Oral Answers to Questions

Seema Malhotra Excerpts

Tuesday 2nd December 2025 Commons Chamber

[Mike Reader (Northampton South) (Lab)]

3. What diplomatic steps she is taking with international partners to help tackle modern slavery and unethical labour practices in global supply chains.

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs (Seema Malhotra)]

Modern slavery refers to horrific situations in which individuals are exploited through coercion, threats, deception, forced labour and human trafficking. We are determined collectively to do all we can to end it. That is why we work through a range of multilateral bodies, such as the United Nations, the G7 and the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe, to prevent exploitation and eradicate all forms of modern slavery. We convened international partners earlier this year to agree how we can work better together to address modern slavery in global supply chains and a guiding set of principles for doing so.

[Mike Reader]

As the chair of the international trade and investment all-party parliamentary group, I have heard at first hand how new technology is making it easier to track supply-chain risks. What is the Minister doing to support better monitoring and data sharing with our international partners to ensure that we can identify forced labour use at source in countries that support the UK economy?

[Seema Malhotra]

My hon. Friend is right to raise that issue. We are clear that no company in the UK should have forced labour in its supply chain. We work with our partners to promote the role that new technologies can play in reducing forced labour risks in supply chains. That includes developing an interactive tool to identify child labour risks in agricultural commodity supply chains, using satellite data to improve working conditions in south Asia’s brick industry, and creating AI-powered chatbots that can provide vulnerable workers with rights-based guidance.

[Mr Gregory Campbell (East Londonderry) (DUP)]

Will the Minister have discussions with some of the large retail chains in which we often see occasions of misuse of labour in overseas territories, particularly in Africa and the far east?

[Seema Malhotra]

I thank the hon. Member for raising that issue. He will be aware that we believe that no company in the UK should have forced labour in its supply chain. He may also be aware that in the trade strategy, the Government launched a review of their approach to responsible business conduct policy. It is important that we continue to work together to ensure that we eradicate modern slavery from any of our supply chains.

[Sarah Dyke (Glastonbury and Somerton) (LD)]

4. What assessment she has made of the potential implications for her policies of US foreign policy on Ukraine.

--- Later in debate ---

[Zöe Franklin (Guildford) (LD)]

10. What assessment she has made of recent trends in levels of human rights violations in Hong Kong.

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs (Seema Malhotra)]

The continued erosion of democratic rights and freedoms in Hong Kong is a matter that is deeply concerning to the whole House. In October the Foreign Secretary submitted the Government’s latest six-monthly report on Hong Kong, which details how national security legislation is diminishing Hong Kong’s political autonomy. We will continue to champion the rights and freedoms of the people of Hong Kong, including through our British national overseas visa route and by raising human rights issues at every opportunity.

[Zöe Franklin]

Given the marked deterioration of civil liberties and democratic freedoms in Hong Kong since the introduction of the national security law, can the Minister outline what specific steps the Government are taking to support those affected by these abuses, both in the UK and abroad? Many of my constituents are Hong Kong nationals who have made their home here through the BNO route, and they remain deeply worried about family members who are still in Hong Kong.

[Seema Malhotra]

We will not tolerate any attempts by foreign Governments to coerce, intimidate, harass or harm their critics in the UK or overseas. UK Ministers have raised directly with Hong Kong and Chinese officials our concerns about what is happening in Hong Kong, and we will continue to do so. Such actions are also damaging to Hong Kong’s reputation as an open and international city.

[Dr Al Pinkerton (Surrey Heath) (LD)]

12. What discussions she has had with Cabinet colleagues on strengthening the UK’s relationship with the EU.

--- Later in debate ---

[David Williams (Stoke-on-Trent North) (Lab)]

13. What steps her Department is taking to help improve the humanitarian situation in Jammu and Kashmir.

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs (Seema Malhotra)]

The UK does not currently deliver direct humanitarian assistance in Pakistan-administered Kashmir or India-administered Kashmir, but we continue to monitor the humanitarian situation, as we do elsewhere in the region.

[David Williams]

Stoke-on-Trent is home to one of the largest Kashmiri communities in the UK, and many of my constituents are deeply worried by the continuing restrictions on civil liberties, arbitrary detentions and the ongoing denial of meaningful political determination in Jammu and Kashmir. Will the Minister please set out what specific human rights and self-determination concerns the UK has raised with the Indian Government, and what tangible progress my constituents can expect the Government to press for?

[Seema Malhotra]

We strongly support individuals’ rights to freedom of assembly and expression, and peaceful political protest. We have consistently emphasised that any human rights violations should be fully investigated in line with international human rights law. We continue to monitor human rights issues and, where we have concerns, raise those with the Government of India.

