Asked by: Rebecca Long Bailey (Independent - Salford)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of taking steps with his international counterparts to negotiate a UN convention on the protection of journalists.
Answered by Stephen Doughty - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK already works through existing UN conventions and mechanisms which require states to uphold rights that address the key risks faced by journalists. The UK also works through the Media Freedom Coalition to champion the protection of journalists. In 2022 the UK renewed our commitment to the UN Plan of Action for the Safety of Journalists, and we support the Council of Europe's Journalism Matters campaign for the safety of journalists launched in 2023. The UK has contributed £2.8 million to the UNESCO Global Media Defence Fund in the last 4 years.
Asked by: Rupert Lowe (Reform UK - Great Yarmouth)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many foreign-born criminals (a) are in prisons and (b) were released under the revised terms of the early release scheme in Norfolk since 10 September 2024.
Answered by Nicholas Dakin - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
Information on the number of Foreign Nationals in prisons can be found in Table 1_Q_12 here: Source: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/66a1167cce1fd0da7b592c8d/Prison-population-30-June-2024.ods.
We are unable to provide the requested prisoner release figures at this time, as they form a subset of prisoner releases data scheduled for future publication. Numbers of custodial releases for the period covering July 2024 to September 2024 will be published on 30 January 2025, here: Offender management statistics quarterly - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk).
Asked by: Jo White (Labour - Bassetlaw)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many of the prisoners released under the early release scheme (a) are foreign nationals and (b) will be deported.
Answered by Nicholas Dakin - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
We are unable to provide the requested prisoner release figures at this time, as they form a subset of prisoner releases data scheduled for future publication. Numbers of custodial releases for the period covering July 2024 to September 2024 will be published on 30 January 2025, here: Offender management statistics quarterly - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk).
All foreign national offenders in receipt of custodial sentences are referred to the Home Office to be considered for deportation. The Home Office make all final decisions relating to deportation, taking into account individual circumstances in each case, meaning it is not possible to predict future deportation numbers.
Asked by: Lord Bishop of Gloucester (Bishops - Bishops)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the intensification of land confiscation, settlement construction and settlement expansion in the Occupied Palestinian Territories since 7 October 2023.
Answered by Lord Collins of Highbury - Lord in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
West Bank settlement expansion and settler violence have reached record levels. The Israeli government has seized more land this year than in the past twenty years combined. This is unacceptable: it runs counter to multiple resolutions of the United Nations Security Council and undermines the viability of a two-state solution. The Foreign Secretary met Palestinians displaced by settlers during his visit in July. The UK condemns settler expansion and the increase in settler violence. We keep all these issues under review and discuss them with our closest allies.
Asked by: Chris Law (Scottish National Party - Dundee Central)
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 (a) support the safety of and (b) increase accountability for attacks on humanitarian workers.
Answered by Anneliese Dodds - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The FCDO supports the safety of humanitarian workers by investing in protective measures that our partners need to safely work, championing International Humanitarian Law, and using UK seats at key multilateral fora to raise awareness and promote accountability. The Minister for Development reinforces these efforts through bilateral and diplomatic engagement, including in meetings with multilateral organisations and senior government representatives from other countries where humanitarian workers are at risk. In addition, the UK co-sponsored UN Security Council Resolution 2730, which reaffirms parties' obligations under international law to protect all humanitarian personnel as well as humanitarian premises and assets. This resolution also establishes a regular reporting mechanism to: highlight the issue at the Security Council, provide recommendations on measures to protect and enhance the safety and security of humanitarian personnel, and promote accountability for unlawful attacks.
Asked by: Mike Martin (Liberal Democrat - Tunbridge Wells)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what his policy is on the ownership of interests in UK oil and gas companies by sanctioned Russians.
Answered by Stephen Doughty - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
If the UK sanctions an individual, their UK assets are frozen. Sanctioned individuals cannot access frozen funds or obtain any financial benefit (including from ownership of interests in UK companies) without HMT/OFSI granting a licence.
Additionally, the National Security and Investment Act allows HMG to intervene in transactions that threaten national security.
Asked by: Callum Anderson (Labour - Buckingham and Bletchley)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what initiatives the Office for Investment has introduced to attract investment in small and medium-sized enterprises in the UK.
Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The service the Department for Business and Trade (DBT) offers is tailored to investors’ needs and the value of their projects. The Office for Investment (OfI) focuses on supporting a select number of the highest value investments. For lower value investments DBT provides support through Expand Your Business, an online portal designed to address the ‘information gap’ for foreign investors. The Government also works through the British Business Bank to improve access to investment for small and mid-sized businesses through targeted interventions. The Bank’s programmes support over £17 billion of finance to small and high-growth businesses, backing almost 64,000 businesses across the UK.
Asked by: John Hayes (Conservative - South Holland and The Deepings)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether she has made an assessment of the potential merits of sending prisoners serving sentences in England and Wales to prisons overseas.
Answered by Nicholas Dakin - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
We have prisoner transfer agreements with over 100 countries which enable us to send foreign national offenders to serve the remainder of their prison sentence in their home country. We are reviewing the opportunities to strengthen or expand these arrangements.
The previous Government explored the possibility of sending British prisoners to rented prisons overseas. There are no current plans to introduce this measure, which we believe carries considerable cost. This Government is in the market for practical approaches that work, and not for costly gimmicks, unlike our predecessors
Asked by: Chris Law (Scottish National Party - Dundee Central)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, if he will publish his Department's plan for meeting its international climate finance targets in the 2025-26 financial year.
Answered by Anneliese Dodds - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
All spending plans will be determined through the ongoing spending review process.
Asked by: Sarah Champion (Labour - Rotherham)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to tackle illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing (a) domestically and (b) internationally.
Answered by Daniel Zeichner - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing is a significant threat to ocean ecosystems, coastal communities and global food supplies which undermines fisheries conservation and management measures. The UK Government holds key responsibilities under domestic and international law to tackle IUU fishing.
Domestically, catch documentation is required when importing seafood into the UK from another country to prevent IUU-derived fish entering UK supply chains. Furthermore, seafood caught by a vessel listed on the UK’s IUU vessel list is banned from entering the UK, and controls are also in place to prevent foreign vessels accessing UK ports if suspected of engaging in IUU fishing.
Internationally, the UK co-founded the IUU Action Alliance in 2022 to help drive international support and cooperation to tackle IUU fishing globally and, in line with this, is funding a project in the Philippines to support implementation of robust controls at their ports. The UK Government is also party to a number of regional fisheries management organisations which focus on ensuring our shared fish stocks in international waters are managed sustainably and illegal fishing is tackled effectively.