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79803

registered interest
date	30/07/2014
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	Palestinians
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of reports that Hamas militants are attempting to negotiate a new arms deal with North Korea for missiles and communications equipment.
tabling member printed	Lord Alton of Liverpool
uin	HL1692
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 18/08/2014 answer text <p>We are aware of recent reports that the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) is supplying missile technology to Hamas militants. The DPRK supplies a wide range of conventional arms to customers worldwide, including Syria and Iran. Its sale of arms and related material to countries already in the grip of conflict exploits and increases regional instability. We urge all countries to exercise vigilance in the implementation of DPRK UN Security Council Resolutions.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p> answering member printed Baroness Anelay of St Johns question first answered 18/08/2014 10:01:39 answering member 3474 label Biography information for Baroness Anelay of St Johns
tabling member	738 label Biography information for Lord Alton of Liverpool

79804

registered interest
date	30/07/2014
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	Religious Freedom
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the reply by Lord Wallace of Saltaire on 24 July (HL Deb, cols 1324–8) to the debate on Article 18 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, how many officials in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office are specifically focused on freedom of religion, and for what percentage of their time; and what resources are specifically allocated for the promotion of Article 18 through United Kingdom diplomatic services.
tabling member printed	Lord Alton of Liverpool
uin	HL1693
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 18/08/2014 answer text <p>Within the Human Rights and Democracy Department (HRDD), the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) has one full time Desk Officer wholly dedicated to Freedom of Religion or Belief (FoRB), who works closely with the Team Leader in the Equalities and Non-Discrimination Team, who themselves spend approximately 50% of their time on FoRB. Additionally, the Head and the Deputy Head of HRDD spend approximately 5% and 20% respectively of their time on FoRB issues; one Human Rights Advisor spends 5% and one HRDD Communications Officer approximately 10%.</p><p>As FoRB is one of only six thematic human rights priorities for the FCO, a considerable number of other FCO officials in London and overseas are engaged directly on FoRB as part of their wider human rights work. Given that violations of FoRB can be closely associated with other threats to UK interests around the world, I cannot provide a precise figure for the total number of FCO officials working on FoRB, though the number is high and rising.</p><p>This year, seven FoRB projects around the world were approved and received total funding of £307,835.</p> answering member printed Baroness Anelay of St Johns question first answered 18/08/2014 10:01:08 answering member 3474 label Biography information for Baroness Anelay of St Johns
tabling member	738 label Biography information for Lord Alton of Liverpool

79805

registered interest
date	30/07/2014
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	Iraq
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the reply by Lord Wallace of Saltaire on 24 July (HL Deb, cols 1324–8) to the debate on Article 18 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, what assistance has been given to Christians who have been forced to leave their homes in Mosul; whether they have any plans to offer asylum to those affected; and what representations they have made to governments in the Gulf in respect of the funding of ISIS.
tabling member printed	Lord Alton of Liverpool
uin	HL1694
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 18/08/2014 answer text <p>The UK condemns the human rights abuses reported in Iraq and has committed £5 million to the humanitarian effort to support people displaced by fighting there. All asylum claims made in the UK are carefully considered in accordance with the UK’s obligations under the 1951 Refugee Convention and the European Convention on Human Rights. The Home Office, which is responsible for all asylum claims, closely monitors developments in Iraq and other countries of return and will take decisions on a case-by-case basis in the light of the latest available country information. We regularly discuss terrorist financing with governments in the Gulf including through the mechanisms of the Financial Action Task Force.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p> answering member printed Baroness Anelay of St Johns question first answered 18/08/2014 10:00:21 answering member 3474 label Biography information for Baroness Anelay of St Johns
tabling member	738 label Biography information for Lord Alton of Liverpool

