Asked by: Paul Maynard (Conservative - Blackpool North and Cleveleys)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, when she respond to the correspondence of 18 March 2022 from the hon. Member for Blackpool North and Cleveleys on behalf of a constituent on Cyprus.
Answered by James Cleverly - Shadow Home Secretary
A reply has now been sent to the Honourable Member. We apologise for the delay.
Asked by: Paul Maynard (Conservative - Blackpool North and Cleveleys)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, how many (a) Pashto (b) Korean (c) Portuguese and (d) Telugu speakers have been trained for the diplomatic service by her Department in each of the last 5 years.
Answered by Amanda Milling
The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office has provided full time language training for officers in Pashto, Korean, and Portuguese as follows:
Pashto: fewer than ten officers between 2017 and 2021
Korean: fewer than ten officers between 2017 and 2021
Portuguese: fewer than forty officers between 2017 and 2021.
No officers have received full time language training in Telugu.
Asked by: Paul Maynard (Conservative - Blackpool North and Cleveleys)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether his Department plans to review its travel advice against all but essential travel before the introduction of the test and release scheme.
Answered by Nigel Adams
From 5 November, the FCDO moved away from advising against all non-essential international travel, returning to country specific advice. We retained advice against all but essential travel to a number of countries based on risks due to Covid-19. FCDO travel advice remains under constant review and considers both the epidemiological and non-epidemiological risks associated with Covid-19 in each destination. When the FCDO no longer assesses the risks to British nationals to be unacceptably high, travel advice is updated accordingly.
Asked by: Paul Maynard (Conservative - Blackpool North and Cleveleys)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether his Department's travel advice will be updated to reflect changes in the Department for Transport's guidance on travel corridors.
Answered by Nigel Adams
From 5 November, the FCDO stopped advising against all travel worldwide and reverted to country-based advice. FCDO travel advice remains under constant review and considers both epidemiological and non-epidemiological risks in each destination. When the FCDO no longer assesses the risks to British nationals to be unacceptably high, travel advice is updated accordingly.
Asked by: Paul Maynard (Conservative - Blackpool North and Cleveleys)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, with which international counterparts he has held discussions on the establishment of air bridges.
Answered by Nigel Adams
A list of countries and territories from which passengers arriving in England will no longer have to self-isolate for 14 days was published on 3 July. This follows the Government's first review of public health measures at the border, which were introduced in June 2020. The Government has always been clear that any decisions on border measures will be proportionate and science-led.
We are continuing to engage with all partners on all aspects of the global response to the Coronavirus pandemic.
Asked by: Paul Maynard (Conservative - Blackpool North and Cleveleys)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with his counterparts from (a) Australia, (b) EU member states and (c) New Zealand on the establishment of air bridges.
Answered by James Duddridge
The Government is considering the concept of international travel corridors, including air bridges, and how they could be implemented in practice along with other measures. We want to open up as a country as soon as we responsibly and safely can, but we have to do it safely and responsibly. We are, of course, continuing to engage with all partners on all aspects of the global response to the Coronavirus pandemic.