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173081

registered interest
date	12/01/2015
answering body	Foreign and Commonwealth Office
answering dept id	16
answering dept short name	Foreign and Commonwealth Office
answering dept sort name	Foreign and Commonwealth Office
hansard heading	Sri Lanka
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what representations he has made to his new Sri Lankan counterpart on protecting the Tamil and Muslim minority communities; and if he will make a statement.
tabling member constituency	Brighton, Kemptown
tabling member printed	Simon Kirby
uin	220383
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 16/01/2015 answer text <p>On 9 January the Prime Minister, my right hon. Friend the Member for Witney (Mr Cameron), congratulated Maithripala Sirisena on his victory in the Presidential elections, and also encouraged President Sirisena to support the ongoing UN Office of the High Commission for Human Rights investigation into human rights abuses. The issues of the past must be addressed so Sri Lanka can move forward to a brighter, peaceful future where all Sri Lankans can play a role.</p><p> </p><p>The Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonealth Affairs, my right hon. Friend the Member for Runnymead and Weybridge (Mr Hammond), said that Sri Lanka has a renewed opportunity now to grow as a stable, prosperous and inclusive country, reflecting the wishes of all its people.</p><p> </p><p>I personally spoke to the new Sri Lankan Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe on 12 January and made clear that we look forward to working with the new government and reinvigorating the long standing partnership between the UK and Sri Lanka. We will continue to engage with the new Sri Lankan government on the concern of minority communities.</p> answering member constituency East Devon answering member printed Mr Hugo Swire question first answered 16/01/2015 14:14:01 answering member 1408 label Biography information for Lord Swire
tabling member	3929 label Biography information for Simon Kirby

173083

registered interest
date	12/01/2015
answering body	Foreign and Commonwealth Office
answering dept id	16
answering dept short name	Foreign and Commonwealth Office
answering dept sort name	Foreign and Commonwealth Office
hansard heading	Sri Lanka
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps the Government took to ensure that the recent election in Sri Lanka was free and fair; and if he will make a statement.
tabling member constituency	Brighton, Kemptown
tabling member printed	Simon Kirby
uin	220384
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 19/01/2015 answer text <p>The UK joined an EU Heads of Mission statement on 2 January calling for the elections to be peaceful, credible and transparent. We encouraged the government of Sri Lanka to invite international observers, including from the EU and the Commonwealth, and provided support to local election monitoring groups. Officials from the British High Commission in Colombo also travelled around the country in the run-up to elections, observing the preparations and voting process, and co-ordinating closely with like-minded diplomatic missions and local groups.</p> answering member constituency East Devon answering member printed Mr Hugo Swire question first answered 19/01/2015 16:22:33 answering member 1408 label Biography information for Lord Swire
tabling member	3929 label Biography information for Simon Kirby

173187

registered interest
date	12/01/2015
answering body	Foreign and Commonwealth Office
answering dept id	16
answering dept short name	Foreign and Commonwealth Office
answering dept sort name	Foreign and Commonwealth Office
hansard heading	Burma
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent assessment he has made of progress by Burma towards establishing democracy; and if he will make a statement.
tabling member constituency	Brighton, Kemptown
tabling member printed	Simon Kirby
uin	220428
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 15/01/2015 answer text <p>We recognise the significant steps towards democratic reform that the government of Burma has taken over the past two years. This includes releasing hundreds of political prisoners and discharging hundreds of child soldiers. It has also included lifting of restrictions on the media, which has opened the space for the growth of a vibrant civil society.</p><p> </p><p>At the same time, we recognise much more needs to be done, and that in some areas progress has declined. We remain deeply concerned about the recent intimidation, detention and sentencing of reporters and political activists, the appalling situation of Rohingya Muslims in Rakhine State, and about ongoing conflict in ethnic areas and associated human rights abuses, including sexual violence. All of our concerns are thoroughly documented in our Annual Report on Human Rights, and the quarterly updates to them. I personally raise our concerns regularly with the government of Burma.</p><p> </p><p>Burma’s elections, scheduled for October or November this year, will be a critically important test of the government’s commitment to see the reforms through to their conclusion. It is vital for Burma’s future development that these are inclusive and credible. The Prime Minister, my right hon. Friend the Member for Witney (Mr Cameron) made this point to President Thein Sein at the Group of Twenty (G20) summit in Brisbane in November.</p> answering member constituency East Devon answering member printed Mr Hugo Swire question first answered 15/01/2015 12:17:36 answering member 1408 label Biography information for Lord Swire
tabling member	3929 label Biography information for Simon Kirby