79806

registered interest
date	30/07/2014
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	Burma
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the reply by Lord Wallace of Saltaire on 24 July (HL Deb, cols 1324–8) to the debate on Article 18 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, what representations they have made to the Burmese authorities about proposed new legislation to restrict religious conversions and inter-religious marriages there; and whether they will call on the United Nations Secretary-General to visit Burma to address religious intolerance and to encourage the creation of an international and independent inquiry into violence in Rakhine State, Kachin State and other parts of the country.
tabling member printed	Lord Alton of Liverpool
uin	HL1695
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 18/08/2014 answer text <p>We have voiced our strong concerns over proposed legislation on inter-faith marriage and religious conversion to members of the Burmese government and parliamentarians. If enacted, these laws would harm religious tolerance and respect for diversity in Burma, and contravene international standards and treaties to which Burma is a signatory. Most recently, our Ambassador raised our concerns with Minister of the President’s Office, U Soe Thein, in June.</p><p>The UN Secretary-General (UNSG) currently chairs the Partnership Group on Burma, which last met in April. The UNSG and his Special Representative to Burma, Vijay Nambiar, both play vital roles in raising the international community’s human rights concerns with the Burmese government whilst providing encouragement for the wider reform process. We welcome the recent visit by the newly appointed UN Special Rapporteur on the human rights situation in Burma, Ms Yanghee Lee, who rightly highlighted that the government needs to do more to stop the spread of hate speech and incitement to violence based on religious grounds and recommended the adoption of specific legislation to address this.</p><p>We remain deeply concerned by continued violence in Burma, particularly in Rakhine State and Kachin State. Our approach is to seek an end to all violations, and to prevent their further escalation, irrespective of whether these violations fit the definition of specific international crimes. Allegations of human rights abuses must be dealt with through a clear, independent and transparent investigative and prosecutorial process that meets international standards. We have made this clear to the Burmese government and will continue to do so. We continue to believe an independent investigation, supported by appropriate technical assistance, would make a significant contribution to accountability and reconciliation.</p><p> </p> answering member printed Baroness Anelay of St Johns question first answered 18/08/2014 09:56:23 answering member 3474 label Biography information for Baroness Anelay of St Johns
tabling member	738 label Biography information for Lord Alton of Liverpool

79731

registered interest
date	29/07/2014
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	North Korea
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the reply by Baroness Warsi on 23 July (HL Deb, cols GC 460–4) on the Commission of Inquiry Report on human rights in North Korea, whether any projects to improve the substantive human rights of North Koreans, rather than cultural, economic or humanitarian initiatives, are to be implemented; and whether such projects are being considered for North Korean refugees outside the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea.
tabling member printed	Lord Alton of Liverpool
uin	HL1623
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 11/08/2014 answer text <p>It is not possible for the UK to carry out projects in the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) without the cooperation of the DPRK authorities. This has an impact on the type of projects we are able to support, although we have successfully taken forward projects in some areas of human rights, such as disability rights. In the Financial Year 2014/15 the Foreign and Commonwealth Office's (FCO’s) Human Rights and Democracy Programme is funding a project delivered by the Thomson Foundation titled ‘Inside Out: Working in North Korea to connect its journalists to the Internet world’, which aims to give North Korean journalists a greater understanding of freedom of expression by teaching them Internet skills. Our other engagement projects are about finding concrete ways to inform North Korean citizens about the UK and its values, so that in the long term they recognise the benefits of working with the outside world from which they are normally isolated.</p><p>Our Embassy in Seoul supports the North Korean refugee community through its “English for the Future” programme, which is funded with a mixture of FCO programme funds and corporate sponsorship. We also reserve one of our Chevening scholarships for this community. These programmes help new settlers tackle some of the barriers which can prevent their successful integration into South Korean society and improve their future prospects. The FCO’s Human Rights and Democracy Programme has also previously funded projects with North Korean refugee groups in the Republic of Korea which are more directly related to human rights in the DPRK, such as documenting the effects of torture or producing a report on the rights of women. We remain open to funding similar projects in the future.</p> answering member printed Lord Popat question first answered 11/08/2014 11:23:29 answering member 4173 label Biography information for Lord Popat
tabling member	738 label Biography information for Lord Alton of Liverpool

