Asked by: Olivia Blake (Labour - Sheffield, Hallam)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of the lack of a Special Representative on Climate Change on his Department's policies.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
Senior representation on climate and environment has grown significantly since the creation of the FCDO, and expanded further since the UK's COP Presidency including two dedicated directors leading on climate and environment, and on energy security respectively.
Since 2011 we have directly supported over 100 million people in coping with the effects of climate change, provided just under 70 million people with improved access to clean energy, and reduced or avoided greenhouse gas emissions by 86 million tonnes.
Asked by: Olivia Blake (Labour - Sheffield, Hallam)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether the Government supports Armenia's (a) membership of the ICC and (b) request for an international investigation of alleged war crimes in the Nagorno-Karabakh region.
Answered by Leo Docherty - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for the Armed Forces)
We welcome Armenia's accession to the International Criminal Court. We support the Court's aim to increase membership, helping to contribute toward universal justice for the most serious crimes of international concern. We respect the independence of the Court and the Office of the Prosecutor, and any decision to open an investigation is a matter for the Court.
Asked by: Olivia Blake (Labour - Sheffield, Hallam)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with representatives of the British Armenian community.
Answered by Leo Docherty - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for the Armed Forces)
We regularly engage with diaspora groups representing a huge range of the diverse communities represented in the UK today. This includes the British-Armenian community, through groups such as the Armenian National Committee of the UK. We are also in regular contact with the Armenian government both through our Embassy in Armenia, and through regular ministerial calls.
Asked by: Olivia Blake (Labour - Sheffield, Hallam)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether he has made an estimate of the number of (a) British citizens, (b) dual nationals and (c) family members of British citizens affected by Azerbaijan's military offensive in the Nagorno-Karabakh region.
Answered by Leo Docherty - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for the Armed Forces)
The UK Government has not made an assessment of this nature. However, we are in regular contact with the Governments of Armenia and Azerbaijan and their Embassies in the UK, as well as through our Embassies in Armenia and Azerbaijan, and we use this dialogue to ensure we can provide the latest advice to those living or travelling in Armenia or Azerbaijan. We encourage all British nationals to consult our Travel Advice when considering whether to travel to regions affected by this conflict.
Asked by: Olivia Blake (Labour - Sheffield, Hallam)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with humanitarian organisations on delivering aid in Gaza.
Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK is calling for immediate unimpeded humanitarian access to Gaza so that essential aid, including food, water, fuel and medical supplies, can reach civilian populations. The UK is also calling on all parties to protect border crossings to support safe humanitarian access and mitigate harm to civilians. The FCDO is actively engaging with the international humanitarian system (including UN agencies, Intergovernmental Organizations (IGOs), Non-governmental organization (NGOs) and Civil Society Organisations) to address the current humanitarian crisis in Gaza. On 19 October, the Foreign Secretary visited the region where he will meet leaders in Egypt, Turkey and Qatar and push for agreement on humanitarian access to Gaza, the release of British hostages and foreign nationals, and securing safe passage for British Nationals to leave Gaza.
Asked by: Olivia Blake (Labour - Sheffield, Hallam)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what discussions he has had with his counterparts in Israel on access for health workers in West Bank attempting to access injured Palestinians.
Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The work of healthcare workers across the globe is vital and they must be protected when carrying out their critical work. We recognise that under international humanitarian law, Israel, as the occupying power, has a duty of ensuring and maintaining public health to the fullest extent possible. The wounded and critically ill in Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories should be able to access the urgent medical care they need. The British Embassy in Tel Aviv regularly raises the importance of regularised access to healthcare with the Israeli authorities. During his call on 4 July with the Israeli chargé d'affaires in London, the Minister of State for the Middle East, Lord (Tariq) Ahmad of Wimbledon, urged Israel to safeguard access to healthcare and take proactive steps to guarantee the safety of civilians during Israeli operations in the West Bank. The Foreign Secretary also emphasised the importance of the proactive protection of civilians during his call with Israeli Foreign Minister Eli Cohen on 5 July.
