Asked by: Deidre Brock (Scottish National Party - Edinburgh North and Leith)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, what steps his Department is taking to help tackle famine in Tigray.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
Across Tigray and other parts of northern Ethiopia, El Nino has caused drought that is affecting 4 million people. According to assessments from the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, nearly 1.4 million people in Tigray will need immediate emergency food assistance because of drought. I witnessed firsthand the effects of this during my visit in February 2024. In response, I announced an additional £100 million to fund our Ending Preventable Deaths Programme, which will target three million people across Ethiopia including those who are most at risk in the northern regions. The UK also co-hosted a donor conference in Geneva on 16 April and successfully raised £610 million to meet humanitarian needs in Ethiopia.
Asked by: Alex Sobel (Labour (Co-op) - Leeds North West)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, whether he has had discussions with his Czech counterpart on the purchase of artillery shells for Ukraine.
Answered by Nusrat Ghani - Minister of State (Minister for Europe)
The Foreign Secretary has discussed with his Czech counterpart how we can assist with their scheme. The UK will spend £245 million throughout the next year to procure and invigorate supply chains to produce urgently needed artillery ammunition for Ukraine.
We continue to engage in intensive bilateral and multilateral lobbying efforts to ensure Ukraine gets the military support it needs, leveraging the additional support we have announced this year to secure new commitments.
Asked by: Ruth Jones (Labour - Newport West)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Deputy Foreign Secretary, what progress his Department has made on its preparations for this year's Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
The Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) in Samoa in October will be an important opportunity to mobilise Commonwealth action on shared interests, including boosting intra-Commonwealth trade and investment; enhancing access to climate finance and protecting the environment; and reaffirming our shared commitment to Commonwealth Charter values. We are working closely with Samoa, other Commonwealth partners and the Commonwealth Secretariat to ensure CHOGM delivers strong outcomes that offer benefits to Commonwealth members and citizens. Ministerial attendance plans will be finalised closer to CHOGM.
Asked by: Ruth Jones (Labour - Newport West)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Deputy Foreign Secretary, how many Ministers are scheduled to attend this year's Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
The Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) in Samoa in October will be an important opportunity to mobilise Commonwealth action on shared interests, including boosting intra-Commonwealth trade and investment; enhancing access to climate finance and protecting the environment; and reaffirming our shared commitment to Commonwealth Charter values. We are working closely with Samoa, other Commonwealth partners and the Commonwealth Secretariat to ensure CHOGM delivers strong outcomes that offer benefits to Commonwealth members and citizens. Ministerial attendance plans will be finalised closer to CHOGM.
Asked by: Deidre Brock (Scottish National Party - Edinburgh North and Leith)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, if he will make the latest Joint Analysis of Conflict and Stability assessment for Ethiopia available to Parliament.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
The Joint Analysis of Conflict and Stability (JACS) report is an internal document and not intended for publication.
Asked by: Fabian Hamilton (Labour - Leeds North East)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, if he will make an assessment of the potential implications for his policies of the alleged assassination of alleged terrorists in Pakistan by the Indian government.
Answered by Anne-Marie Trevelyan - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
All countries should respect sovereignty and the rule of law. India and Pakistan are long-standing, important friends of the UK and we encourage both to engage in dialogue and find lasting, diplomatic solutions to maintain regional stability. The UK strongly believes in the importance of peaceful co-existence. It would be inappropriate to comment further.
Asked by: Ellie Reeves (Labour - Lewisham West and Penge)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, whether he plans to endorse the revised Comprehensive School Safety Framework.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
The Comprehensive School Safety Framework is well aligned with UK priorities, and we support its implementation through our funding to Education Cannot Wait. The UK has endorsed the Safe Schools Declaration which commits to reducing the impact of conflict on education and is closely linked to the Comprehensive School Safety Framework. FCDO officials will discuss endorsing the framework with The Global Alliance for Disaster Risk Reduction and Resilience in the Education Sector.
Asked by: Stephanie Peacock (Labour - Barnsley East)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Deputy Foreign Secretary, what proportion of his Department’s (a) advertising and (b) marketing expenditure was on (i) local newspapers in print and online, (ii) national newspapers in print and online, (iii) social media, (iv) search engines, (v) broadcast and on-demand television and (vi) other channels in the most recent year for which data is available.
Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office spent £11,892 in 2022/23 on Advertising costs. This expenditure cannot be broken down further as this is at the lowest level of account code. Advertising and marketing is a necessary and important means of delivering key information to the public.
Asked by: Bell Ribeiro-Addy (Labour - Streatham)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, what steps his Department is taking to provide support for human rights to (a) people in, (b) aid agencies and (c) human rights organisations working in Eswatini.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
The UK works to promote respect for human rights around the world, including in Eswatini. The British Government supports the Swazi people indirectly through programmes delivered by UN agencies (including UNICEF, UNFPA and WFP), their implementing partners and the Global Fund, as well as through advocacy and engagement with local Human Rights Defenders and state authorities. The British High Commission also provides project support to local NGOs and CSOs working on key human rights issues such as gender-based violence, freedom of expression and the rights of women and girls.
Asked by: Julian Knight (Independent - Solihull)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, how many staff have left his Department since its creation.
Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
2,350 UK based staff have left the FCDO between the data of the merger and 31st December 2023. This includes staff who have moved to other Government Departments. As of 31st March 2024 we have 8,167 UK based staff.