79638

registered interest
date	28/07/2014
answering body	Department of Health
answering dept id	17
answering dept short name	Health
answering dept sort name	Health
hansard heading	Mesothelioma
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty’s Government what representations they intend to make to (1) the insurance industry, and (2) the British Lung Foundation, to facilitate the establishment of a long-term funding scheme for mesothelioma research.
tabling member printed	Lord Alton of Liverpool
uin	HL1530
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 30/07/2014 answer text <p>In April this year, I convened a high level meeting between the Association of British Insurers and the British Lung Foundation (BLF) to discuss how insurers can remain engaged in support for mesothelioma research following earlier donated funding. Departmental officials attended this meeting. Discussions between the BLF and insurers are ongoing. The Department has no direct role in these discussions but is monitoring progress.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p>This year, a number of noble Lords and members of the House of Commons have written to the Secretary of State for Health, Mr Jeremy Hunt, or to me about this subject.</p><p> </p><p>Any further funding made available by insurers for mesothelioma research will be in addition to existing sources of public funding. The National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) has highlighted to the research community that it wants to encourage research applications in mesothelioma. Further details of this are available on the NIHR website at:</p><p> </p><p>www.themedcalls.nihr.ac.uk/mesothelioma</p> answering member printed Earl Howe grouped question UIN HL1499 HL1500 HL1502 HL1503 HL1534 question first answered 30/07/2014 13:04:31 answering member 2000 label Biography information for Earl Howe
tabling member	738 label Biography information for Lord Alton of Liverpool

79639

registered interest
date	28/07/2014
answering body	Department for Work and Pensions
answering dept id	29
answering dept short name	Work and Pensions
answering dept sort name	Work and Pensions
hansard heading	Mesothelioma
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty’s Government what trends they have identified in the prevalence of mesothelioma in the United Kingdom over the last 10 years.
tabling member printed	Lord Alton of Liverpool
uin	HL1531
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 30/07/2014 answer text <p> </p><p> </p><p>Statistics on the prevalence of mesothelioma in the United Kingdom – that is, the number of people that had the disease at a particular time or in a particular period – are not available. However, mesothelioma prevalence is known to be approximately equivalent to annual mesothelioma mortality.</p><p>The annual total numbers of mesothelioma deaths in Great Britain over the period 2003-2012 (the latest 10 years for which data are available) are shown in the table below.</p><p> </p><table><tbody><tr><td><p>Year</p></td><td><p>2003</p></td><td><p>2004</p></td><td><p>2005</p></td><td><p>2006</p></td><td><p>2007</p></td><td><p>2008</p></td><td><p>2009</p></td><td><p>2010</p></td><td><p>2011</p></td><td><p>2012</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Total</p></td><td><p>1887</p></td><td><p>1978</p></td><td><p>2049</p></td><td><p>2060</p></td><td><p>2176</p></td><td><p>2265</p></td><td><p>2336</p></td><td><p>2360</p></td><td><p>2291</p></td><td><p>2535</p></td></tr></tbody></table><p> </p><p> </p><p>Source: Health and Safety Executive mesothelioma register.</p> answering member printed Lord Freud question first answered 30/07/2014 14:06:13 answering member 3893 label Biography information for Lord Freud
tabling member	738 label Biography information for Lord Alton of Liverpool

