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, with reference to the Written Statement of 17 June 2025 on Afghanistan HCWS703, if he will publish a list of people he is referring to when stating that his Department speaks "directly with Afghans and civil society to inform our policy and programming".
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
To maintain the privacy and security of the people with whom we engage, including those based in Afghanistan, the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office will not be publishing a list of Afghan and civil society contacts. Ministers and officials will continue to engage regularly with a diverse range of Afghans and civil society contacts.
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 the (a) Special Envoy to Afghanistan and (b) Afghanistan department will be located within the Whitehall premises of the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The Special Envoy to Afghanistan and the Afghanistan department operate from the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office's headquarters in the UK. This arrangement ensures the UK can continue to engage effectively on Afghanistan policy, including with a broad range of Afghan stakeholders, while maintaining flexibility in how and where that engagement takes place.
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, if he will publish the expected advisory arrangements to the Special Envoy for Afghanistan.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK Mission to Afghanistan in Doha closed on 30 June 2025. Mr Richard Lindsay was appointed as Special Envoy to Afghanistan on 17 June. He will lead a new Afghanistan department from the UK, taking on the duties of the current Chargé d'Affaires. These changes will not affect our resolve to support the people of Afghanistan, which is unwavering.
This new model will allow the UK to actively engage with a broader range of Afghans. The Special Envoy will engage the Taliban on UK priorities including counter terrorism, human rights, and humanitarian access; support intra-Afghan dialogue; engage women, religious and ethnic minorities who suffer at the hands of the Taliban; and work with regional countries on shared priorities.
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 undertakes Child Rights Impact Assessments for international development policies.
Answered by Stephen Doughty - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
As a ratifier of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child, the UK is committed to safeguarding and promoting the rights and wellbeing of children. The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) does not undertake mandatory Child Rights Impact Assessments, but it is FCDO policy to consider the Public Sector Equality Duty (PSED), which includes age, and Safeguarding responsibilities across our policies and investments.
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 stop the escalation of violence in Juba, Sudan.
Answered by Anneliese Dodds
On 16 and 17 January, violent protests and looting of Sudanese businesses took place in Juba and across South Sudan. Security forces rapidly managed to restore calm but around 10,000 people were displaced and an unknown number killed. The protests were triggered by reports (including footage circulated on social media) of South Sudanese civilians being killed by allied militias of the Sudanese Armed Forces in Wad Madani, Sudan. Working with partners, the Foreign Secretary is determined to re-energise a political process on ending the Sudan conflict, protecting civilians, and getting aid to where it is most needed. The UK has also raised the importance of ensuring the protection of all civilians with the transitional government of South Sudan. This includes my visit to South Sudan in August 2024 where I pressed the South Sudanese Government to make progress towards peaceful, credible and inclusive elections, emphasising the need for political dialogue to ensure peace and stability.
Asked by: Wendy Chamberlain (Liberal Democrat - North East Fife)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Deputy Foreign Secretary, what steps his Department is taking with international partners to (a) increase childhood immunisation rates, (b) make vaccine access more equitable and (c) support Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell
The COVID-19 pandemic dramatically impacted global health and immunisation. The UK Government is supporting efforts to get routine immunisation back on track and has committed £1.65 billion to Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, from 2021-2025 to support their mission to immunise 300 million children and save up to 8 million lives from vaccine preventable diseases over this period. The UK has supported Gavi since its inception in 2000, during which time Gavi has vaccinated more than 1 billion children in 78 lower-income countries, saving over 17 million lives. Alongside our Gavi investment, we are working with countries to build stronger primary health care systems as a core part of restoring immunisation services.
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
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
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
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
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.