Asked by: Sam Tarry (Labour - Ilford South)
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 the Pakistani Government on protecting (a) human rights, (b) a free press and (c) peaceful protests in that country.
Answered by Leo Docherty - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for the Armed Forces)
The UK regularly engages the Government of Pakistan at a senior level on the need to respect human rights and uphold the rule of law. Minister for South Asia, Lord (Tariq) Ahmad of Wimbledon, discussed the human rights situation with Pakistan's Minister for Human Rights Mian Riaz Hussain Pirzada on 30 January this year, and with Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari on 14 December 2022. The British High Commission in Islamabad continues to engage on human rights with the Government of Pakistan, including on freedom of expression and media freedom. On 17 November 2022 the British High Commissioner discussed the issue of media freedom with Pakistan's Minister for Information and Broadcasting, Marriyum Aurangzeb.
Asked by: Sam Tarry (Labour - Ilford South)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent discussions his Department has had with the Pakistani government on the political situation in that country.
Answered by Leo Docherty - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for the Armed Forces)
We have frequent contact with the Government of Pakistan on a wide range of issues. We respect Pakistan's democratic system and do not interfere in its internal political affairs. We will continue to work with Pakistan to advance our shared priorities and interests, including the promotion of freedom of speech and human rights.
Asked by: Sam Tarry (Labour - Ilford South)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, if he will make representations to his Israeli counterpart on recent reports of violence in Huwara and Nablus.
Answered by Leo Docherty - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for the Armed Forces)
The UK condemned in the strongest terms the retaliatory incidents of violence by settlers against Palestinians, and we have stressed the importance of the Israeli security forces providing appropriate protection to the Palestinian civilian population. The Foreign Secretary echoed this message of de-escalation in his meeting with Israeli Foreign Minister Cohen on 21 March. The Minister of State for the Middle East, Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon, set out the UK's position at the scenes of abhorrent violence in Huwarra in his 26 February statement on Twitter.
Asked by: Sam Tarry (Labour - Ilford South)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment he has made of the impact of the £1.5 million allocated to help respond to flooding in Pakistan on the people impacted by that flooding.
Answered by Leo Docherty - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for the Armed Forces)
The UK has pledged a total of £26.5 million of UK aid to support the flood relief effort in Pakistan. The £1.5 million initial allocation is responding to people's immediate needs. Through our partners in Pakistan, this funding has provided: 16,125 households with multi-purpose cash assistance, 65,403 affected people with medical consultations through mobile medical camps, 33,950 people with water filtration cubes, and 46,752 people with hygiene services. During his recent visit to Pakistan, Lord (Tariq) Ahmad, Minister for South Asia, visited some of Pakistan's worst flood- affected areas, to see the critical role played by UK aid.
Asked by: Sam Tarry (Labour - Ilford South)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, if he will take steps to increase aid for environmental protection programmes in Pakistan.
Answered by Leo Docherty - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for the Armed Forces)
At COP26, the UK pledged £55 million to help Pakistan develop climate resilience, manage water more sustainably and unlock climate investment. The UK government regularly engages with the Pakistan government on climate change and environmental protection. On 14 October, Lord (Tariq) Ahmad of Wimbledon, Minister for South Asia, met with Pakistan's Minister for Climate Change, Sherry Rahman, to discuss how the UK can best help Pakistan mitigate the long-term effects of climate change.
Asked by: Sam Tarry (Labour - Ilford South)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether (a) he or (b) officials in his Department have had recent discussions with Lieutenant General Vikum Liyanage on human rights and protestors in Sri Lanka.
Answered by Anne-Marie Trevelyan - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK carefully considers all our engagement with the Sri Lankan Armed Forces, aiming to support the development of a modern, professional and human rights compliant military. Promoting adherence to international humanitarian law and human rights compliance is integral to this engagement. We continuously monitor the context and viability of our approach to ensure that assistance is in line with our values and is consistent with our human rights obligations.
The then Minister for South Asia, Lord (Tariq) Ahmad of Wimbledon, set out our concerns regarding human rights and security responses to peaceful protests when he spoke with President Wickremesinghe in July.
