UK will maintain our commitment to the ongoing reform process and continue to be an active and collaborative partner.

Some noble Lords have noted that a significant portion of UK trade in rough diamonds could fall away once we have left the EU. The reality is that, given the structure of the UK rough diamond market, trade statistics can be misleading. UK exports in rough diamonds outside the EU were valued at £67 million in 2017. We expect this to continue at around this level once we have left the EU.

The Government Diamond Office implements the Kimberley process in the UK, and is working closely with Border Force to ensure we meet the minimum standards set by the process. We are a well-respected participant in the Kimberley process as an EU member state and can expect to remain so as an independent participant. We have already informed the EU of our intention to initiate our application. Demonstrating that we have appropriate legislation in place is a fundamental part of that application process. That is the purpose of this instrument. Once passed, it will apply even if we are not a participant immediately at the point that the UK leaves the European Union, or after any implementation period.

Last week, this instrument was considered and approved by the other place—introduced by my right honourable friend the Minister of State for Europe and the Americas, Sir Alan Duncan—and has been approved. I welcome this opportunity to hear the views of the noble Lord on this draft order. I beg to move.

[Lord Collins of Highbury (Lab)]

I reassure the Minister that I also welcome the opportunity to give him my views, once again—we have the opportunity at frequent intervals. I will say, right from the outset, that of course we support wholeheartedly the principles of the Kimberley process. It is not perfect and can certainly be improved on regarding impact, but it has certainly had a substantial impact in diminishing that awful, illicit trade in war diamonds. It is extremely welcome that we will continue to apply the principles after Brexit, and certainly ensure there are no gaps that could potentially be exploited.

One area of criticism is the fact that, as an exit SI, it is caught up in this overwhelming number that are coming forward, and whether there has been sufficient time for proper scrutiny. Irrespective of that—I have called this an “SI stampede”—whatever we have, the Explanatory Memorandum sets out, as the Minister has said, the reasons for this. It is an unusual SI in terms of an exit SI, because it is required in its provisions whether there is a deal or no deal. It is just that, if there were a deal within the transitional period, we would be able to ensure that our transition from EU involvement to being an independent participant goes smoothly.

There is a slight difference between a deal or no-deal situation. As the Minister said, 82 countries are members, and Sir Alan Duncan said in the other place that he was confident our existing participant status would be embraced by the 81 as we reapply on a slightly different basis. But doing so within the terms of an agreement to leave the EU is different from coming out at the end of March. We are faced with possible consequences, and it is those consequences that I will address.

As the Minister said, in the event that we are unable to enter an implementation period, our participation through the EU would end and UK trade would be frozen until our application for participation was approved by the other participants in the Kimberley process. In either case, as he says, this draft legislation will ensure that we continue to comply with the requirements of the process. It will secure our borders, prevent any non-compliant rough diamonds entering the UK supply chain, et cetera.

What assessment have the Government made of the impact such a break in our coverage of the process would have on our conflict prevention objectives and obligations? We have been a prime mover of this, so would there be any sort of impact? While we are saying we are going to ensure we remain compliant even outside the process, I want a better understanding of what assessment has been made if we are outside it.

Sir Alan Duncan said that the cost would be the same as now. Likewise, the impact is unchanged, hence the absence of a need for an impact assessment. Paragraph 13 of the Secondary Legislation Scrutiny Committee’s report quotes the Explanatory Memorandum on why there would be no significant impact on business—because it broadly replicates what we have now, and will apply in a no-deal situation. But the committee—I want to ask the Minister about this—found the Explanatory Memorandum,

“deficient for not articulating more clearly the potential financial and commercial consequences for the trade if endorsement of the UK’s application to the Scheme is delayed”,

coming back to this point that inevitably, if we fall out of EU at the end of March, there will be a period when we are not covered. What does that actually mean?

Is the Minister able to say categorically that a no-deal scenario, where for a period we may be outside the scheme, would not involve any additional cost to the UK diamond trade? Sir Alan Duncan responded to Bob Stewart in the other place on the fact that this is about rough diamonds, not the sort of imports and exports that Hatton Garden would have. He said that this SI,

“is about a particular category of diamond. The draft regulations mean that if we were a participant, anything legal in the Kimberley process would include us in that process; if we do not pass them today, it would not”.—[Official Report, Commons, Seventh Delegated Legislation Committee, 5/2/19; col. 8.]