79640

registered interest
date	28/07/2014
answering body	Department of Health
answering dept id	17
answering dept short name	Health
answering dept sort name	Health
hansard heading	Mesothelioma
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty’s Government how much was spent on mesothelioma research in 2013 and 2014.
tabling member printed	Lord Alton of Liverpool
uin	HL1532
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 18/08/2014 answer text <p>In 2013-14, the Medical Research Council (MRC) spent £1.7 million on mesothelioma research, and the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) spent £0.4 million on this topic through its research programmes, research centres and units, and research fellowships. Total spend by the NIHR on mesothelioma research is higher than this because expenditure by the NIHR Clinical Research Network (CRN) on this topic cannot be disaggregated from total CRN expenditure.</p><p> </p><p>The amount of funding designated for mesothelioma research in 2014 and 2015 is not available. The usual practice of the NIHR and MRC is not to ring-fence funds for expenditure on particular topics; research proposals in all areas can be considered for the funding available.</p><p> </p><p>The NIHR welcomes funding applications for research into any aspect of human health, including mesothelioma. These applications are subject to peer review and judged in open competition, with awards being made on the basis of the importance of the topic to patients and health and care services, value for money and scientific quality. In all disease areas, the amount of NIHR funding depends on the volume and quality of scientific activity. The NIHR has highlighted to the research community that it wants to encourage research applications in mesothelioma and we hope this will lead to an increased level of research activity.</p><p> </p><p> </p> answering member printed Earl Howe grouped question UIN HL1533 question first answered 18/08/2014 10:18:59 answering member 2000 label Biography information for Earl Howe
tabling member	738 label Biography information for Lord Alton of Liverpool

79641

registered interest
date	28/07/2014
answering body	Department of Health
answering dept id	17
answering dept short name	Health
answering dept sort name	Health
hansard heading	Mesothelioma
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty’s Government how much funding has been designated for mesothelioma research in 2014 and 2015.
tabling member printed	Lord Alton of Liverpool
uin	HL1533
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 18/08/2014 answer text <p>In 2013-14, the Medical Research Council (MRC) spent £1.7 million on mesothelioma research, and the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) spent £0.4 million on this topic through its research programmes, research centres and units, and research fellowships. Total spend by the NIHR on mesothelioma research is higher than this because expenditure by the NIHR Clinical Research Network (CRN) on this topic cannot be disaggregated from total CRN expenditure.</p><p> </p><p>The amount of funding designated for mesothelioma research in 2014 and 2015 is not available. The usual practice of the NIHR and MRC is not to ring-fence funds for expenditure on particular topics; research proposals in all areas can be considered for the funding available.</p><p> </p><p>The NIHR welcomes funding applications for research into any aspect of human health, including mesothelioma. These applications are subject to peer review and judged in open competition, with awards being made on the basis of the importance of the topic to patients and health and care services, value for money and scientific quality. In all disease areas, the amount of NIHR funding depends on the volume and quality of scientific activity. The NIHR has highlighted to the research community that it wants to encourage research applications in mesothelioma and we hope this will lead to an increased level of research activity.</p><p> </p><p> </p> answering member printed Earl Howe grouped question UIN HL1532 question first answered 18/08/2014 10:18:59 answering member 2000 label Biography information for Earl Howe
tabling member	738 label Biography information for Lord Alton of Liverpool

79642

registered interest
date	28/07/2014
answering body	Department of Health
answering dept id	17
answering dept short name	Health
answering dept sort name	Health
hansard heading	Mesothelioma
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the impact on mesothelioma patients of a failure of negotiations between the Association of British Insurers and the British Lung Foundation regarding establishing a long-term funding scheme for mesothelioma research.
tabling member printed	Lord Alton of Liverpool
uin	HL1534
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 30/07/2014 answer text <p>In April this year, I convened a high level meeting between the Association of British Insurers and the British Lung Foundation (BLF) to discuss how insurers can remain engaged in support for mesothelioma research following earlier donated funding. Departmental officials attended this meeting. Discussions between the BLF and insurers are ongoing. The Department has no direct role in these discussions but is monitoring progress.</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p>This year, a number of noble Lords and members of the House of Commons have written to the Secretary of State for Health, Mr Jeremy Hunt, or to me about this subject.</p><p> </p><p>Any further funding made available by insurers for mesothelioma research will be in addition to existing sources of public funding. The National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) has highlighted to the research community that it wants to encourage research applications in mesothelioma. Further details of this are available on the NIHR website at:</p><p> </p><p>www.themedcalls.nihr.ac.uk/mesothelioma</p> answering member printed Earl Howe grouped question UIN HL1499 HL1500 HL1502 HL1503 HL1530 question first answered 30/07/2014 13:04:31 answering member 2000 label Biography information for Earl Howe
tabling member	738 label Biography information for Lord Alton of Liverpool