Bangladesh: Attacks on Hindu Community
Debate between Monica Harding and Lindsay Hoyle(3 weeks, 5 days ago)
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Monica Harding (Esher and Walton) (LD)
We share the concerns of Members on both sides of the House about these attacks. I note that the Minister has spoken to her Bangladeshi counterparts, and urge her to continue to do so.
The most recent Foreign Office human rights and democracy report lists Bangladesh as a “human rights priority” country and highlights
“reports of harassment...particularly towards...Hindu minorities, often incited online.”
The report recognises that
“UK funding through civil society organisations supported freedom of religion or belief and community mediation processes”.
Can the Minister update us on the progress being made, using UK funding, in combating religious discrimination in Bangladesh? Is that funding at risk of being another casualty of the latest round of cuts in overseas development assistance? Will the Government support our call for an ambassador-level champion of freedom of religion or belief, so that the UK can do more to ensure that the rights of Hindus and all religious minorities are protected and upheld?
Oral Answers to Questions
Debate between Monica Harding and Lindsay Hoyle(3 months, 2 weeks ago)
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Mr Speaker
Order. You are supposed to sit down, Minister! I know that you are enjoying the Dispatch Box on your return, but please do not over-enjoy it. I call Monica Harding.
Monica Harding
As my hon. Friend the Member for Carshalton and Wallington (Bobby Dean) mentioned, the chief inspector of prisons said this morning that prisoners can sometimes be banged up in their cells for up to 22 hours a day, that classrooms and workshops are empty, and that education and training are simply not given the priority they need. Does the Secretary of State agree that, in order to cut reoffending, it is time to introduce a proper workable plan to improve the rehabilitation of people leaving prison?