I understand that this is a case for making this SI. I do not have any objection, but I want to be absolutely clear that, in this no-deal scenario, the Government are completely satisfied that there will be no financial impact, particularly on small businesses. Has there been any consultation with the trade on this specific point?

With these few remarks, I will leave it for the Minister to respond.

[Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon]

My Lords, I am truly grateful for the noble Lord’s participation, without which we might not be having this SI debate. I thank and pay tribute to the noble Lord. It is often said that you call your friends “diamonds”. We may call each other “noble Lord” and not “noble friend”, but I am grateful that I have a diamond of an opposition shadow Minister to deal with—often in a spirit of harmony. On the odd occasion we challenge each other, it is reflective of our mutual respect. I am grateful to the noble Lord for his contributions this afternoon.

As I outlined in my opening remarks, this instrument is crucial to the UK’s participation in the Kimberley process. This point was acknowledged by the noble Lord, and I thank him for his support in this regard. In turn, he raised the important issue of conflict-prevention objectives and obligations. As we have both acknowledged, the convention is not perfect, but this instrument seeks to ensure the continuity of the UK’s participation in a process that has seen results, especially when you see the commitment of the countries now participating in this process. It is right that countries come together to ensure that we protect this important sector and industry and send a clear message to those seeking to exploit the trade in rough diamonds. It is also important to note that this instrument maintains the status quo of the UK’s participation in the scheme.

The instrument is fully consistent with the Prime Minister’s commitment to be a supportive member of the European Union—both as we negotiate our departure and once we have left. It ensures the UK’s continuous compliance with the scheme.

I will pick up on a few of the noble Lord’s specific questions. He talked first about what would happen if the UK were not able to participate in the Kimberley process in the case of a no-deal exit from the European Union. This would of course affect the integrity of the process which we helped to establish. Without this legislation before the Committee, the UK would not have the power to seize illegal rough diamonds and would be perceived as a weak link in the process. Irrespective of how we leave the EU, this SI will ensure the UK’s adherence to the principles of the Kimberley process. It will demonstrate the UK’s continued commitment in this respect.

The noble Lord then built on the issue of conflict prevention. The fact that we are committed to participating, irrespective of the nature of our departure from the EU, underlines the importance of having this SI in place for both scenarios. Across the House, we are focused on the importance of ensuring that we prevent conflict—as I know the noble Lord is.

The noble Lord also asked about the costs associated.

[Lord Collins of Highbury]

Before the Minister leaves the point about maintaining our objectives and policy, I have a question. As it sort of states in the memorandum of agreement, I accept that, irrespective of whether we are able to participate as a member of the convention, we will continue to apply its conditions. That is how I read the statement. However, even if we continue to apply it, will our not being—potentially for a period—a participating member of the convention allow any gaps in our ability to ensure a continuation of this?

[Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon]

In passing this SI, we are committed to ensuring that in any kind of gap that would occur—irrespective of whether we are formally part of the Kimberley process or not—our own industry, sector and standing as a country would be protected. In addition, more importantly, as I said, we would be committed to prevent anyone using the exit from the European Union, if it is on the basis of a no deal, to exploit any such gaps. I hear what the noble Lord said. The way this SI is drafted is to ensure that we are ready and will apply those same rules, irrespective.

The noble Lord raises the specific issue—it is a valid one—that if we were not to be part of the Kimberley process if there is no deal and there is a delay in gaining our independent participation by a given date, that would result in issues around trade. That would have an impact and I do not shy away from that fact. However, it is our hope and—it was coincidental that we informed the EU of our application to join as an independent member, not just as a member of the EU, because the EU was actually the chair of the Kimberley process at that time—we have certainly not perceived any reason why we would not be able to join as an independent member.

