Asked by: Lord Empey (Ulster Unionist Party - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the extent to which the government of Libya has complied with UN Security Council Resolutions pertaining to the freezing of Libyan assets, to justify a release of some or all of those assets.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
United Nations Security Council Resolution 1970 (2011) decided that all Member States shall freeze assets owned or controlled by individuals or entities listed by the Libya Sanctions Committee. The aim of the Libya asset freeze is to ensure that the frozen funds are preserved until such a time as they can be made available to, and for the benefit of, the people of Libya. Any amendments to the asset freeze will require consensus at the UN and will be judged against this goal.
Asked by: Lord Empey (Ulster Unionist Party - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government whether the matter of compensation for the victims of Libyan-sponsored IRA terrorism was raised during their meeting with the interim Prime Minister of Libya on 24 June; and if so, what response they received.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK continues to press the Libyan authorities to address the Libyan State's historic responsibility for the Qadhafi regime's support for the IRA, and has raised this issue at the highest levels.
Asked by: Lord Empey (Ulster Unionist Party - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what progress they have made in seeking compensation from the government of Libya for the victims of Libyan-supplied semtex used by the IRA.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK continues to press the Libyan authorities to address the Libyan State's historic responsibility for the Qadhafi regime's support for the IRA, and has raised this issue at the highest levels.
Asked by: Lord Empey (Ulster Unionist Party - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assistance they have offered to the government of St Vincent and the Grenadines in response to the ongoing eruption of the La Soufrière volcano.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
We are monitoring the situation in St Vincent and the Grenadines closely and our thoughts are with those affected by the eruption.
The UK has pledged an initial £200,000 to help address the immediate humanitarian impact of the volcano eruption, which will be used for emergency supplies and other immediate needs.
Urgently needed technical experts will support relief efforts on the ground, support emergency telecommunications, and restore critical lifeline facilities, like transport links.
We will continue to work with the Caribbean Disaster Emergency Management Agency to provide further support.
Asked by: Lord Empey (Ulster Unionist Party - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what discussions they have had with the government of Belgium about the treatment of frozen Libyan assets in Belgium.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The treatment of Libyan assets frozen in Belgium is a matter for the Belgian competent authorities within the framework of the relevant UN Security Council Resolutions. All exemption requests require full and careful compliance with relevant processes and procedures outlined in UNSCR 1970 (2011).
Asked by: Lord Empey (Ulster Unionist Party - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the dispute between the government of Belgium and the Libyan Investment Authority over access to frozen Libyan assets in Belgium.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
United Nations Security Council Resolution 1970 (2011) decided that all Member States shall freeze assets owned or controlled by individuals or entities listed by the Libya Sanctions Committee. The Resolution also expresses the Council's intention to ensure that assets frozen shall at a later stage be made available to and for the benefit of the people of the Libya. UNSCR 1970 sets out exemptions to the asset freeze. All exemption requests require full and careful compliance with relevant processes and procedures outlined in UNSCR 1970.
Asked by: Lord Empey (Ulster Unionist Party - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answers by Baroness Sugg on 15 June (HL4960), 29 June (HL5655), 22 July (HL6669) and 6 August (HL7207), whether they will now answer the questions put, in particular, on what date they were informed by the government of Ireland of its plans for passengers travelling from Great Britain to the Republic of Ireland to be subject to quarantine restrictions in Ireland; and how those plans were communicated.
Answered by Baroness Sugg
Restrictions for passengers travelling from Great Britain to Ireland consisting of a requirement to complete a passenger locator form detailing arrangements for fourteen days' self-isolation came into effect from 26th April. Her Majesty’s Government was notified by the Irish Authorities of their intention to introduce these on 23rd April. The Irish authorities communicated these plans initially through discussions with the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland and subsequently with our Embassy in Dublin and other UK Government Departments.
Asked by: Lord Empey (Ulster Unionist Party - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the request by the Libyan Investment Authority to the UN to access frozen assets, including assets frozen in London; and what steps they will take to ensure that such assets are not released without an agreement to compensate the victims of IRA terrorist acts.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Libyan assets in the UK were frozen in 2011 under UN Security Council Resolution 1973, at the request of the Libyan authorities. We are not aware of any formal request by the Libyan Investment Authority to access frozen assets. We are committed to supporting the victims of Qadhafi-sponsored IRA terrorism, and continue to believe the Libyan Government has a responsibility to address their claims.
Asked by: Lord Empey (Ulster Unionist Party - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the request by the Libyan Investment Authority to the UN to allow the Libyan Investment Authority to invest frozen assets; and what steps they plan to take in response.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Libyan assets in the UK were frozen in 2011 under UN Security Council Resolution 1973, at the request of the Libyan authorities. We are not aware of any formal request by the Libyan Investment Authority to access frozen assets. We are committed to supporting the victims of Qadhafi-sponsored IRA terrorism, and continue to believe the Libyan Government has a responsibility to address their claims.
Asked by: Lord Empey (Ulster Unionist Party - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answers by Baroness Sugg on 15 June (HL4960), 29 June (HL5655) and 22 July (HL6669), whether they will now answer the questions put, in particular, on what date they were informed by the government of Ireland of its plans for passengers travelling from Great Britain to the Republic of Ireland to be subject to quarantine restrictions in Ireland; and how those plans were communicated.
Answered by Baroness Sugg
We had a number of conversations with the Irish Government, including at Ministerial level, discussing our responses to the Covid-19 pandemic ahead of their decision to introduce a fourteen-day quarantine for all travellers coming into Ireland from 26 April.