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1216818

registered interest
date	23/06/2020
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	Bahrain: Human Rights
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment he has made of the effect of the imprisonment and planned execution of people in Bahrain on that country's compliance with international human rights obligations.
tabling member constituency	Bath
tabling member printed	Wera Hobhouse
uin	63453
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 01/07/2020 answer text <p>The Government of Bahrain is fully aware that the UK is firmly opposed to the death penalty, in all circumstances. The right to a fair trial is enshrined in the constitution of Bahrain; we continue to encourage the Government of Bahrain to follow due process in all cases and meet its international and domestic human rights commitments.</p> answering member constituency Braintree answering member printed James Cleverly question first answered 01/07/2020 15:33:30 answering member 4366 label Biography information for James Cleverly
tabling member	4602 label Biography information for Wera Hobhouse

1216893

registered interest
date	23/06/2020
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	Myanmar: Children
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, if he will take diplomatic steps to hold the Myanmar military to account for the killing, maiming sexual violence against children identified in the UN Secretary-General's Annual Report on Children and Armed Conflict, published on 9 June 2020.
tabling member constituency	Crawley
tabling member printed	Henry Smith
uin	63306
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 30/06/2020 answer text <p>The UK is clear that the Myanmar Military is responsible for gross human rights violations across the country. This includes grave violations against children. On 23 June, I [Minister Adams] spoke to the Myanmar Minister for International Cooperation. I [Minister Adams] encouraged Myanmar to continue to engage with the International Court of Justice process, and highlighted the need for dialogue to deescalate the conflict in Rakhine which has seen a significant increase in crimes against children in the first half of this year. The UK has already imposed sanctions, through the EU, on members of the Myanmar military responsible for serious human rights violations. The UK led the international effort to establish the UN Independent Investigative Mechanism on Myanmar (IIMM), which will collect and preserve evidence for us in future domestic or international accountability processes.</p> answering member constituency Selby and Ainsty answering member printed Nigel Adams question first answered 30/06/2020 16:00:45 answering member 4057 label Biography information for Nigel Adams
tabling member	3960 label Biography information for Henry Smith

1216915

registered interest
date	23/06/2020
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	Foreign and Commonwealth Office: Development Aid
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, which Official Development Assistance programmes that his Department funds are targeted at supporting women and girls.
tabling member constituency	Bolton South East
tabling member printed	Yasmin Qureshi
uin	63286
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 30/06/2020 answer text <p>The UK's Gender Equality Act 2014 (an amendment to 2002 International Development Act, IDA), legally requires all overseas development funding to meaningfully consider the impact of how it will contribute to reducing gender inequality. The UK Aid Strategy prioritises the rights of women and girls under its fourth strategic goal of tacking extreme poverty and helping the world's most vulnerable.</p><p>The FCO supports a number of Official Development Assistance programmes targeted at promoting girls' education, empowering women peacebuilders and supporting female survivors of sexual violence in conflict. The programmes include lobbying efforts encouraging foreign governments to prioritise girls' education reforms, financial support for women mediator organisations, capacity building programmes for female judges and women peacebuilders and consultations with survivors of sexual violence. Additional information on the FCO's ODA programmes can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/official-development-assistance-fco-programme-spend</p> answering member constituency Aldridge-Brownhills answering member printed Wendy Morton question first answered 30/06/2020 15:58:55 answering member 4358 label Biography information for Wendy Morton
tabling member	3924 label Biography information for Yasmin Qureshi

1216927

registered interest
date	23/06/2020
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	British Nationals Abroad: Coronavirus
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, whether additional flights are being planned to repatriate British citizens who missed the deadline to apply for chartered flights during the covid-19 pandemic.
tabling member constituency	Dudley North
tabling member printed	Marco Longhi
uin	63517
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 30/06/2020 answer text <p>Since the outbreak in Wuhan, we estimate that over 1.3 million people have returned to the UK via commercial routes - the majority supported by our work to keep vital routes open. We have brought home over 38,000 people on 186 special charter flights organised by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, from 57 countries and territories.</p><p>We believe the vast majority of British travellers seeking to return to the UK - who don't have commercial options - have now done so. Through our embassies, and a dedicated central team, we continue to support British nationals who need consular support and are working to ensure commercial routes are maintained. While no charter flights are currently planned, we are monitoring risks globally and continue to review how best to provide assistance where necessary. Our travel advice and social media pages are also regularly updated to ensure that those wishing to return are aware of further developments.</p> answering member constituency Selby and Ainsty answering member printed Nigel Adams question first answered 30/06/2020 14:29:01 answering member 4057 label Biography information for Nigel Adams
tabling member	4789 label Biography information for Marco Longhi