[Jim Shannon (Strangford) (DUP)]

There are repeated claims by community leaders and religious freedom groups that Christians in Kashmir face harassment, social pressure, threats, discrimination, surveillance and sometimes violence. What steps is the Minister taking in conjunction with her international counterparts to support the promotion of faith—especially Christianity—in Kashmir?

[Seema Malhotra]

We will always continue to champion freedom of religion or belief across the world. The hon. Member will know that we consistently raise any human rights violations with Governments across the world, and will continue to do so.

[Mr Toby Perkins (Chesterfield) (Lab)]

T1. If she will make a statement on her departmental responsibilities.

--- Later in debate ---

[Mrs Sureena Brackenridge (Wolverhampton North East) (Lab)]

T2. The freedom to practise a faith or not is a fundamental human right. I welcome the Government’s commitment to promoting that for Christians and other religious communities through the appointment of the UK special envoy for freedom of religion or belief. Will the Minister explain how the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office continues to use its diplomatic networks and international partnerships to support all faith and non-faith communities worldwide?

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs (Seema Malhotra)]

My hon. Friend is right. In line with our strategy, launched this year, we continue to champion every community’s right to worship, or not, without fear or discrimination. Our special envoy works with partners and alongside our diplomatic network to protect that right via multilateral fora and through targeted interventions in key countries to uphold the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion.

[Greg Smith (Mid Buckinghamshire) (Con)]

T3. Australia has listed Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps as a state sponsor of terrorism. What discussions have Ministers had with their Australian counterparts about matching that important action against terror at home and abroad?

--- Later in debate ---

[Dr Beccy Cooper (Worthing West) (Lab)]

T9. We know that our official development assistance budget is currently reduced to allow for defence investment, but given the continuing need to improve global health, not least to guarantee our own health and security, will the Minister meet me and other concerned colleagues to discuss how best to continue to protect lifesaving health programmes and the work with women and girls that she has rightly prioritised?

[Seema Malhotra]

I would be very happy to meet my hon. Friend. The UK will continue to centre women and girls in everything that we do internationally, from our diplomacy to our development work. We will mainstream gender across the Department’s work to ensure that we deliver maximum impact. We are retaining our ODA target for gender equality, and we will share an update on further measures to strengthen our approach to mainstreaming in due course.

[Caroline Voaden (South Devon) (LD)]

Prior to last week’s talks with leaders of the British overseas territories, concerning reports suggested that the Government were planning to cave in to pressure from the British Virgin Islands, the epicentre of billions of pounds of tax evasion, and allow it to restrict public access to a register of company share ownership. Will the Secretary of State inform the House of the outcome of last week’s talks and reassure the British public that the Government will force British overseas territories to comply with the law and make these registers publicly available?

--- Later in debate ---

[Robin Swann (South Antrim) (UUP)]

In an earlier answer, the Foreign Secretary said that trade relations between China and the UK were “in our national interest”. To that extent, can I ask what conversations her Department had with Invest Northern Ireland prior to its signing a co-operation framework memorandum of understanding with the China Chamber of Commerce in the UK?

[Seema Malhotra]

This Government support UK businesses to do business with China while being open-eyed to any risks.

[Richard Burgon (Leeds East) (Lab)]

On Donald Trump’s threats of military action against oil-rich Venezuela, reports suggest that British military personnel are aboard the US warships heading towards Venezuela. Will the Foreign Secretary therefore make it clear that Britain will have no involvement at all, including through troops on US warships, in any Trump-led military intervention there?

[Dr Ben Spencer (Runnymede and Weybridge) (Con)]

The Elections Act 2022 expanded the franchise to over 3 million British nationals living overseas. As MPs, we have a duty to represent those who have lived in our constituencies, but we do not know who they are or where they are. How can our embassies help?

[Seema Malhotra]

The Foreign Secretary works closely with Cabinet colleagues on many issues, including overseas voter registration. We encourage all British nationals to register as overseas voters if they move or live abroad, and that has been the approach of successive Governments. We keep gov.uk under constant review, and British nationals abroad can contact their local embassy or high commission for further information.

[Debbie Abrahams (Oldham East and Saddleworth) (Lab)]

Parliamentarians for Peace was set up in 2023 in the aftermath of the terror attack in Israel and the killings of innocent Gazan civilians. On International Human Rights Day next Wednesday, will the Foreign Secretary, her team and everyone here join us for the Parliamentarians for Peace vigil that we will be hosting?