Asked by: Stella Creasy (Labour (Co-op) - Walthamstow)
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 number of civilians killed in the Ethiopian and Eritrean offensive in the Tigray region since September 1 2022.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
Information on casualties from the conflict in northern Ethiopia is scarce. Since the resumption of fighting on 24 August it is likely that there have been thousands of casualties.
The UK welcomes the peace agreement and cessation of hostilities announced on 2 November between the Ethiopian Government and the Tigray People's Liberation Front (TPLF), and their commitment to scale-up the delivery of life-saving aid to Tigray. The UK calls upon the Eritrean Government to support the agreement by withdrawing its troops from Ethiopia.
Asked by: Stella Creasy (Labour (Co-op) - Walthamstow)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, with reference to the Statement on freedom of religion or belief and gender equality, what (a) meetings, (b) discussions or (c) correspondence she had with Ministerial colleagues on the decision to remove reference to reproductive healthcare from the statement.
Answered by Vicky Ford
The UK is committed to defending and promoting universal and comprehensive sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR) and will continue working with other countries to protect gender equality in international agreements. In our capacity as Chair of the event, we amended the statement we made at the Freedom of Religion or Belief Conference to make the final statement more inclusive of all perspectives and views to allow for a constructive exchange of views on all issues. The UK continues to fund support and lead on issues of gender including on SRHR, through initiatives related to Women, Peace and Security and Preventing Sexual Violence in Conflict.
Asked by: Stella Creasy (Labour (Co-op) - Walthamstow)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, with reference to the Statement on freedom of religion or belief and gender equality, whether her Department carried out a public consultation prior to removing reference to reproductive healthcare from the statement.
Answered by Vicky Ford
The UK is committed to defending and promoting universal and comprehensive sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR) and will continue working with other countries to protect gender equality in international agreements. In our capacity as Chair of the event, we amended the statement we made at the Freedom of Religion or Belief Conference to make the final statement more inclusive of all perspectives and views to allow for a constructive exchange of views on all issues. The UK continues to fund support and lead on issues of gender including on SRHR, through initiatives related to Women, Peace and Security and Preventing Sexual Violence in Conflict.
Asked by: Stella Creasy (Labour (Co-op) - Walthamstow)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, if she will publish the legal advice provided to her Department relating to her proposals on the Northern Ireland Protocol and the compatibility with the provisions in section 38 of the EU (Withdrawal Agreement) Act 2020 and Article 4 of the Withdrawal Agreement.
Answered by James Cleverly - Home Secretary
It is a longstanding convention for governments of all parties not to comment on the fact or contents of government legal advice. As the Foreign Secretary set out in the house on 17 May, we are very clear that this is legal in international law. We believe bringing forward further legislation on this issue to be urgent and essential to protecting the Belfast (Good Friday) Agreement.
Asked by: Stella Creasy (Labour (Co-op) - Walthamstow)
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 potential effect on the human rights of women throughout the world of any change to the Roe vs Wade ruling on abortion.
Answered by Vicky Ford
I understand this is a leaked document rather than an official decision, but this is a matter for the US courts. It would not be appropriate for a foreign government to lobby the independent court process. In general, the UK supports women's reproductive rights globally, including the right to access safe and legal abortion.
Asked by: Stella Creasy (Labour (Co-op) - Walthamstow)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what data her Department holds on how many UK citizens have (a) applied for and (b) been granted Class C visas in order to visit an EU country since January 2021; and how many of those citizens subsequently overstayed the time limit of those visas.
Answered by James Cleverly - Home Secretary
The EU has legislated such that British citizens do not need a visa when travelling to and within the Schengen Area for short stays of up to 90 days in any 180-day period. This applies to all British citizens travelling to and within the Schengen Area for activities including attending cultural or sports events and tourism.
The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office does not hold information centrally on the numbers of British citizens who have applied for or been granted Schengen visas or how many have overstayed the term of their visa when visiting a Schengen State.
Asked by: Stella Creasy (Labour (Co-op) - Walthamstow)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what mechanisms her Department has in place to monitor the number of UK citizens overstaying the term of their visa when visiting an EU country.