1216983

registered interest
date	23/06/2020
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	Eritrea: Coronavirus
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment he has made of the (a) food security and (b) human rights situation in the Southern Red Sea Denkalya Region of Eritrea during the covid-19 pandemic.
tabling member constituency	West Worcestershire
tabling member printed	Harriett Baldwin
uin	63334
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 01/07/2020 answer text <p>We are concerned that the people of Eritrea are facing food insecurity as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. COVID-19 and the desert locust outbreak have impacted existing humanitarian need as a result of lasting effects of war and climate change. Humanitarian and development programmes in Eritrea are being adapted to address current food security challenges. UK Aid funds life-saving activity in Eritrea, including providing £4m to UNICEF in 2019-20 to help treat malnutrition in under-fives and provide access to safe hygiene and sanitation services.</p><p>We are also aware of reports that the Government of Eritrea is targeting the Red Sea Afar people in the Denkalya region during the COVID-19 pandemic. We raise our concerns about human rights in Eritrea with the Government at every opportunity, and we will continue to make clear that measures taken by them to tackle COVID-19 must be necessary, proportionate, time-bound, transparent and regularly reviewed. Eritrea remains a priority country for the FCO under our annual human rights reporting, and we will continue to monitor the situation there.</p> answering member constituency Rochford and Southend East answering member printed James Duddridge question first answered 01/07/2020 15:32:32 answering member 1559 label Biography information for Sir James Duddridge
tabling member	4107 label Biography information for Dame Harriett Baldwin

1216997

registered interest
date	23/06/2020
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	Cameroon: Coronavirus
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment he has made of the security situation in Cameroon during the covid-19 pandemic.
tabling member constituency	West Worcestershire
tabling member printed	Harriett Baldwin
uin	63336
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 30/06/2020 answer text <p>The UK Government remains deeply concerned about the situation in the North-West and South-West (Anglophone) regions of Cameroon. As the UK highlighted at a United Nations Security Council briefing on Central Africa, on 12 June, high levels of violence are having tragic consequences on civilians. These could be exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic.</p><p>The UK has contributed approximately £540,000 to UNICEF to support with the COVID-19 response and related water, sanitation and hygiene activities in Cameroon. We have also contributed approximately £60,000 to the Centre Pasteur Cameroun to decentralise COVID-19 testing across the country, in support of the Government of Cameroon's National Response Plan. On 20 May the UK Government also announced investment of up to £20 million in the new African Union COVID-19 Response Fund, which will be used to tackle coronavirus, and save lives, including in Cameroon.</p><p>The UK welcomes the UN Secretary-General's call in February on armed actors to refrain from attacks against civilians in Cameroon. We also welcome his call on 23 March for an immediate global ceasefire in armed conflicts, and his appeal to open up spaces for diplomacy, protect the most vulnerable, allow humanitarian access, and focus our collective energies on fighting COVID-19.</p><p>On 19 May I spoke to the Prime Minister of Cameroon and discussed the need for a peaceful solution to the conflict. It is imperative that people are not prohibited by the violence from accessing testing or wider humanitarian assistance. We continue to call for an end to the violence in the North-West and South-West regions, and have shared experiences on conflict resolution with the Government of Cameroon. We will continue to work with international partners to support the restoration of peace in these regions, at the same time as we support Cameroon, and other African partners, to mitigate the impacts of COVID-19 on peace and security.</p> answering member constituency Rochford and Southend East answering member printed James Duddridge question first answered 30/06/2020 16:12:25 answering member 1559 label Biography information for Sir James Duddridge
tabling member	4107 label Biography information for Dame Harriett Baldwin

