Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what discussions he has had with his international counterparts on alleged reports of (a) gender-based and (b) conflict-related sexual violence in Sudan.

Answered by Anneliese Dodds - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)

The UK remains committed to tackling gender-based violence, including conflict-related sexual violence (CRSV) in Sudan. From 23-25 January, the Foreign Secretary visited Chad and travelled to the Sudan-Chad border. He spoke directly to Sudanese refugees, including survivors, who shared harrowing stories of sexual violence and torture. The UK has galvanised international efforts on this issue, including through the UN Human Rights Council, Security Council and International Alliance on PSVI. In September, the UK convened an event at the UN General Assembly with Dutch and Swiss partners to draw attention to the situation, spotlight the plight of women and girls and stress the importance of survivor-centred, local and women-led responses. The UK co-led a Resolution at the UNSC with Sierra Leone on the protection of civilians which called on parties to take urgent steps to prevent CRSV and to improve protection and access to services. Despite unanimous support from the Council, the Resolution failed to pass due to a Russian veto. I visited South Sudan from 19-21 August 2024, where I heard first-hand the horrifying experiences of women who fled the war in Sudan.

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps her Department is taking to set national standards on stalking perpetrator programmes.

Answered by Jess Phillips - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)

Stalking is an insidious crime that can leave victims living in fear just going about their daily lives. That is why on 3 December the Government announced six new measures to tackle it and put victims first, making sure they can be protected at the earliest opportunity.

This included a commitment to develop national standards for police-funded stalking perpetrator programmes, which seek to engage with perpetrators to address the root causes of their stalking behaviour.

In developing these, we will take into account relevant learning from the stalking perpetrator programmes funded through the Home Office's Domestic Abuse and Stalking Perpetrator Intervention Fund alongside analysing the international evidence base and input from expert stakeholders.

Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of including shared (a) walking and (b) cycling paths in the National River Walks.

Answered by Mary Creagh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)

We are committed to making the nine new river walks accessible to a wide range of users where it is feasible to do so, so that where possible they can benefit walkers, cyclists and horse riders.

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the Answer of 3 February 2025 to Question 23666 on Cabinet Office: Media, which Ministers received that training.

Answered by Georgia Gould - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)

Information about attendees of the training sessions is not being disclosed to protect individual confidentiality.

Question

To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities, what recent assessment she has made of the adequacy of the (a) resources and (b) legal powers available to the Equality and Human Rights Commission in the context of the introduction of mandatory ethnicity and disability pay gap reporting requirements for large companies.

Answered by Seema Malhotra - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)

As set out in the King’s Speech in July, the government is committed to introducing mandatory ethnicity and disability pay gap reporting for large employers. These measures will be part of the upcoming Equality (Race and Disability) Bill.

We will shortly be consulting on our proposals to help us shape the legislation. This will include considering how the new reporting requirements will be monitored and enforced.

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether he has had discussions with the Soft Power Council on the role of science and research in supporting the UK's diplomatic efforts; and whether the contribution of the science and research sector will be included in the upcoming soft power strategy.

Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)

The membership of the Soft Power Council includes several individuals with expertise spanning science, technology, education and research, in recognition of the importance of these themes to the UK's diplomatic work. As the strategy is developed over the coming months, science and research are among a broader set of sectors that are central to our planning.

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he plans to make clean air a public health priority.

Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)

Improving the environment where we live, work, and play is critical to support everyone to live longer healthier lives. We know that air pollution is one of the greatest environmental risks to public health in the United Kingdom and so tackling it plays a crucial role in the shift from treatment to prevention of ill health.

Leading our Health Mission, the Department of Health and Social Care is working across Government on ways to reduce the health harms of air pollution, including with the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs to support their plans for cleaner air so that everyone’s exposure to air pollution is reduced.

Found: Q11 Uma Kumaran: Is it mostly in the English language?

