Asked by: Adam Jogee (Labour - Newcastle-under-Lyme)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent engagement His Majesty’s Government has had with IGAD about a) food security and b) regional stability in East Africa.
Answered by Chris Elmore - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
We remain in regular contact with members of IGAD on a range of regional issues, including through the UK's Representative to IGAD based in Djibouti.
Asked by: Andrew Murrison (Conservative - South West Wiltshire)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment she has made of the potential impact on UK (a) consumers (b) producers of aligning the UK's tariff and non-tariff barriers to trade in food with Morocco with those applying to the EU.
Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The UK–Morocco Association Agreement provides the framework for our £4.6 billion annual bilateral trade relationship, including trade in agri‑food products. Under Article 18 of the Agreement, both parties committed to meet and consider further tariff liberalisation for agriculture and fisheries products. Three rounds of discussions have taken place, most recently in October 2025. Both sides have agreed to work towards a mutually beneficial and balanced outcome.
As part of the wider approach to strengthening agri‑food trade with North Africa, we are also engaging with partners such as Egypt and Tunisia to ensure our agreements remain modern, balanced and supportive of UK producers and consumers. These discussions reflect our commitment to deepening trade relationships across the region.
Any future changes to our trading arrangements will be designed to support UK producers, strengthen the resilience of our food supply chain and ensure that consumers continue to have access to a wide range of affordable, high‑quality food.
Asked by: Andrew Murrison (Conservative - South West Wiltshire)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment has been made of the potential impact of tariffs on produce from North Africa on levels of cost to UK consumers of (a) tomatoes (b) lettuce (c) blueberries (d) cucumbers (e) olives (f) olive oil.
Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The UK–Morocco Association Agreement provides the framework for our £4.6 billion annual bilateral trade relationship, including trade in agri‑food products. Under Article 18 of the Agreement, both parties committed to meet and consider further tariff liberalisation for agriculture and fisheries products. Three rounds of discussions have taken place, most recently in October 2025. Both sides have agreed to work towards a mutually beneficial and balanced outcome.
As part of the wider approach to strengthening agri‑food trade with North Africa, we are also engaging with partners such as Egypt and Tunisia to ensure our agreements remain modern, balanced and supportive of UK producers and consumers. These discussions reflect our commitment to deepening trade relationships across the region.
Any future changes to our trading arrangements will be designed to support UK producers, strengthen the resilience of our food supply chain and ensure that consumers continue to have access to a wide range of affordable, high‑quality food.
Asked by: Andrew Murrison (Conservative - South West Wiltshire)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, which tariff and non-tariff barriers to trade in foodstuffs with Morocco she plans to remove following the 2019 Association Agreement.
Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The UK–Morocco Association Agreement provides the framework for our £4.6 billion annual bilateral trade relationship, including trade in agri‑food products. Under Article 18 of the Agreement, both parties committed to meet and consider further tariff liberalisation for agriculture and fisheries products. Three rounds of discussions have taken place, most recently in October 2025. Both sides have agreed to work towards a mutually beneficial and balanced outcome.
As part of the wider approach to strengthening agri‑food trade with North Africa, we are also engaging with partners such as Egypt and Tunisia to ensure our agreements remain modern, balanced and supportive of UK producers and consumers. These discussions reflect our commitment to deepening trade relationships across the region.
Any future changes to our trading arrangements will be designed to support UK producers, strengthen the resilience of our food supply chain and ensure that consumers continue to have access to a wide range of affordable, high‑quality food.
Asked by: Ruth Jones (Labour - Newport West and Islwyn)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what (a) diplomatic steps is her Department taking to assist in (i) locating and (ii) rescuing the remaining girls kidnaped from Chibok on 14 April 2014, and (b) what recent discussions has she had with the Nigerian Government about this.
Answered by Chris Elmore - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK Government strongly condemns the abduction and continued captivity of children by Boko Haram and Islamic State West Africa (ISWA) in North East Nigeria, and has repeatedly called for their release. This includes the 2014 kidnapping of the Chibok schoolgirls, around 90 of whom are understood still to be missing. On 11 November the Foreign Secretary held a meeting in London with Nigeria's Foreign Minister Yusuf Tuggar where the ongoing insecurity in Nigeria was discussed. The UK Government will continue to work closely with the Nigerian Government to prevent the future abduction of children in Nigeria.
Asked by: Bell Ribeiro-Addy (Labour - Clapham and Brixton Hill)
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 impact of planned departmental staffing reductions on the delivery of the UK's Approach to Africa as announced on the 15th December 2025.
Answered by Chris Elmore - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) is committed to becoming a leaner, more agile organisation, better able to deliver tangible benefits for the British people. We remain resolutely committed to international development and will ensure that we have the development capability and technical expertise to deliver on our ambition.
Asked by: Andrew Griffith (Conservative - Arundel and South Downs)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, if his Department will hold an African Investment Summit.
Answered by Chris Bryant - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
As set out in the Trade and Industrial strategies, this Government remains committed to strengthening UK-African trade and investment ties. According to the latest UNCTAD data, the UK had the second highest level of FDI stock in Africa at the end of 2023, after the Netherlands, and this strong position reflects our determination to deepen partnerships that deliver sustainable growth and create opportunities for UK and African businesses.
We have no such specific plans, but will continue to work closely with business leaders to unlock investment potential and will announce details of future engagements once decisions have been finalised.
Asked by: James McMurdock (Independent - South Basildon and East Thurrock)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, with reference to her speech at the Greek Ministry of Foreign Affairs on 18 December 2025, what estimate she has made of the potential impact of the North Africa Migration and Development Programme on levels of illegal migration to the UK in the next five years.
Answered by Stephen Doughty - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK works closely with the Greek Government on a large number of issues, as set out in the Foreign Secretary's remarks in Athens on 18 December, including our close trading relationship, our cooperation on migration issues, and our partnerships within NATO and the United Nations Security Council. Further details of our work in all areas will be set out in the usual way in due course.
Asked by: James McMurdock (Independent - South Basildon and East Thurrock)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, with reference to her speech at the Greek Ministry of Foreign Affairs on 18 December 2025, what steps she will take to safeguard the North Africa Migration and Development Programme from possible corruption.
Answered by Stephen Doughty - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK works closely with the Greek Government on a large number of issues, as set out in the Foreign Secretary's remarks in Athens on 18 December, including our close trading relationship, our cooperation on migration issues, and our partnerships within NATO and the United Nations Security Council. Further details of our work in all areas will be set out in the usual way in due course.
Asked by: James McMurdock (Independent - South Basildon and East Thurrock)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, with reference to her speech at the Greek Ministry of Foreign Affairs on 18 December 2025, how the £1.5 million for the North Africa Migration and Development Programme will be allocated.
Answered by Stephen Doughty - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK works closely with the Greek Government on a large number of issues, as set out in the Foreign Secretary's remarks in Athens on 18 December, including our close trading relationship, our cooperation on migration issues, and our partnerships within NATO and the United Nations Security Council. Further details of our work in all areas will be set out in the usual way in due course.