173191

registered interest
date	12/01/2015
answering body	Foreign and Commonwealth Office
answering dept id	16
answering dept short name	Foreign and Commonwealth Office
answering dept sort name	Foreign and Commonwealth Office
hansard heading	Burma
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps he is taking to improve UK-Burmese diplomatic relations; and if he will make a statement.
tabling member constituency	Brighton, Kemptown
tabling member printed	Simon Kirby
uin	220465
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 15/01/2015 answer text <p>The UK’s relations with Burma have improved since 2011 when President Thein Sein embarked on a programme of reform. Since then we have been a critical friend, using our bilateral relationship to encourage reforms and speaking out where Burma has fallen short of accepted international standards of democracy and human rights. As a result of our engagement, the UK has been able to increase our access and influence with the government of Burma.</p><p> </p><p>Since the reform process began, the government of Burma has made progress in a number of areas, not least by releasing hundreds of political prisoners and child soldiers, and opening up space for the media and civil society to operate. The UK’s support has included a package of development assistance, worth £82 million in financial year 2015-16. We will continue to use our diplomatic relations to encourage reform in 2015, when elections due to be held towards the end of the year will be a critically important milestone in Burma’s transition to a more open and democratic society. At the same time, we recognise there is still a lot further to go, including on human rights, and we will continue to make our concerns known to the government of Burma, both publicly and privately.</p> answering member constituency East Devon answering member printed Mr Hugo Swire question first answered 15/01/2015 12:21:22 answering member 1408 label Biography information for Lord Swire
tabling member	3929 label Biography information for Simon Kirby

172035

registered interest
date	18/12/2014
answering body	Deputy Prime Minister
answering dept id	58
answering dept short name	Deputy Prime Minister
answering dept sort name	Deputy Prime Minister
hansard heading	Local Enterprise Partnerships: Brighton
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Deputy Prime Minister, what assessment he has made of the economic effect of the Brighton and Hove City Deal.
tabling member constituency	Brighton, Kemptown
tabling member printed	Simon Kirby
uin	906795
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 06/01/2015 answer text <p>The Greater Brighton City Deal, announced on 12 March 2014, initiated some important measures to boost the local economy. These include the expansion of the area’s tech cluster, and funding for flood defence works at Shoreham and Newhaven. Local leaders expect the deal to deliver 8,500 jobs and unlock £173 million of investment over its lifetime.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Tunbridge Wells answering member printed Greg Clark question first answered 06/01/2015 15:17:23 answering member 1578 label Biography information for Greg Clark
tabling member	3929 label Biography information for Simon Kirby

170338

registered interest
date	15/12/2014
answering body	Department for Communities and Local Government
answering dept id	7
answering dept short name	Communities and Local Government
answering dept sort name	Communities and Local Government
hansard heading	Recycling: Brighton
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what recent discussions he has had with Brighton and Hove City Council on the recycling rate for household waste; and if he will make a statement.
tabling member constituency	Brighton, Kemptown
tabling member printed	Simon Kirby
uin	218608
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 06/01/2015 answer text <p>We have not had any recent discussions with Brighton and Hove City Council on recycling rates for household waste. This Government is committed to recycling 50% of household waste by 2020 and we've made a great deal of progress: 44% of household waste is now recycled in England compared to 11% in 2001. While we are pleased that Brighton and Hove City Council has maintained weekly collections of residual waste for its residents, it is interesting to note it has a recycling rate of only 25.8% as other, perhaps similar, coastal towns with weekly collections of residual waste such as Bournemouth Borough Council and Southend-on-Sea Borough Council are now recycling over or around 50% of their household waste, in part because of funding received through the Weekly Collection Support Scheme. These and many other councils are demonstrating that you do not need to switch to fortnightly collections to achieve high recycling rates. We would urge Brighton and Hove City Council to learn from these other councils and take steps to improve its recycling rate.</p><p> </p><p>We are aware that projects are being implemented in the city and expect them to have an impact in the coming months. In November 2012, Brighton and Hove City Council was awarded £840,000 from the £250 million Weekly Collection Support Scheme to improve recycling in the city centre by: replacing the existing service with communal recycling points, making the service more user-friendly and introducing associated recycling reward schemes. In May 2014 we received an update stating the communal recycling roll- out should be completed by June 2014. We would therefore expect to see an increase in Brighton and Hove's recycling rate in its 2014/15 figures.</p> answering member constituency Keighley answering member printed Kris Hopkins question first answered 06/01/2015 16:35:19 answering member 4043 label Biography information for Kris Hopkins
tabling member	3929 label Biography information for Simon Kirby

170393

registered interest
date	15/12/2014
answering body	Foreign and Commonwealth Office
answering dept id	16
answering dept short name	Foreign and Commonwealth Office
answering dept sort name	Foreign and Commonwealth Office
hansard heading	Commonwealth
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with the Commonwealth Secretary-General about the admittance of new member states with no historic or constitutional link to the UK; and if he will make a statement.
tabling member constituency	Brighton, Kemptown
tabling member printed	Simon Kirby
uin	218607
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 05/01/2015 answer text <p>I discussed Commonwealth membership with the Secretary-General on 16 December. He is currently considering a number of expressions of interest in membership of the Commonwealth. Commonwealth Heads of Government agreed recommendations on criteria for membership in 2007. Under that agreement, countries aspiring to join the Commonwealth should generally have a constitutional link to an existing member to be considered eligible. However a country without such a connection may exceptionally be admitted.</p> answering member constituency East Devon answering member printed Mr Hugo Swire question first answered 05/01/2015 14:53:21 answering member 1408 label Biography information for Lord Swire
tabling member	3929 label Biography information for Simon Kirby

