Asked by: Mark Francois (Conservative - Rayleigh and Wickford)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether it remains his Department's policy to deploy the Carrier Strike Group to the Indo-Pacific this year.
Answered by Luke Pollard - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence)
Defence is planning to deploy the Carrier Strike Group to the Indo-Pacific where it will be the focal point for numerous exercises, operations, and engagements in the region.
Asked by: Mark Francois (Conservative - Rayleigh and Wickford)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, if he will make an estimate of the projected financial commitments within the revised agreement with Mauritius on the Chagos Islands including adjustments for (a) inflation and (b) exchange rate fluctuations.
Answered by Stephen Doughty - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Once the treaty is signed it will be put before both Houses for scrutiny before ratification in the usual way.
Asked by: Mark Francois (Conservative - Rayleigh and Wickford)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether he has withdrawn the veto on the compulsory jurisdiction of the International Court of Justice on disputes with countries that (a) are and (b) have been Commonwealth members.
Answered by Stephen Doughty - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The position around the International Court of Justice compulsory jurisdiction remains as per the UK's deceleration of 22 February 2017.
Asked by: Mark Francois (Conservative - Rayleigh and Wickford)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, how much his Department has incurred in legal costs on the Chagos Islands since 5 July 2024.
Answered by Stephen Doughty - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
It is not possible to provide a single figure for the amount the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) has incurred in legal costs on the Chagos Islands since 5 July 2024. Legal costs would include the costs of FCDO lawyers, who are paid salaries and do not charge by workstream. However, the FCDO has incurred £28,367.35 in external legal costs in relation to matters concerning the sovereignty of the Chagos Islands since 5 July 2024, including in respect of defending relevant litigation. There may be additional costs for January that have not yet been invoiced. The FCDO has also incurred external legal costs in respect of migration issues on Diego Garcia. As the FCDO is still to receive a number of invoices for these costs, it is not possible to provide an accurate figure at this time.
Asked by: Mark Francois (Conservative - Rayleigh and Wickford)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 4 February 2025 to Question 26430 on NHS England: Staff, how many full-time equivalent staff were employed by NHS East of England Headquarters in (a) 2021, (b) 2022, (c) 2023 and (d) 2024; and what was the total salary for those employees in each of those years.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The following table shows the number of budgeted full-time equivalent (FTE) staff, specifically the number of budgeted posts rather than the number of staff currently employed, and the pay budget for NHS England East of England, each year from 2021/22 to 2024/25:
Year | Budgeted FTE staff | Pay budget |
2024/25 | 637 | £58,855,000 |
2023/24 | 578.24 | £45,045,000 |
2022/23 | 731.31 | £47,412,000 |
2021/22 | 599.99 | £39,366,000 |
Note: data for 2024/25 is as of the tenth month.
Asked by: Mark Francois (Conservative - Rayleigh and Wickford)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many Chagossians moved to the UK from (a) Mauritius and (b) Seychelles in each year since 2019.
Answered by Seema Malhotra - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)
An individual can apply for British citizenship if they believe they meet the requirements. Those wishing to naturalise will need to meet the statutory requirements set out in the British Nationality Act 1981, including to be of good character. Applications will be considered on a case-by-case basis, but a person who has entered the UK illegally will not normally meet the good character requirement.
Details of fees for immigration and nationality applications, including the estimated unit costs, can be reviewed via the following link: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/visa-fees-transparency-data.
Asked by: Mark Francois (Conservative - Rayleigh and Wickford)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what representations her Department has received from the Ministry of Defence on security concerns related to the involvement of Mingyang Smart Energy in the Green Volt North Sea wind farm project; and what consideration has been given to these concerns in the decision-making process.
Answered by James Murray - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Government is committed to attracting investment into the UK to support our growth and clean energy missions. The UK is one of the most attractive global investment destinations for renewable energy and significant deployment acceleration to 2030 will be required.
While we cannot comment on individual cases, the Government takes the security and resilience of UK energy infrastructure extremely seriously. Delivering our Clean Power 2030 target will boost energy security, whilst creating good jobs and protecting consumers. We will protect national security wherever we identify concerns.
Asked by: Mark Francois (Conservative - Rayleigh and Wickford)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what plans he has to bring forward legislative proposals to revoke the status of the British Indian Ocean Territories as British Overseas Territories.
Answered by Stephen Doughty - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The political agreement, reached between the UK and Mauritius in October 2024, will need to be underpinned by a Treaty which, once signed, will be made public and put before both Houses for scrutiny consistent with the obligations under the Constitutional Reform and Governance Act. Following signature, the Government intends to bring forward a Bill to make the necessary amendments to current legislation to implement the Treaty.
Asked by: Mark Francois (Conservative - Rayleigh and Wickford)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether his Department has engaged legal counsel from Matrix Chambers on the UK’s sovereignty over the Chagos Islands.
Answered by Stephen Doughty - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The Department has not engaged legal counsel from Matrix Chambers on the Chagos sovereignty question.
Asked by: Mark Francois (Conservative - Rayleigh and Wickford)
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 potential impact of (a) the International Telecommunication Union and (b) other UN agencies ceasing to recognise UK sovereignty over British Indian Ocean Territory on (i) Gibraltar and (ii) other UK Overseas Territories.
Answered by Stephen Doughty - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
It is the Government's view that without a negotiated solution on the sovereignty of the British Indian Ocean Territory (BIOT), Mauritius would inevitably have pursued a campaign to obtain a legally binding judgment against the UK. We could expect a binding judgment that the UK was not sovereign over the British Indian Ocean Territory, to be applied by international organisations, including UN Specialised Agencies such as the International Telecommunication Union. This would have real-world impacts on the protection and security of the base including our ability to operate the electromagnetic spectrum undisturbed. Regarding impact on other Overseas Territories, BIOT is a unique case. No impact would be expected on other Overseas Territories as the situations are not comparable.