Answered by James Cleverly - Home Secretary
The EU has legislated such that British citizens do not need a visa when travelling to and within the Schengen Area for short stays of up to 90 days in any 180-day period. This applies to all British citizens travelling to and within the Schengen Area for activities including attending cultural or sports events and tourism.
The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office does not hold information centrally on the numbers of British citizens who have applied for or been granted Schengen visas or how many have overstayed the term of their visa when visiting a Schengen State.
Asked by: Stella Creasy (Labour (Co-op) - Walthamstow)
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 progress of the UN Working Group on Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances in Sri Lanka.
Answered by Amanda Milling - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
A very high number of cases relating to Sri Lanka remain under consideration by the UN Working Group on Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances, including at the Working Group's most recent session in September 2021. We note the Working Group's concerns about Sri Lanka raised in its report of 4 August 2021, including the need for the Sri Lankan authorities to stop rolling back the progress made in recent years in ensuring accountability for past crimes and justice for victims.
UN Human Rights Council resolution 46/1, led by the UK along with our partners in the Core Group on Sri Lanka, stresses the importance of the Government of Sri Lanka maintaining support for the Office on Missing Persons and the Office for Reparations, safeguarding their independent and effective functioning, and resolving the many cases of enforced disappearances so that the families of disappeared persons can know their fate and whereabouts. We will continue to engage with the Government of Sri Lanka on this important issue.
Asked by: Stella Creasy (Labour (Co-op) - Walthamstow)
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 support the Tamil population of Sri Lanka.
Answered by Amanda Milling - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
The UK Government has long called for the rights of Sri Lankans from all communities to be respected. The Minister for South Asia, Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon, has raised the importance of inclusive engagement with all communities in Sri Lanka in his discussions with Sri Lankan Foreign Minister G.L. Peiris, most recently on 24 September. We continue to urge the Government of Sri Lanka to uphold the rights of all of Sri Lanka's communities.
In March 2021 the UN Human Rights Council adopted a new UK-led resolution, 46/1, on promoting reconciliation, accountability and human rights in Sri Lanka. The resolution provides a continued framework for international engagement on human rights in Sri Lanka. 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 also calls on the Government of Sri Lanka to fulfil its commitments on the devolution of political authority, which is integral to reconciliation and the full enjoyment of human rights by all members of its population. It encourages the Government to respect local governance, including through the holding of elections for provincial councils, and to ensure that all provincial councils, including the Northern and Eastern Provincial Councils, are able to operate effectively, in accordance with the thirteenth amendment to the Constitution of Sri Lanka. Through UK-funded programmes, we have supported a number of activities to benefit those in the north and east of the country, including demining, resettlement of internally displaced persons and interfaith dialogue.
Asked by: Stella Creasy (Labour (Co-op) - Walthamstow)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent discussions she has had with his Sri Lankan counterpart on engagement between the Government of that country and Tamil leaders.
Answered by Amanda Milling - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
The UK Government has long called for the rights of Sri Lankans from all communities to be respected. The Minister for South Asia, Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon, has raised the importance of inclusive engagement with all communities in Sri Lanka in his discussions with Sri Lankan Foreign Minister G.L. Peiris, most recently on 24 September. We continue to urge the Government of Sri Lanka to uphold the rights of all of Sri Lanka's communities.
In March 2021 the UN Human Rights Council adopted a new UK-led resolution, 46/1, on promoting reconciliation, accountability and human rights in Sri Lanka. The resolution provides a continued framework for international engagement on human rights in Sri Lanka. 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 also calls on the Government of Sri Lanka to fulfil its commitments on the devolution of political authority, which is integral to reconciliation and the full enjoyment of human rights by all members of its population. It encourages the Government to respect local governance, including through the holding of elections for provincial councils, and to ensure that all provincial councils, including the Northern and Eastern Provincial Councils, are able to operate effectively, in accordance with the thirteenth amendment to the Constitution of Sri Lanka. Through UK-funded programmes, we have supported a number of activities to benefit those in the north and east of the country, including demining, resettlement of internally displaced persons and interfaith dialogue.