Asked by: Sam Tarry (Labour - Ilford South)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether the UK plans to put forward resolutions on Sri Lanka at the September session of the UNHRC regarding accountability for atrocities.
Answered by Vicky Ford
In March 2021, the UK Government and our Core Group partners led an ambitious new resolution (46/1) on Sri Lanka at the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC). The resolution provides a continued framework for international engagement on human rights in Sri Lanka, and highlights serious concerns about the situation, including those detailed in the January 2021 report of the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR). It calls on the government of Sri Lanka to make progress on accountability and human rights, and stresses the importance of a comprehensive accountability process for all violations and abuses committed in Sri Lanka. It keeps Sri Lanka firmly on the UNHRC agenda and requests continued and enhanced OHCHR reporting on the human rights situation and on accountability. Importantly, it also strengthened the capacity of OHCHR to collect, consolidate, preserve and analyse information and evidence to support future accountability processes. We continue to make clear our human rights concerns in statements made to the UNHRC, most recently on 14 June 2022. We will work with our partners to maintain the UNHRC's focus on Sri Lanka in the future.
Asked by: Sam Tarry (Labour - Ilford South)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether the UK will continue its commitment to the Global Fund to fight AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria by maintaining its levels of investment at the 7th Replenishment later this year.
Answered by Amanda Milling - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
The Global Fund is a high performing organisation that, with partners, has saved 44 million lives to date. The UK is proud to be the organisations third largest donor historically, and the second largest donor to the last replenishment with a pledge of up to £1.46 billion.
As set out in the International Development Strategy (IDS), global health will remain a top priority. The decision on the UK's contribution to the Global Fund's seventh replenishment will be taken in due course.
We will continue to contribute financial and leadership support to the Global Fund as a key partner in the shared global fight against AIDS, TB, and malaria.
Asked by: Sam Tarry (Labour - Ilford South)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps her Department is taking to help ensure a peaceful transfer of power in Sri Lanka following the announcement of President Rajapaksa's resignation.
Answered by Vicky Ford
The UK looks forward to working with Ranil Wickremesinghe following his election as President of Sri Lanka by the Sri Lankan parliament as part of a peaceful transition of power. We continue to call for a peaceful, democratic and inclusive approach to resolving the current political and economic challenges. In his recent call with Prime Minister Gunawardena on 16 August the Minister responsible for South Asia, Lord (Tariq) Ahmad of Wimbledon, called on the Sri Lankan Government to build an inclusive consensus for the reforms necessary to bring Sri Lanka's economy back on a sustainable path. Lord Ahmad also discussed efforts to build a multi-party government with President Wickremesinghe on 23 July. We welcome the Sri Lanka Government's engagement with members of the opposition and we call for the ambitions and hopes of all citizens and communities to be listened to as Sri Lanka builds its future. We continue to engage with members of Sri Lankan civil society to encourage inclusive, peaceful and democratic solutions to Sri Lanka's ongoing challenges.
Asked by: Sam Tarry (Labour - Ilford South)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether her Department is offering aid to families in Sri Lanka affected by the economic situation in that country.
Answered by Vicky Ford
The UK is closely monitoring the political, economic and security situation in Sri Lanka including food security and livelihoods. The UK is providing economic support through multilateral institutions like the International Monetary Fund (IMF), World Bank (WB) and United Nations (UN). The UK has the joint fifth largest shares in the IMF and is a major contributor to the UN and WB. The UK has a significant voice in international debt fora and we are working with other Paris Club members on solutions to Sri Lanka's unsustainable debt levels.
The WB has reprogrammed US $400 million in financial assistance to provide economic and health sector support. We are working to support the UN and its agencies in their coordinated response to the Humanitarian Needs and Priorities (HNP) Plan. This called for US $47.2 million to provide life-saving assistance to 1.7 million people who are most at risk and need immediate support. The UN Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF) has announced US $5 million for an urgent response to the economic crisis in Sri Lanka. The UK is a longstanding partner to the CERF and is the largest overall donor, contributing more than $1.7 billion to the fund since its inception fifteen years ago. We are exploring additional options to respond to Sri Lanka's humanitarian needs.