Asked by: Patrick Grady (Scottish National Party - Glasgow North)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what recent estimate he has made of the total lifetime cost of the Trident renewal programme.
Answered by James Cartlidge - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
The Dreadnought submarine programme remains within overall budget and on track for the first of class, HMS Dreadnought, to enter service in the early 2030s.
Inflation has remained higher than expected for an extended period and had an adverse impact on the cost forecasts for this programme when compared to the forecasts from a year earlier.
As the programme is in its preliminary phases, it is too early to provide cost estimates for the replacement warhead programme.
Asked by: Patrick Grady (Scottish National Party - Glasgow North)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what recent assessment he has made of the impact of recent trends in inflation rates on (a) the total lifetime cost of and (b) expenditure over the next five financial years on the Trident renewal programme.
Answered by James Cartlidge - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
The Dreadnought submarine programme remains within overall budget and on track for the first of class, HMS Dreadnought, to enter service in the early 2030s.
Inflation has remained higher than expected for an extended period and had an adverse impact on the cost forecasts for this programme when compared to the forecasts from a year earlier.
As the programme is in its preliminary phases, it is too early to provide cost estimates for the replacement warhead programme.
Asked by: Patrick Grady (Scottish National Party - Glasgow North)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, what recent discussions he has had with counterparts in Nigeria on violent persecution of Christians in that country.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
Rising insecurity in Nigeria has affected all faith and non-faith communities, including Christians. UK Government officials and I (Minister Mitchell) regularly raise Freedom of Religion or Belief (FoRB), including the impact of insecurity on communities and the need to bring perpetrators to justice, with the Nigerian Government. In August 2023, the former Foreign Secretary discussed insecurity with President Tinubu and the National Security Advisor Nuhu Ribadu. In January 2024, the British High Commissioner raised the recent attacks in Plateau with the Nigerian National Security Adviser. Across Nigeria, the High Commissioner and his team work closely with the authorities, local communities and faith leaders to raise and address these issues, including through engagement with the Nigeria Governors' Forum, National Peace Committee and National Human Rights Commission.
Asked by: Patrick Grady (Scottish National Party - Glasgow North)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, what support his Department is providing to organisations promoting freedom of religion or belief in Nigeria.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
Rising insecurity in Nigeria has affected all faith and non-faith communities, including Christians. UK Government officials and I regularly raise freedom of religion or belief (FoRB), including the impact of insecurity on communities and the need to bring perpetrators to justice, with the Nigerian Government. The UK supports Nigeria to deliver on its constitutional commitment to FoRB through our development programming and security cooperation. We have funded peacebuilding projects to build dialogue between religious groups and, through the Strengthening Peace and Resilience in Nigeria programme, will help Nigeria to tackle the causes of intercommunal conflict.
Asked by: Patrick Grady (Scottish National Party - Glasgow North)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, with reference to his oral contribution of 19 December 2023, Official Report column 1252, what the evidential basis is for his statement that the situations of UK nationals travelling to fight in (a) Ukraine and (b) Israel are not analogous.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
Section 4 of the Foreign Enlistment Act 1870 makes it an offence for a British subject to enlist in the military of a foreign state at war with another foreign state with which the UK is at peace. That prohibition does not extend, however, to enlistment in a foreign government's forces which are engaged in a civil war or combating terrorism or internal uprisings. The Occupied Palestinian Territories are not currently recognised as a state by the UK. It is the UK government's longstanding position that the Fourth Geneva Convention applies to the Occupied Palestinian Territories, and that Israel is an occupying power under that convention. The 1870 Act therefore does not apply in this instance.
Asked by: Patrick Grady (Scottish National Party - Glasgow North)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, if he will issue guidance for individuals considering travelling to (a) Israel and (b) Palestine with the intention of fighting in Gaza.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
The UK recognises the right of British nationals with more than one nationality to serve in the armed forces of their additional nationalities. The Israel Defence Force is a recognised armed force and British nationals can volunteer for service with them. FCDO Travel Advice provides British nationals with information on the risks of travelling or living abroad, including in Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories This guidance can be found on Gov.uk. Anyone who travels to conflict zones to engage in unlawful activity should expect to be investigated upon their return to the UK. Decisions on prosecutions are taken independently by the police and Crown Prosecution Service on a case-by-case basis.
Asked by: Patrick Grady (Scottish National Party - Glasgow North)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, what discussions he has had with his counterpart in Ethiopia on the treatment of prisoners from the Amhara community in the Awash Arba military camp.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
We regularly raise human rights issues in our interactions with Ethiopian interlocutors. In August, the UK's ambassador to Ethiopia met with the Regional President of Amhara and highlighted the need to ensure the protection of civilians and meaningful dialogue to end hostilities. The Foreign Secretary also spoke with his counterpart in December when he raised the conflict in Amhara.
Asked by: Patrick Grady (Scottish National Party - Glasgow North)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, what discussions his Department has had with its Iranian counterparts on the imprisonment of Alaa Abdel Fattah.
Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Alaa Abd El-Fattah is detained in Egypt. The FCDO has not raised his case with the Iranian Government. Ministers and officials continue to raise Mr El-Fattah's case at the highest levels with the Egyptian government. The Prime Minister has raised Mr El-Fattah's case with President Sisi on a number of occasions, most recently on 1 December on the margins of COP28.
Asked by: Patrick Grady (Scottish National Party - Glasgow North)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, what discussions his Department has had with its Iranian counterparts on the imprisonment of Mehran Raoof.
Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
We are supporting the family of Mr Mehran Raoof and have raised his case with the Iranian government. Mr Raoof's welfare is a top priority. It remains in Iran's gift to release any British National who has been unfairly detained. We urge the Government of Iran to stop its practice of unfairly detaining British and other foreign nationals. We will continue to work with like-minded partners to that end.
Asked by: Patrick Grady (Scottish National Party - Glasgow North)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, what steps his Department is taking to help secure the release of UK nationals who are being arbitrary detained overseas.
Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The FCDO takes all allegations of human rights violations, including arbitrary detention, seriously. We tailor our support to British nationals depending on their specific circumstances, and what we consider to be in their best interests. Where appropriate, we raise allegations with the local authorities, often engaging at the highest levels. We expect all States to abide by their international human rights obligations.