Asked by: Tulip Siddiq (Labour - Hampstead and Kilburn)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, how many trials of British citizens in Iran’s Revolutionary Courts have been attended by British officials since 2016; and what assessment she has made of how that figure compares with attendees from other European states.
Answered by James Cleverly - Home Secretary
Since the reopening of the UK Embassy in Tehran in 2015, despite multiple requests, officials have not been granted access by the Iranian Authorities to visit detained dual British nationals or to attend their trials. Iran does not recognise dual nationality nor grant consular access to our dual national detainees. We have repeatedly pressed, and will continue to press, for consular access and appropriate medical care. The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office provides a range of assistance to British nationals detained in Iran and their families. We regularly lobby the Iranians on health concerns and mistreatment allegations - and for the immediate and permanent release of all unfairly detained dual British nationals in Iran.
Asked by: Tulip Siddiq (Labour - Hampstead and Kilburn)
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 Government's obligations under the Convention Against Torture in respect of the treatment of Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe by the Iranian authorities.
Answered by James Cleverly - Home Secretary
We remain committed to securing the immediate and permanent release of unfairly detained British nationals in Iran, including Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe. The Foreign Secretary continues to raise Iran's practice of detaining British dual nationals with her Iranian counterpart, Foreign Minister Amir-Abdolahian and, and I [Minister Cleverly] most recently raised with Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Baqeri Kani on 11 November. Our Ambassador in Tehran continues to raise these cases with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, most recently on 8 March.
Asked by: Tulip Siddiq (Labour - Hampstead and Kilburn)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what specific steps her Department has taken since her appointment to follow up with the Iranian authorities on the allegations of torture raised in the case of Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe.
Answered by James Cleverly - Home Secretary
We remain committed to securing the immediate and permanent release of unfairly detained British nationals in Iran, including Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe. The Foreign Secretary continues to raise Iran's practice of detaining British dual nationals with her Iranian counterpart, Foreign Minister Amir-Abdolahian and, and I [Minister Cleverly] most recently raised with Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Baqeri Kani on 11 November. Our Ambassador in Tehran continues to raise these cases with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, most recently on 8 March.
Asked by: Tulip Siddiq (Labour - Hampstead and Kilburn)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what her policy is on whether Iran's treatment of Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe constitutes torture.
Answered by James Cleverly - Home Secretary
We remain committed to securing the immediate and permanent release of unfairly detained British nationals in Iran, including Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe. The Foreign Secretary continues to raise Iran's practice of detaining British dual nationals with her Iranian counterpart, Foreign Minister Amir-Abdolahian and, and I [Minister Cleverly] most recently raised with Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Baqeri Kani on 11 November. Our Ambassador in Tehran continues to raise these cases with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, most recently on 8 March.
Asked by: Tulip Siddiq (Labour - Hampstead and Kilburn)
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 her Ethiopian counterpart on the observance of international laws and human rights in that country.
Answered by Vicky Ford
We are extremely concerned by reports of widespread human rights violations and abuses in Ethiopia committed by all sides to the conflict. The Foreign Secretary spoke to Deputy Prime Minister Demeke on 5 November. Our Ambassador in Addis Ababa spoke to Prime Minister Abiy on 28 October. I spoke at a Westminster Hall Debate on 3 November and highlighted the horrific scale and nature of human rights abuses against civilians reported following the joint investigation by the Ethiopian Human Rights Commission and the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights. I raised our concerns about ethnic profiling and detentions with Ethiopian State Minister Redwan on 18 November and the Ethiopian Minister of Justice, Gedion, on 6 December. I have continued to emphasise the need for a ceasefire through recent calls with my international counterparts, including Kenya and the African Union.
All those responsible for human rights violations and abuses should be held to account. I encourage all parties to implement the joint investigation's recommendations and ensure that victims have access to support. Our Ambassador in Addis Ababa and I continue to raise human rights issues in our discussions with all parties to the conflict, and more broadly we have reminded all warring parties of their obligations under international humanitarian law and international human rights law. Our priority is to ensure that Ethiopians, irrespective of ethnicity, religion and political affiliation, receive life-saving aid and that humanitarian access to areas affected by conflict and insecurity is restored.
Asked by: Tulip Siddiq (Labour - Hampstead and Kilburn)
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 of reductions to the aid budget on global levels of child malnutrition; and what steps she is taking to tackle child malnutrition around the world.
Answered by Wendy Morton
Due to the seismic impact of the pandemic on the UK economy, the Government has taken tough but necessary decisions, including the temporary reduction in the aid budget from 0.7% to 0.5% of national income.
Tackling malnutrition remains a core focus of our work delivering the objectives of the Integrated Review and the Foreign Secretary's priorities on global health, humanitarian response and in support of UK goals on girls' education and climate. It is critical for reducing preventable deaths and ensuring children get the best start in life in the poorest countries of the world. We are taking a number of steps to increase the impact of aid spending on nutrition and food systems, including the promotion of nutrition objectives in other sectors.