Asked by: Lord Alton of Liverpool (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government how many Taliban leaders they have sanctioned using Magnitsky-style sanctions since 2021; and how many sanctions they have imposed in response to the suppression of the rights of women and girls in Afghanistan.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK continues to meet our obligations under the United Nations sanctions regime relating to Afghanistan through the Afghanistan Sanctions (EU Exit) Regulations 2020, which came into force on 31 December 2020. The Government has not introduced any Global Human Rights sanctions against the Taliban since they took power in 2021, but we keep all evidence and potential designations under close review. More broadly, officials from the UK Mission to Afghanistan regularly press Taliban acting ministers on human rights abuses in Afghanistan, including against women and girls.
Asked by: Lord Alton of Liverpool (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government how many Iranian leaders they have sanctioned using Magnitsky-style sanctions since the death of Masha Amini in 2022; and how many sanctions they have imposed on those responsible for the suppression of the rights of women and girls in Iran.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Mahsa Amini's death is a shocking reminder of the repression faced by women in Iran. Since October 2022, we have sanctioned 94 individuals or entities for human rights abuses under the Iran sanctions regime. This includes senior decision makers responsible for enforcing Iran's mandatory hijab law, the Minister for Culture and Islamic Guidance, the Mayor of Tehran and the Iranian Police spokesperson. Individuals in the Iranian judiciary and Tehran metro were also sanctioned for their involvement in imposing and enforcing the mandatory hijab law. We will continue to raise women and girls' rights issues at all appropriate opportunities with the Iranian Government.
Asked by: Kenny MacAskill (Alba Party - East Lothian)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, if he will apply Magnitsky-style sanctions to (a) Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir, (b) Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, (d) David Chai Chasdai, (e) Einan Tanjil, (f) Shalom Zicherman and (g) Yinon Levi, in the context of (i) the US President's executive order in relation to settler violence in the West Bank and (ii) the Foreign Secretary's announcement that he will ban those responsible for settler violence from entering the UK.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
The UK continues to take a strong stance against settler violence and urges Israel to take stronger action to stop settler violence and hold the perpetrators accountable. As noted, we will prevent those responsible for settler violence in the West Bank from entering the UK.
Asked by: Neil Coyle (Labour - Bermondsey and Old Southwark)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, if he will make it his policy to impose Magnitsky sanctions against Tucker Carlson.
Answered by Anne-Marie Trevelyan - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The FCDO uses the Magnitsky sanctions regimes to designate those responsible for serious human rights violations and abuses and serious corruption. It is a longstanding policy that we do not comment on future sanctions designations.
Asked by: Andy Slaughter (Labour - Hammersmith)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, if he will apply Magnitsky-style sanctions to Israel’s (a) Minister of National Security and (b) Finance Minister in the context of settler violence in the West Bank.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
Tensions in the West Bank must ease and we continue to urge Israel to address extremist settler violence. This includes preventing such acts of violence, and holding those responsible to account. The Foreign Secretary has announced that we will ban those responsible for settler violence from entering the UK. We keep our sanctions under review and reserve the right to introduce further measures.
Asked by: Baroness Helic (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the use of Magnitsky-style sanctions arising from the Global Human Rights Sanctions Regulations 2020 against individuals based in Bosnia-Herzegovina who are deemed to have been involved in an activity which, if carried out by or on behalf of an entity within the territory of Bosnia-Herzegovina, would amount to a serious violation of human rights.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
We fully support the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Bosnia and Herzegovina. We will continue to take measures against those who threaten that. It is not appropriate to speculate on future designations, as to do so could reduce their impact. We designated two individuals under our Bosnia and Herzegovina autonomous sanctions regime last year.
Asked by: Yasmin Qureshi (Labour - Bolton South East)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether he plans to introduce Magnitsky-style sanctions against Chinese officials involved in human rights abuses in Tibet.
Answered by Anne-Marie Trevelyan - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
We are aware of human rights violations in Tibet, including restrictions on freedom of religion or belief, freedom of assembly and association, and reports of forced labour. We coordinate with partners to draw international attention to the human rights situation in Tibet, most recently on 20 May 2023 in the G7 Leaders' Communique, and in March 2023, as part of our Item 4 statement at the United Nations Human Rights Council. It is not appropriate to speculate on who may be sanctioned in the future, as to do so could reduce their impact.
Asked by: Earl of Sandwich (Crossbench - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they plan to impose further targeted sanctions and Magnitsky-style penalties on all those who have abused human rights in Darfur.
Answered by Lord Goldsmith of Richmond Park
The UK Government does not speculate on future designations as to do so could reduce their impact.
Our immediate priority is to ensure a cessation of violence across Sudan, and secure humanitarian access. All parties to the conflict must uphold their responsibility to protect civilians and ensure humanitarian assistance can be delivered quicky and safely.
We continue to call on both sides to respect International Law and immediately end the violence for the sake of the people of Sudan and the region.
Asked by: Lord Alton of Liverpool (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government, what red lines led them to impose Magnitsky-style sanctions; whether these red lines include responsibility for military coups; and what consideration they have given to further parliamentary oversight of the Magnitsky-style sanction regime.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK champions human rights and combats corruption. The UK supports UN sanctions and also have our own autonomous 'Magnitsky' sanctions that are an agile tool to act rapidly against human rights violators and abusers as well as corrupt actors, to maximum effect. Since the UK Magnitsky regimes were put in place, we have sanctioned 89 persons under the Global Human Rights regime and 35 under the Global Anti-Corruption regime. We will continue to use our Sanctions regimes to pursue designations in response to human rights violations, abuses and serious corruption. Ministers remain accountable for these sanctions through select committees, debates, and answering written or oral questions.
Asked by: Lord Alton of Liverpool (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what consideration they have given to applying Magnitsky-style sanctions to those responsible for the military coup in Sudan; and what discussions they have had with international allies regarding a coordinated imposition of such sanctions.
Answered by Lord Goldsmith of Richmond Park
The UK condemned in the strongest terms the coup on 25 October 2021. Following the coup, the UK has consistently urged all Sudanese actors, including the military, to engage constructively in the political process to establish a civilian-led transitional government. The UK, alongside our international partners, continues to consider all options to maintain pressure on those looking to de-rail the current political process, including sanctions. However, we do not speculate about future sanctions, as to do so might reduce their impact.