Turning to trade and the costs, the noble Lord asked for a categoric assurance that there would be no impact. That kind of categoric assurance cannot be given. What we do have is the fact that the UK rough diamond trade currently comprises around 15 regular traders, with a few additional ad hoc traders. De Beers also imports rough diamonds for research and development and exhibition purposes. While I cannot give a categoric assurance, I assure the noble Lord that we have been in contact with traders who are making appropriate contingency plans, and we will be looking to support the industry in this respect. I assure the noble Lord that we understand that companies involved in this process will be taking appropriate contingency measures.

I appreciate that the noble Lord draws attention to the cost to the industry, and as best as possible we have certainly looked at it. We believe this will be limited. The statutory instrument itself is reflective of our intention to stay and be committed to the process. In passing this instrument today, we will ensure that and give an important signal not just to our EU partners but importantly to all members of the Kimberley process. I hope I have addressed the noble Lord’s questions quite directly.

China: Uighur Muslims

Lord Collins of Highbury Excerpts

Monday 11th February 2019 Lords Chamber

[Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon]

My Lords, the noble Baroness raises a number of issues, including the allegations of children being caged. All these matters are very much on our radar. Specifically on the American question, I am in regular contact with Sam Brownback, the US ambassador for freedom of religious belief. I hope to meet him very soon and I assure the noble Baroness that we will discuss this issue.

[Lord Collins of Highbury (Lab)]

My Lords, there are pictures of these camps on the BBC website. They are huge and the idea that they are somehow for educational purposes is just crazy. Can the noble Lord tell us more about building alliances, because the international response to this crisis has been muted? What is he doing, specifically with other Muslim countries, to try to build up a much stronger response so that China does listen?

[Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon]

I too have seen those images and anyone who has cannot help but be appalled by them. The noble Lord raises the issue of building alliances. I have talked about the Human Rights Council and my meeting with the US ambassador for freedom of religious belief. However, this is not just about Muslim countries. As I often say, I defend the rights of Christians and people of no belief, not despite being a Muslim but because I am a Muslim—as anyone of any faith would protect the rights of others. That is the British Government’s approach, which I know is shared by the noble Lord and, indeed, across the House. That is how we will approach this issue.

Venezuela

Lord Collins of Highbury Excerpts

Thursday 7th February 2019 Lords Chamber

[Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon]

My Lords, first, on the issue of humanitarian aid, I think we have all watched pictures on the television showing the desperate plight of the Venezuelan people. I assure my noble friend that DfID is working very closely with my right honourable friend the Minister for the Americas, Sir Alan Duncan. We are already working through UN agencies to provide essential funding, particularly to the more than 3.2 million people who have fled Venezuela since the crisis began. On his second, very pertinent question, on the IMF, I assure my noble friend that we recognise that reconstruction in Venezuela will require support from international financial institutions and that, when the time is right, the UK will work closely with those and all like-minded international partners with the aim of getting Venezuela’s economy back on track.

On my noble friend’s final question, on the position of Her Majesty’s Opposition and, in particular, the leader of Her Majesty’s Opposition, while I have not heard directly from him, I followed the speech of the shadow Foreign Secretary, who answered a question on Venezuela yesterday. I am sure the noble Lord, Lord Collins, is taking note—

[Lord Collins of Highbury (Lab)]

Will the Minister give me a chance to speak?

[Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon]

I will, but I am answering the question first. I was struck by the fact that the shadow Foreign Secretary said that we should be led by the countries of the region. Well, the countries of the region who have recognised the interim President—let us leave the US and Canada aside—are Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Guatemala, Panama, Paraguay and Peru. If she wants to follow the lead of the region, I suggest that Her Majesty’s Opposition look at that list very carefully.

[Lord Collins of Highbury]

I really must intervene. The noble Lord has used this Question as a Statement. The Statement is not being repeated in this Chamber. Let me make it absolutely clear: the position of the Opposition is that democracy has failed in Venezuela and the sooner we get free and fair elections, the better. We want from the Government, as the noble Lord said, a clear commitment to work with the international community to ensure that the humanitarian and economic crisis in Venezuela is addressed, because we know that Trump will not address it.

[Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon]

I ask the noble Lord again. We are addressing it and I have given a clear indication of what the Government are doing, but the Opposition need to step up to the mark. If you ask the people of Venezuela one question—what is the freedom they are fighting for?—they say they want free and fair elections. Maduro has not given them; it is time that Her Majesty’s Opposition recognised the interim President.

Sri Lanka

Lord Collins of Highbury Excerpts

Tuesday 5th February 2019 Lords Chamber

[Lord Collins of Highbury (Lab)]

My Lords, I too welcome the opportunity that the noble Lord, Lord Naseby, has given us to address the issues in Sri Lanka. There is no doubt that there has been progress but, as the noble Baroness, Lady Northover, said, it has been glacial. When we talk about truth, reconciliation and—the most important element—peace, we must not forget accountability. That is vital to ensure that reconciliation is sustainable. From the response to a number of Written Questions, it certainly seems clear that the United Kingdom remains committed to the full implementation of the UN Human Rights Council resolutions, particularly Resolution 34/1. As the noble Baroness also highlighted, there has been such limited progress on accountability.

There is therefore a clear expectation among the Sri Lanka core group in Geneva, consisting of the United Kingdom and Germany, to ensure the adoption of a further rollover resolution at the upcoming Human Rights Council session, with the co-sponsorship of the Government of Sri Lanka. However, there is a great deal of concern that support from the Sri Lankan Government, which emanates largely from their Prime Minister’s office and is perhaps better described as grudging acquiescence, could be derailed in the light of the open conflict between the Prime Minister and President of Sri Lanka, especially after the events of last December, as described by the noble Baroness, Lady Northover.

It would be easy to see the President seeking to gain political advantage by making a stink of the notion that the Prime Minister’s party, the UNP, is selling out war heroes. The fact that we are having this debate leads me to think that there is absolutely no room for complacency. It is important to refocus our minds on the central reason that Sri Lanka came before the HRC in the first place: allegations of atrocity crimes. The fact is that these have not in any sense been addressed.

In his debate in October 2017, which I also participated in, the noble Lord, Lord Naseby, argued that the Government should drop their call for a credible accountability process to look into the wartime violations in Sri Lanka, in view of the exonerating contents of a series of confidential wartime British diplomatic dispatches obtained from the FCO via FoI request. The noble Lord referred to that again this evening. As it happens, in June 2018 Private Eye referred to the Sri Lanka Campaign’s similar request for FoI over these dispatches. Its assessment suggested in particular that the casualty figures to which the noble Lord referred did not represent the independent assessment of the UK military’s attaché, but rather were derived from UN Country Team estimates, which have been in the public domain since 2009 and remarked upon by subsequent UN investigations for the conservative nature of their methodology.

The other thing in that debate was giving the wrong impression that the statement “no cluster munitions were used” was attributable to, and represented the independent assessment of, the UK military attaché. As Private Eye revealed, this was in fact a description of the position of the then Sri Lankan Defence Secretary, Gotabaya Rajapaksa, an alleged perpetrator of grave human rights violations. Sadly, your Lordships’ debate of 14 months ago continues to be used by hardliners in Sri Lanka to erode efforts to bring about a meaningful process of accountability and reconciliation for wartime atrocities. For example, in July last year, GL Peiris, a member of the former regime and Mahinda Rajapaksa ally, wrote to the new UK Foreign Secretary, calling on him to withdraw the UN Human Rights Council resolution on Sri Lanka, in view of the “entirely flawed” basis for it, as revealed by the noble Lord, Lord Naseby.

Many are concerned about how that FoI request and the dispatches will be used to sway international public opinion at crunch time at the Human Rights Council in March— next month. Therefore it is important to correct the dangerous and unhelpful narrative that the original debate of the noble Lord, Lord Naseby, has helped to foment in Sri Lanka.

If we are talking about anniversaries, as documented in great detail by the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights’ 2015 investigation—

[Lord Naseby]

My freedom of information request was duly passed to me. It is my privilege, according to the judge of the First-tier tribunal, to use that information as I see fit. I am more than happy to give copies to all Front-Bench persons present, and will make sure that happens immediately. However, those dispatches are not written by me, they are written by the official attaché from the United Kingdom who served throughout the war and was at the front line during that war.