1217075

registered interest
date	23/06/2020
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	Yemen: Military Intervention
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 (a) he and (b) officials in his Department have had with (i) the UN Secretary-General and (ii) his officials about the decision to remove the Saudi and Emirati coalition from the UN list of perpetrators of grave violations against children in conflict zones in 2019.
tabling member constituency	Rutherglen and Hamilton West
tabling member printed	Margaret Ferrier
uin	63361
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 30/06/2020 answer text <p>At the UN Open Debate on Children and Armed Conflict on 23 June, the UK reaffirmed our commitment to tackling violations against children in armed conflict and highlighted the need for a transparent and credible framework for accountability based on a standardised and evidence-backed approach to de-listing and listing of state and non-state actors for violations. The UK takes extremely seriously allegations of abuses against children in armed conflict. We strongly support the work of the Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Children and Armed Conflict and continue to fund her office and work. The UK regularly raises the importance of human rights with Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, including at senior levels. The Coalition must protect children's rights and continue to take positive steps to protect children in armed conflict, such as by implementing the Memorandum of Understanding signed between the UN and Saudi Arabia in March 2019.</p> answering member constituency Braintree answering member printed James Cleverly grouped question UIN 64217 question first answered 30/06/2020 15:49:52 answering member 4366 label Biography information for James Cleverly
tabling member	4386 label Biography information for Margaret Ferrier

1217077

registered interest
date	23/06/2020
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	Armed Conflict: Children
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, if he will support an independent review of the process for listing parties to armed conflict for grave violations against children to safeguard against potential political interference.
tabling member constituency	Rutherglen and Hamilton West
tabling member printed	Margaret Ferrier
uin	63362
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 01/07/2020 answer text <p>The UK takes allegations of abuses against children in armed conflict extremely seriously. We strongly support the work of the Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Children and Armed Conflict and continue to fund her office and work. At the UN Open Debate on Children and Armed Conflict on 23 June, the UK reaffirmed our commitment to tackling violations against children in armed conflict and highlighted the need for a transparent and credible framework for accountability based on a standardised and evidence-backed approach to de-listing and listing of state and non-state actors for violations. We have called upon the UN to review its approach and we will continue to engage constructively with the UN and member states to ensure the effectiveness of the listing mechanism.</p> answering member constituency Braintree answering member printed James Cleverly question first answered 01/07/2020 15:34:46 answering member 4366 label Biography information for James Cleverly
tabling member	4386 label Biography information for Margaret Ferrier

1217099

registered interest
date	23/06/2020
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	China: India
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment he has made of the recent military skirmishes on the Himalayan border between India and China; and if he will make a statement.
tabling member constituency	Kingston and Surbiton
tabling member printed	Sir Edward Davey
uin	63209
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 30/06/2020 answer text <p>The Prime Minister commented in Parliament on 24 June that we are monitoring the situation closely and that we encourage both India and China to engage in dialogue. The status of the India-China border is a bilateral issue and we welcome the call between Foreign Ministers Wang Yi and Jaishankar on 17 June, the meeting between Army Commanders on 22 June, and the agreement that both sides would take steps to de-escalate.</p> answering member constituency Selby and Ainsty answering member printed Nigel Adams question first answered 30/06/2020 14:33:47 answering member 4057 label Biography information for Nigel Adams
tabling member	188 label Biography information for Ed Davey

1217117

registered interest
date	23/06/2020
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	China and Russia: Diplomatic Service
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what estimate he has made of the number of (a) staff in his Department and (b) Diplomatic Service staff posted to (i) Russian and (ii) Chinese embassies or missions who can speak the language of the nation they are in to C1 CEFR proficiency or higher.
tabling member constituency	Oxford West and Abingdon
tabling member printed	Layla Moran
uin	63481
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 06/07/2020 answer text <p>Language skills are critical to the FCO's operation. FCO officers undertake full-time language training in preparation for roles overseas which require them to speak the local language (known as speaker slots). The FCO's full-time language training programme is delivered in up to 85 languages and takes officers to C1 (operational) level in the required language. Their proficiency level is assessed by an externally validated exam at the end of their training programme.</p> answering member constituency Selby and Ainsty answering member printed Nigel Adams question first answered 06/07/2020 16:52:18 answering member 4057 label Biography information for Nigel Adams
tabling member	4656 label Biography information for Layla Moran