169502

registered interest
date	10/12/2014
answering body	Foreign and Commonwealth Office
answering dept id	16
answering dept short name	Foreign and Commonwealth Office
answering dept sort name	Foreign and Commonwealth Office
hansard heading	Somaliland
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps he is taking to promote the reintegration of Somaliland into Somalia; and if he will make a statement.
tabling member constituency	Brighton, Kemptown
tabling member printed	Simon Kirby
uin	218174
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 17/12/2014 answer text It is for Somalia and Somaliland themselves to determine their future relationship and for neighbouring countries in the region to take the lead in recognising any new arrangements. Following the London Conference in February 2012, which “recognised the need for the international community to support any dialogue that Somaliland and the Transitional Federal Government (TFG) or its replacement may agree to establish in order to clarify their future relations”, the TFG and Somaliland met for the first time at Chevening in the UK, in June 2012. They agreed to cooperate on matters of mutual interest. Somalia and Somaliland have held several further rounds of talks in Turkey, at Ministerial level. answering member constituency East Devon answering member printed Mr Hugo Swire question first answered 17/12/2014 15:58:07 answering member 1408 label Biography information for Lord Swire
tabling member	3929 label Biography information for Simon Kirby

169510

registered interest
date	10/12/2014
answering body	Foreign and Commonwealth Office
answering dept id	16
answering dept short name	Foreign and Commonwealth Office
answering dept sort name	Foreign and Commonwealth Office
hansard heading	The Gambia: Commonwealth
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with the Commonwealth Secretary-General about Gambia's return to the Commonwealth; and if he will make a statement.
tabling member constituency	Brighton, Kemptown
tabling member printed	Simon Kirby
uin	218001
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 15/12/2014 answer text The UK has had no discussions with the Commonwealth Secretary-General, Kamalesh Sharma, about The Gambia’s return to the Commonwealth. The decision to withdraw from the Commonwealth was an executive decision taken solely by Gambian President Jammeh. Although the Commonwealth Secretary-General has publicly stated that The Gambia’s return would be welcomed, President Jammeh has made it clear that he will not reverse his decision. If The Gambia did decide to return to the Commonwealth, it would need to make a formal application to the Secretary-General. answering member constituency Aylesbury answering member printed Mr David Lidington question first answered 15/12/2014 14:08:59 answering member 15 label Biography information for Sir David Lidington
tabling member	3929 label Biography information for Simon Kirby

169550

registered interest
date	10/12/2014
answering body	Home Office
answering dept id	1
answering dept short name	Home Office
answering dept sort name	Home Office
hansard heading	Crimes of Violence: Females
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps her Department has taken with Sussex Police and Brighton and Hove City Council to end violence against women and girls; and if she will make a statement.
tabling member constituency	Brighton, Kemptown
tabling member printed	Simon Kirby
uin	218131
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 15/12/2014 answer text <p>The Coalition Government has made the tackling of violence against women and girls a high priority. Our approach is set out in our strategy, Call to End Violence Against Women and Girls, published in November 2010, together with <br>supporting Action Plans. <br><br>In 2010, this Government put stable funding in place for the first time, ring-fencing nearly £40 million for specialist local domestic and sexual violence support services, rape crisis centres, and national helplines. This <br>includes Home Office funding of £90,000 per annum in Sussex towards the provision of Independent Domestic Violence Advisers (IDVAs), Multi Agency Risk Assessment Conferences (MARACs) and an Independent Sexual Violence Advisor (ISVA) in Brighton.<br><br>Through the Female Rape Support Fund 2014-16, the Ministry of Justice are also providing funding of £60,000 per annum to both The Survivors’ Network and Lifecentre in Sussex to support female victims of rape or sexual violence. They <br>will also provide over £300,000 between 2014 – 16 to create a new rape support centre in Crawley, dedicated to supporting female victims of rape and sexual violence.<br><br>We are also supporting effective local approaches to tackling violence against women and girls by providing Police and Crime Commissioners, local authorities and healthcare commissioners with the information they need. We have delivered <br>a series of six regional events around the country to support the effective local commissioning of violence against women and girls services, including an event held in Brighton this October.<br><br>The Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC) for Sussex has already provided £250,000 to East Sussex County Council, West Sussex County Council and Brighton and Hove City Council to enhance domestic and sexual violence services across <br>the county, invested in over 450 police body worn video cameras to gather real time evidence, launched the Brighton and Hove Domestic Abuse drop-in surgery – making services more accessible to those who need them, and driven work with <br>police and partners to develop an information sharing protocol to protect vulnerable girls from Female Genital Mutilation (FGM). In 2015 the PCC will be funding domestic abuse phones, with a direct 24-hour line to the police both inside and outside of their home with a GPS tracker.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p> answering member constituency Hornsey and Wood Green answering member printed Lynne Featherstone question first answered 15/12/2014 16:48:35 answering member 1531 label Biography information for Baroness Featherstone
tabling member	3929 label Biography information for Simon Kirby