Asked by: Wendy Chamberlain (Liberal Democrat - North East Fife)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, what recent representations he has made to his Afghan counterpart on the treatment of women and girls in that country. .
Answered by Anne-Marie Trevelyan - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Ministers do not engage with the Taliban. Officials from the UK Mission to Afghanistan regularly press Taliban acting ministers to reverse their harmful policies on women and girls. In January, FCDO officials raised the treatment of women and girls with Taliban acting ministers during a visit to Kabul.
We have repeatedly condemned the Taliban's edicts that restrict the rights of women and girls, including through the UN Security Council, Human Rights Council resolutions and public statements. We will continue to work with the international community, including during UN led talks this month, to press the Taliban to reverse course.
Asked by: Wendy Chamberlain (Liberal Democrat - North East Fife)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, if he will make representations to his Eritrean counterpart for the release of religious detainees.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
We consistently raise the need to improve the human rights situation with the Eritrean Government. We advocate for national service reform and the end of arbitrary detentions, including detentions based on religion or belief. Eritrea is a priority country in the FCDO Annual Human Rights Report and we support the work of the UN Special Rapporteur on Human Rights in Eritrea, voting in favour of his mandate renewal in July 2023. As we have stated at the Human Rights Council, all those who have been unjustly incarcerated must be released.
Asked by: Wendy Chamberlain (Liberal Democrat - North East Fife)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, what recent assessment he has made of the human rights situation in Eritrea.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
We consistently raise the need to improve the human rights situation with the Eritrean Government. We advocate for national service reform and the end of arbitrary detentions, including detentions based on religion or belief. Eritrea is a priority country in the FCDO Annual Human Rights Report and we support the work of the UN Special Rapporteur on Human Rights in Eritrea, voting in favour of his mandate renewal in July 2023. As we have stated at the Human Rights Council, all those who have been unjustly incarcerated must be released.
Asked by: Wendy Chamberlain (Liberal Democrat - North East Fife)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of relocation of operations from Abercrombie House on retention of staff within his Department.
Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
All staff working in the FCDO will be supported through the change, with communications and engagement at the heart of our workplans. The FCDO already provides hybrid and flexible working policies to support staff to fully contribute to their work with the FCDO and wider Civil Service.
Asked by: Wendy Chamberlain (Liberal Democrat - North East Fife)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, what proportion of his Department's staff at Abercrombie House in East Kilbride work on development issues.
Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Development issues are a core part of FCDO work, so many roles in all locations involve work on development issues. The FCDO does not distinguish between development and non-development roles in its data.
Asked by: Wendy Chamberlain (Liberal Democrat - North East Fife)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether his Department is taking steps with international donors to support work by local NGOs in Afghanistan on advancing the rights of women and girls.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
The UK condemns the Taliban's restrictions on Afghan women and girls. We continue to support girls' education in Afghanistan through bilateral and multilateral contributions to NGOs, UN partners and multilateral funds, and we are supporting Afghanistan civil society and women-led organisations through our contribution to the Afghanistan Resilience Trust Fund.
FCDO officials and ministers regularly engage with women-led organisations in Afghanistan, including local and international NGOs and UN Women. On June 27, Lord (Tariq) Ahmad of Wimbledon, Minister for South Asia, hosted a meeting of Afghan women leaders to discuss the impact of the restrictions, as well as the inclusion of Afghan women in the future political process.
Asked by: Wendy Chamberlain (Liberal Democrat - North East Fife)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent estimate his Department has made of the number of people who are eligible for resettlement under pathway three of the Afghan Citizens Resettlement Scheme; what steps he is taking to contact outstanding individuals assessed as being eligible in principle; and if he will reopen the process for Expressions of Interest from other eligible individuals.
Answered by Leo Docherty - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for the Armed Forces)
Under the first stage of ACRS Pathway 3 the FCDO received over 11,450 expressions of interest (EOIs). Each has been assessed against the eligibility criteria and the FCDO has communicated an outcome to all individuals who expressed an interest. We have informed over 380 individuals that they are eligible in principle for resettlement, subject to passing security checks. With their dependents, we have notified over 1800 individuals that they are eligible in principle.
We have no plans to reopen the EOI window for the first stage of ACRS Pathway 3. In the second stage of Pathway 3, the UK government will work with international partners and NGOs to welcome wider groups of Afghans at risk. We are not able to open for referrals at this present time. Our immediate focus is ensuring the resettlement of those eligible in the first stage of Pathway 3, which includes individuals who directly supported the UK and international community's efforts in Afghanistan.
Asked by: Wendy Chamberlain (Liberal Democrat - North East Fife)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to help increase access to Human papillomavirus infection vaccinations globally.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
The UK Government acknowledges the importance of Human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccinations in preventing deaths from cervical cancer. As the largest donor to Gavi's core mission contributing £1.65 billion to the Global Vaccine Alliance's (Gavi) 2021-2025 strategic period, the UK supports Gavi's efforts to accelerate the introduction, access and coverage of the vaccine in low- or middle-income countries (LMICs) with the aim of immunising 86 million more girls by 2025. Alongside our Gavi investment, we are committed to working with countries and with the wider international community to focus efforts on building stronger primary health systems for the future as a core part of increasing access to immunisation services around the world.
Asked by: Wendy Chamberlain (Liberal Democrat - North East Fife)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (RAAC) has been found within their Department's estate.
Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
For now, the focus is on bringing together the information we hold about the Government estate into one place. This work is being coordinated by the Office for Government Property. Survey work is underway.
Asked by: Wendy Chamberlain (Liberal Democrat - North East Fife)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, on how many occasions a request for a meeting by an hon. Member was not agreed to by (a) a Minister and (b) their office on behalf of a Minister in the last 12 months.
Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
This information is not centrally collated and could only be obtained at disproportionate cost. Ministers will regularly seek to engage with hon. Members, whilst balancing wider Ministerial and Parliamentary responsibilities.