Found: Griffith (Minister for Equalities) (Llanelli) (Lab) • Alison Hume (Scarborough and Whitby) (Lab) • Uma Kumaran

Found: Valerie Vaz Danny Beales Mr Jonathan Brash Marsha De Cordova Rachael Maskell Sarah Champion Uma Kumaran

Found: Ferguson Daniel Francis Mary Glindon Mr James Frith Mary Kelly Foy Helen Hayes Blair McDougall Uma Kumaran

Found: Shah Daniel Francis Mary Glindon Mr James Frith Mary Kelly Foy Helen Hayes Blair McDougall Uma Kumaran

Found: Shah Daniel Francis Mary Glindon Mr James Frith Mary Kelly Foy Helen Hayes Blair McDougall Uma Kumaran

Found: Shah Daniel Francis Mary Glindon Mr James Frith Mary Kelly Foy Helen Hayes Blair McDougall Uma Kumaran

Found: Shah Daniel Francis Mary Glindon Mr James Frith Mary Kelly Foy Helen Hayes Blair McDougall Uma Kumaran

Found: Shah Daniel Francis Mary Glindon Mr James Frith Mary Kelly Foy Helen Hayes Blair McDougall Uma Kumaran

Found: Griffith (Minister for Equalities) (Llanelli) (Lab) • Alison Hume (Scarborough and Whitby) (Lab) • Uma Kumaran

Found: Mary Glindon Anna Dixon Melanie Ward Marsha De Cordova Laurence Turner Anneliese Midgley Uma Kumaran

Found: Mary Glindon Anna Dixon Melanie Ward Marsha De Cordova Laurence Turner Anneliese Midgley Uma Kumaran

Found: Mary Glindon Anna Dixon Melanie Ward Marsha De Cordova Laurence Turner Anneliese Midgley Uma Kumaran

Found: Mary Glindon Anna Dixon Melanie Ward Marsha De Cordova Laurence Turner Anneliese Midgley Uma Kumaran

Found: Mary Glindon Anna Dixon Melanie Ward Marsha De Cordova Laurence Turner Anneliese Midgley Uma Kumaran

Found: Mary Glindon Anna Dixon Melanie Ward Marsha De Cordova Laurence Turner Anneliese Midgley Uma Kumaran

Found: Mary Glindon Anna Dixon Melanie Ward Marsha De Cordova Laurence Turner Anneliese Midgley Uma Kumaran

Found: Mary Glindon Anna Dixon Melanie Ward Marsha De Cordova Laurence Turner Anneliese Midgley Uma Kumaran

Found: Mary Glindon Anna Dixon Melanie Ward Marsha De Cordova Laurence Turner Anneliese Midgley Uma Kumaran

Found: Mary Glindon Anna Dixon Melanie Ward Marsha De Cordova Laurence Turner Anneliese Midgley Uma Kumaran

Found: Mary Glindon Anna Dixon Melanie Ward Marsha De Cordova Laurence Turner Anneliese Midgley Uma Kumaran

Found: Daniel Francis Anna Dixon Melanie Ward Marsha De Cordova Laurence Turner Anneliese Midgley Uma Kumaran

Found: Daniel Francis Anna Dixon Melanie Ward Marsha De Cordova Laurence Turner Anneliese Midgley Uma Kumaran

Found: Daniel Francis Anna Dixon Melanie Ward Marsha De Cordova Laurence Turner Anneliese Midgley Uma Kumaran

The Foreign Affairs Committee is conducting an inquiry into the Government’s proposed reset of the UK-EU relationship. The inquiry will consider all facets of the reset, across the three “pillars” articulated by the Government (security, safety and prosperity) with a particular focus on how the reset process can be engaged to ensure the UK-EU partnership is able to respond to the challenging international context and the shared strategic challenges that the UK and EU face. The Committee will also consider the role of the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office in shaping and managing that relationship.

Submit Evidence (by 18 Apr 2025)

This inquiry considers how effectively the UK uses its position at the UNSC (United Nations Security Council) to influence and bring about an end to global conflict, whilst advancing its goals for a rules-based international order. It will focus on countries for which the UK is a ‘Penholder’ at the UN. This includes (but is not limited to) Libya, Myanmar, Somalia, Sudan and Yemen. The inquiry asks how the UK, as Penholder for these countries, has sought to reduce conflict and instability, and considers practices that have brought about previous successes, drawing upon lessons learned. It also asks how this position may be used more effectively. In its assessment of the UNSC, this inquiry examines the extent to which the Security Council is an effective tool to further conflict resolution, and considers how increasing polarisation on the Security Council may hinder this objective. Finally, this inquiry assesses the relationship between the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) and the UK’s representation at the UN.