Asked by: Anneliese Dodds (Labour (Co-op) - Oxford East)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what representations her Department has made to the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) on humanitarian access to detainees from El Fasher, Sudan.
Answered by Chris Elmore - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
I refer the Rt Hon Member to the statement made to the House by the Foreign Secretary on 18 November 2025, and to the most recent Urgent Question debate on 15 December 2025. The UK Government is working intensively with our international partners in an effort to end the violence in Sudan, secure humanitarian relief for the millions in need, and deliver justice for the victims of atrocities committed in this conflict. We will continue to keep the House updated on the latest developments, as we have done in recent months, including on critical issues such as the protection of civilians that the Rt Hon Member has raised.
Asked by: Anneliese Dodds (Labour (Co-op) - Oxford East)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps she is taking to help protect civilians in Geizira state in Sudan.
Answered by Chris Elmore - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
I refer the Rt Hon Member to the statement made to the House by the Foreign Secretary on 18 November 2025, and to the most recent Urgent Question debate on 15 December 2025. The UK Government is working intensively with our international partners in an effort to end the violence in Sudan, secure humanitarian relief for the millions in need, and deliver justice for the victims of atrocities committed in this conflict. We will continue to keep the House updated on the latest developments, as we have done in recent months, including on critical issues such as the protection of civilians that the Rt Hon Member has raised.
Asked by: Jack Rankin (Conservative - Windsor)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, with reference to his Department's consultation entitled Make Work Pay: Right of Trade Unions to Access Workplaces, published on 23 October 2025, what discussions he has had with business organisations about the raising of the threshold to exempt SMEs with a headcount less than 250 employees.
Answered by Kate Dearden - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
As part of the consultation process, we engaged with business organisations and unions on proposals put forward in the public consultation, including the proposed exemption from statutory access provisions for employers of a certain size. We are carefully reviewing all responses to this consultation and will publish a formal response in due course.
Asked by: Priti Patel (Conservative - Witham)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, with reference to the letter of 14 January 2025 from the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs and the Secretary of State for the Home Department to the Planning Inspectorate on the Chinese Embassy planning application, whether she had seen plans for the basement before sending that letter.
Answered by Seema Malhotra - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
An independent planning decision has been made by the Secretary of State for Housing Communities and Local Government. I can assure the Rt Hon Member that both the Home Office and the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office have considered the full breadth of national security issues in relation to the proposed new Embassy.
Asked by: Kevin Hollinrake (Conservative - Thirsk and Malton)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the answer of 26 November 2025 to Question 84665 on DEFRA: Secondment, whether a business case was made for seconding the Second Permanent Secretary; and who is undertaking that role in the interim.
Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The secondment was arranged and undertaken in accordance with Defra’s standard secondment approach. There are no interim arrangements in place to cover the role of Second Permanent Secretary. Responsibilities previously held by the Second Permanent Secretary have been shared across other portfolios.
Asked by: Anneliese Dodds (Labour (Co-op) - Oxford East)
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 implications for her policies of the report by the Lighthouse Reports on Gezira state in Sudan, published 16 December 2025.
Answered by Chris Elmore - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
I refer the Rt Hon Member to the statement made to the House by the Foreign Secretary on 18 November 2025, and to the most recent Urgent Question debate on 15 December 2025. The UK Government is working intensively with our international partners in an effort to end the violence in Sudan, secure humanitarian relief for the millions in need, and deliver justice for the victims of atrocities committed in this conflict. We will continue to keep the House updated on the latest developments, as we have done in recent months, including on critical issues such as the protection of civilians that the Rt Hon Member has raised.
Asked by: Anneliese Dodds (Labour (Co-op) - Oxford East)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether she is taking steps with international counterparts to bring those responsible for crimes in Gezeira state in Sudan to justice.
Answered by Chris Elmore - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
I refer the Rt Hon Member to the statement made to the House by the Foreign Secretary on 18 November 2025, and to the most recent Urgent Question debate on 15 December 2025. The UK Government is working intensively with our international partners in an effort to end the violence in Sudan, secure humanitarian relief for the millions in need, and deliver justice for the victims of atrocities committed in this conflict. We will continue to keep the House updated on the latest developments, as we have done in recent months, including on critical issues such as the protection of civilians that the Rt Hon Member has raised.
Asked by: Anneliese Dodds (Labour (Co-op) - Oxford East)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps she is taking to help protect civilians travelling from El Fasher to Tawila in Sudan.
Answered by Chris Elmore - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
I refer the Rt Hon Member to the statement made to the House by the Foreign Secretary on 18 November 2025, and to the most recent Urgent Question debate on 15 December 2025. The UK Government is working intensively with our international partners in an effort to end the violence in Sudan, secure humanitarian relief for the millions in need, and deliver justice for the victims of atrocities committed in this conflict. We will continue to keep the House updated on the latest developments, as we have done in recent months, including on critical issues such as the protection of civilians that the Rt Hon Member has raised.
Asked by: Anneliese Dodds (Labour (Co-op) - Oxford East)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether she has had recent discussions with the Norwegian counterpart on civilian protection in Sudan.
Answered by Chris Elmore - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
I refer the Rt Hon Member to the statement made to the House by the Foreign Secretary on 18 November 2025, and to the most recent Urgent Question debate on 15 December 2025. The UK Government is working intensively with our international partners in an effort to end the violence in Sudan, secure humanitarian relief for the millions in need, and deliver justice for the victims of atrocities committed in this conflict. We will continue to keep the House updated on the latest developments, as we have done in recent months, including on critical issues such as the protection of civilians that the Rt Hon Member has raised.
Asked by: Wendy Morton (Conservative - Aldridge-Brownhills)
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 effectiveness of her Department’s measures to ensure that nutrition objectives are integrated within women and girls’ programmes; and how the Child Nutrition Fund and the Resilience and Adaptation Fund are aligned with her Department's gender policy frameworks.
Answered by Chris Elmore - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
I refer the Hon Member to the answer provided on 18 November 2025 to Question 89032, which outlines the work the Child Nutrition Fund (CNF) and Resilience and Adaptation Fund (RAF) are doing to address malnutrition of women and girls. As laid out in the 2025 Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) paper entitled 'Healthy Women, Children and Newborns: A Coordinated Approach to Ending Preventable Deaths', all of our programmes in this area are assessed for effectiveness. The CNF and RAF are both tracked by gender and nutrition-sensitive internal markers, therefore contributing to the FCDO's commitment to ensuring nutrition investments deliver for women and girls.