[Lord Collins of Highbury]

I am grateful for the offer. I am sorry it has come 14 months late, but I would have appreciated—and certainly the campaign for Sri Lanka would have appreciated—copies earlier. That is why, according to Private Eye, it put in its own FoI requests and has got the material. The important point about the narrative that we have heard this evening, which the noble Baroness, Lady Northover, also made, is that we want to see the full implementation of the resolution, which has not been properly addressed and certainly in no way can be considered fully addressed.

I want to point out something in that report of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights in 2015 into the final stages of the civil war. On this day—5 February—10 years ago, the UN, the International Committee of the Red Cross and medical workers were finally forced to evacuate from PTK hospital. For three weeks, the hospital had been subjected to intense shelling by suspected government forces, which continued despite—or perhaps because of—the GPS co-ordinates having been communicated to them. It was the only hospital in the war zone that was equipped with an operating theatre, where hundreds of patients were being treated. To quote the report:

“Witnesses told investigators that as shells fell, people ran to take cover, including several patients who ran towards bunkers located outside the hospital, carrying their intravenous drips with them”.


An attack on 3 February,

“hit a ward with women and children, killing at least four patients and injuring at least 14 others. The hospital was hit again during the following evening, damaging the children’s ward, reportedly killing seven people, including one medical staff member and a baby … One hospital worker described the situation in the hospital by 4 February as ‘carnage’, the likes of which she had never seen before”.

As we approach the 10th anniversary of these events, I hope the Minister will join me in expressing concern that, despite the various promises made by the Government of Sri Lanka before the Human Rights Council in October 2015, they have not yet succeeded in holding accountable a single member of the Sri Lankan armed forces for those appalling atrocities. I hope that he will reassure us that we will seek full implementation of those UN resolutions.

Intermediate-range Nuclear Forces Treaty

Lord Collins of Highbury Excerpts

Tuesday 5th February 2019 Lords Chamber

[Lord Collins of Highbury (Lab)]

My Lords, I thank the Minister for repeating that response to the Urgent Question. As he repeated, and as Mark Field said yesterday in the other place, the treaty’s six-month withdrawal process offers Russia a final opportunity to return to compliance.

Last October, we had a similar Answer repeated in this Chamber. I asked the Minister whether we were consulted over the initial announcement. He said that the UK Government,

“continue to work very closely with the United States and other NATO allies to ensure that our efforts over the past 30 years are not just sustained but strengthened”.—[Official Report, 24/10/18; col. 864.]

Will the Minister tell the House what steps the Government have taken to try to bring the US and Russian Governments back to the negotiations? Will he tell the House what discussions he or the Foreign Secretary have had with their US counterparts?

There is another issue here. I know this is a bilateral treaty, but what contact has the Foreign Secretary had with other countries, including China, which have developed INF-proscribed weapons, so that a future multilateral framework may be developed that could supersede and replace the INF treaty?

[Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon]

Taking the noble Lord’s last question first, he will know that the INF treaty is a bilateral treaty between the United States and the Soviet Union, as it then was, although he raised an important point about nuclear weapons more generally. I assure him that the United Kingdom continues to work, particularly through alliances such as NATO, against the continued proliferation of such weapons and to ensure that the limitation that can be applied to them is upheld. That is why we welcomed further agreements that have been signed between the United States and Russia, particularly in relation to the New START agreement, which seeks to address this issue.

The noble Lord asked about the relationship and the discussions which have been taking place. He is quite right that in October we had talks on this issue. After that statement by the US, the current US Administration has initiated a series of meetings with close allies, including NATO. We continue to exchange detailed information on Russian violations and how we may best achieve shared policy objectives.

The other thing that I would bring to the noble Lord’s notice is that the US first declared Russia to be in breach of its compliance with the INF treaty back in 2014. At no point during that time has Russia provided a credible response. Indeed, the first response from Russia was that it was compliant. It was only in 2017 that it acknowledged that the missiles in question exist.

On whether there was a specific notification from the US on this occasion, we had already had discussions with the US. The message about the exact timing of the President’s public announcement was not communicated directly, but the recent announcement came as no surprise, bearing in mind the October announcement.