Asked by: Olivia Blake (Labour - Sheffield, Hallam)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with his counterparts in Israel on damage to (a) a UN Relief and Works Agency health clinic in Jenin and (b) other healthcare facilities.
Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The work of healthcare workers across the globe is vital and they must be protected when carrying out their critical work. During his call on 4 July with the Israeli chargé d'affaires in London, the Minister of State for the Middle East, Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon, urged Israel to safeguard access to healthcare and take proactive steps to guarantee the safety of civilians during Israeli operations in the West Bank. When the Foreign Secretary spoke with Israeli Foreign Minister Eli Cohen on July 5, he raised the UK's concerns about attacks on civilian infrastructure during their recent operation in Jenin.
Asked by: Olivia Blake (Labour - Sheffield, Hallam)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, with reference to the report by the regional office for the Eastern Mediterranean of the World Health Organisation entitled Increasing attacks on health care and health worker testimony, what assessment he has made of the implications for his policies of the Palestine Red Crescent Society providing bullet-proof vests, helmets and tear-gas masks to its teams following alleged incidents of direct targeting of health workers by Israeli forces.
Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The work of healthcare workers across the globe is vital and they must be protected when carrying out their critical work. During his call on 4 July with the Israeli chargé d'affaires in London, the Minister of State for the Middle East, Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon, urged Israel to safeguard access to healthcare and take proactive steps to guarantee the safety of civilians during Israeli operations in the West Bank. When the Foreign Secretary spoke with Israeli Foreign Minister Eli Cohen on July 5, he raised the UK's concerns about attacks on civilian infrastructure during their recent operation in Jenin.
Asked by: Olivia Blake (Labour - Sheffield, Hallam)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment was conducted by (a) her Department and (b) CDC Group of the potential for renewable hydropower to meet Mozambique’s energy needs in advance of CDC Group deciding to provide equity financing for a new gas fired power plant in Temane.
Answered by Amanda Milling - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
As sole Shareholder of BII (formerly CDC), FCDO appoints the Chair, sets BII's strategic objectives and also maintains oversight of BII. Decisions on the delivery of BII's strategy and its investments are delegated to the Board who are held accountable.
BII has stopped investment in the vast majority of fossil fuel projects and will only pursue investments in gas-fired power stations if they meet the criteria for exclusions in HMG's fossil fuel policy and fulfil the requirements in BII's Guidance on Natural Gas Power Plants, published in December 2020.
Temane meets the conditions for Paris-aligned gas power as per HMG's fossil fuel policy and has been assessed in detail as per BII's gas guidance which is consistent with those conditions. This included an assessment of whether the project could be viably replaced by renewable alternatives, including hydropower. Fuller details of the criteria used in such assessments is available here: https://assets.cdcgroup.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/12145227/CDC_GasGuidance_December2020.pdf
Asked by: Olivia Blake (Labour - Sheffield, Hallam)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment she has made of the compliance of CDC Group’s commitment to finance the Temane gas project in Mozambique with Government commitments to end overseas fossil fuel finance.
Answered by Amanda Milling - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
In July 2020, CDC launched its new Climate Strategy. Subsequently, in December 2020, CDC launched its Fossil Fuel Policy and Gas Guidance Tool, which is fully aligned with the UK Government's fossil fuel policy. The policy excludes investment in the vast majority of fossil fuel types with very limited exclusions.
Temane meets the conditions for Paris-aligned gas power as per HMG's fossil fuel policy and has been assessed in detail as per CDC's gas guidance which is consistent with those conditions. When operational, the Temane project is expected to meet the electricity needs of 1.5 million Mozambicans and support the creation of 14,000 jobs. It will support the energy transition and decarbonisation in Mozambique by allowing greater installations of renewables, as well as itself being technologically ready from inception to run on green hydrogen in future as and when that fuel source becomes available.
In Mozambique, in addition to Temane, Globeleq is developing solar (and battery storage) and wind projects, such as the ground-breaking Cuamba solar (plus battery) storage project which reached financial close in December 2021.