Asked by: Neil Coyle (Labour - Bermondsey and Old Southwark)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what discussions she has had with her Somali counterparts on efforts to build relations between leaders in Somalia and Somaliland.
Answered by Chris Elmore - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK is one of Somalia's closest and longest standing partners and remains committed to supporting Somali authorities to build a safe, free, and secure country for all Somalis. The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) regularly engages with the Somali authorities, political parties and civil society, including those in Somaliland. We continue to advocate for dialogue between Hargeisa and Mogadishu.
Asked by: Neil Coyle (Labour - Bermondsey and Old Southwark)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of imposing sanctions on any British company operating in the illegal settlement activity in the West Bank.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
We are deeply concerned by the levels of settlement expansion and settler violence in the West Bank and continue to urge the Government of Israel to stop settlement expansion and take action to hold violence to account. Settlements are illegal under international law.
On 20 May the UK imposed sanctions on three individuals, two illegal settler outposts and two organisations supporting violence against Palestinian communities in the West Bank. On 10 June the UK, acting alongside partners Australia, Canada, New Zealand and Norway, imposed sanctions on Israeli government ministers Itamar Ben-Gvir and Bezalel Smotrich in their personal capacity, in response to their repeated incitements of violence against Palestinian communities in the West Bank.
The UK does not recognise the Occupied Palestinian Territories, including Israeli settlements, as part of Israel. Goods imported from the settlements are therefore not entitled to benefit from trade preferences under the UK-Israel Trade and Partnership Agreement. The UK also supports accurate labelling of settlement goods, so as not to mislead the consumer.
Sanctions can be used to achieve a range of foreign and security policy objectives. We use sanctions when they complement other tools as part of a wider strategy. It would not be appropriate to speculate about future sanctions designations as to do so could reduce their impact. We have been clear that we keep these issues under close review.
Asked by: Neil Coyle (Labour - Bermondsey and Old Southwark)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps he is taking to work with (a) international counterparts and (b) the government of Sierra Leone to help ensure the 2028 General Election will be free and fair.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK is committed to promoting good governance and democracy in Sierra Leone, including transparent and inclusive elections. On 15 May, the Minister for Africa met with the Sierra Leonean Chief Minister, David Sengeh, and discussed the importance of full implementation of the Agreement for National Unity (ANU). Our High Commission in Freetown regularly engages with the Government of Sierra Leone, the EU and UN, like-minded diplomatic missions, and civil society organisations, to promote democratic norms, electoral integrity and ANU implementation. We will continue to engage with these international partners and the Government of Sierra Leone ahead of the 2028 elections to highlight the importance of good governance, the rule of law and the importance of free, fair and peaceful elections.
Asked by: Neil Coyle (Labour - Bermondsey and Old Southwark)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether he has made an assessment of the potential merits of imposing sanctions against people in Sierra Leone who pose a threat to democracy in the country.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office does not comment on potential future sanctions designations. We will continue to monitor the situation in Sierra Leone in the lead up to the 2028 elections including any actions that may undermine democratic processes.
Asked by: Neil Coyle (Labour - Bermondsey and Old Southwark)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps he has taken to verify the number of UNRWA operatives involved in the 7 October 2023 attacks in Israel.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
We condemn in the strongest possible terms the brutal terror attacks by Hamas and were appalled by the Government of Israel's allegations that United Nations Relief and Work Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) staff members were involved. The UN Office for Internal Oversight Services (OIOS) report concluded that nine UNRWA staff members may have participated in the Hamas terrorist attack and the UNRWA Commissioner General took decisive action to terminate their contracts. For the remaining 10 staff there was no or insufficient evidence for the UN to take forward further action. The parallel independent Colonna review found that UNRWA's existing Neutrality Framework was "robust" and more developed than similar UN or Non-Governmental Organisation entities, but that neutrality related issues persist. £1 million of our funding to UNRWA this year is supporting the implementation of the review's agreed Action Plan to ensure UNRWA commits to these neutrality obligations. All alleged involvement of UNRWA staff in appalling acts in support of 7 October and subsequent events must be thoroughly investigated.
Asked by: Neil Coyle (Labour - Bermondsey and Old Southwark)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of imposing sanctions on travel to and from the UK for people responsible for the disputed 2023 election results in Sierra Leone.
Answered by Anneliese Dodds
The FCDO regularly reviews its sanctions policy and does not comment on any possible future sanctions designations. Exclusion orders are used to prevent a person from entering the UK. The Home Office lead on the policy of exclusion.
Asked by: Neil Coyle (Labour - Bermondsey and Old Southwark)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether the criteria for maintaining diplomatic relations with other states include (a) the strength of democratic institutions and (b) human rights.
Answered by Anneliese Dodds
The UK is committed to promoting and protecting democratic institutions and human rights around the world. The decision to maintain or suspend diplomatic relations is made on a case-by-case basis.
Asked by: Neil Coyle (Labour - Bermondsey and Old Southwark)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps he is taking to monitor the effectiveness of the use of UK aid in Sierra Leone.
Answered by Anneliese Dodds
UK aid is guided by UK Government priorities and we work closely with the Government of Sierra Leone to ensure effective implementation of Sierra Leone's own national development plans. The UK does not provide budget support to the Government of Sierra Leone.
All UK development funding is subject to rigorous procurement protocols, due diligence and strong transparency standards. Our programmes are regularly and robustly monitored. The FCDO also works closely with the Independent Commission for Aid Impact to apply the highest standards to our aid spend. These measures ensure the effectiveness of UK aid in Sierra Leone throughout design, delivery and evaluation stages.
Asked by: Neil Coyle (Labour - Bermondsey and Old Southwark)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what diplomatic steps he is taking with international counterparts to ensure that future elections in Sierra Leone will be free and fair.
Answered by Anneliese Dodds
In his first conversation with Sierra Leone's Foreign Minister, Timothy Kabba, Lord Collins, Minister for Africa, highlighted the importance of implementing the Agreement for National Unity and recommendations of the Cross-Party Committee on Electoral Systems and Management Bodies in a bipartisan way. The UK remains committed to supporting a democratic Sierra Leone, and in this vein the British High Commission is currently exploring options to bolster support to governance processes that underpin the 2023-28 electoral cycle, in consultation with our diplomatic partners in Sierra Leone.
Asked by: Neil Coyle (Labour - Bermondsey and Old Southwark)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps he is taking with his international partners to help support (a) the Egyptian Red Crescent and (b) other aid organisations to increase the amount of humanitarian assistance in Gaza.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The humanitarian situation in Gaza is intolerable. The UK continues to provide significant funding to partners to support those most in need, including £5.5m in additional funding for UK-Med to run field hospitals in Gaza, and an additional £6m for UNICEF to provide lifesaving aid to vulnerable families in Gaza. In October and November 2023, we provided support to the Egyptian Red Crescent (ERCS) to strengthen their operations to get aid into Gaza. This included providing enabling equipment to support the international response at Al-Arish including mobile storage units, forklift trucks, pallet trucks and lighting generators. We continue to play a leading role in alleviating the suffering in Gaza, including by matching up to £10 million of public donations to the Disasters Emergency Committee's Middle East humanitarian appeal.