The Government remains firmly committed to the promotion and protection of Freedom of Religion or Belief in all countries. The Prime Minister has announced the four themes for the summit: prosperity, security, sustainability and fairness. The summit will encourage all Commonwealth members to uphold the values set out in the Commonwealth Charter, including religious freedom or belief. We are currently working with the Commonwealth Secretariat and other member states to establish a detailed agenda for the week of the summit and the programme of events.<\/p>
We are currently considering programmes for the UK's Commonwealth Chair-in-Office period, the two years following the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in April 2018. We have agreed to support the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association in hosting a forum which will bring parliamentarians from around the Commonwealth together for important discussions across the key challenges facing the Commonwealth, including upholding the Commonwealth Charter. We have also provided £20,000 to the Royal Commonwealth Society to support its interfaith service, which will take place in Westminster Abbey on Commonwealth Day in March 2018.<\/p>"} , "answeringMember" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/members/4210", "label" : {"_value" : "Biography information for Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon"} } , "answeringMemberPrinted" : {"_value" : "Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon"} , "dateOfAnswer" : {"_value" : "2017-11-20", "_datatype" : "dateTime"} , "isMinisterialCorrection" : {"_value" : "false", "_datatype" : "boolean"} , "questionFirstAnswered" : [{"_value" : "2017-11-20T17:00:10.18Z", "_datatype" : "dateTime"} ]} , "answeringDeptId" : {"_value" : "16"} , "answeringDeptShortName" : {"_value" : "Foreign and Commonwealth Office"} , "answeringDeptSortName" : {"_value" : "Foreign and Commonwealth Office"} , "date" : {"_value" : "2017-11-01", "_datatype" : "dateTime"} , "hansardHeading" : {"_value" : "Commonwealth: Religious Freedom"} , "houseId" : {"_value" : "2"} , "legislature" : [{"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/terms/25277", "prefLabel" : {"_value" : "House of Lords"} } ], "questionText" : "To ask Her Majesty's Government what priority they have given to addressing freedom of religion or belief across the Commonwealth at next year\u2019s Commonwealth Summit; and what funding, if any, has been allocated by the Cabinet Office\u2019s Commonwealth Secretariat to deliver a programme of events around that issue in the run-up to the Summit.", "registeredInterest" : {"_value" : "false", "_datatype" : "boolean"} , "tablingMember" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/members/4349", "label" : {"_value" : "Biography information for The Lord Bishop of Leeds"} } , "tablingMemberPrinted" : [{"_value" : "The Lord Bishop of Leeds"} ], "uin" : "HL2806"} , {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/resources/782026", "AnsweringBody" : [{"_value" : "Foreign and Commonwealth Office"} ], "answer" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/resources/782026/answer", "answerText" : {"_value" : "
Her Majesty's Government remains firmly committed to the promotion and protection of Freedom of Religion or Belief (FoRB) in all countries. Throughout our diplomatic network, including our High Commissions, diplomats are instructed to take account of human rights, including the right to freedom of religion or belief and report back to London.<\/p>
On International Religious Freedom Day, I wrote to all Ambassadors and High Commissioners regarding the Foreign Commonwealth Office (FCO)'s work to protect and promote FoRB globally. I have also initiated a series of roundtable discussions on FoRB with civil society and faith leaders to increase our collaboration in this area. Ministers and officials raise individual cases with relevant authorities and highlight practices and laws that discriminate against people on the basis of their religion or belief. We also speak out publicly in support of FoRB, for example during my recent visit to Bangladesh in August 2017, I visited the Ahmadiyya Mosque in Dhaka and made a call for religious tolerance. We also include reporting on FoRB in our Annual Human Rights Report, which includes some Commonwealth countries.<\/p>
To support staff working on these issues, the FCO has re-issued its revised "toolkit" on FoRB and continues to provide training and seminars to increase religious literacy amongst staff.<\/p>"} , "answeringMember" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/members/4210", "label" : {"_value" : "Biography information for Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon"} } , "answeringMemberPrinted" : {"_value" : "Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon"} , "dateOfAnswer" : {"_value" : "2017-11-20", "_datatype" : "dateTime"} , "isMinisterialCorrection" : {"_value" : "false", "_datatype" : "boolean"} , "questionFirstAnswered" : [{"_value" : "2017-11-20T17:02:54.657Z", "_datatype" : "dateTime"} ]} , "answeringDeptId" : {"_value" : "16"} , "answeringDeptShortName" : {"_value" : "Foreign and Commonwealth Office"} , "answeringDeptSortName" : {"_value" : "Foreign and Commonwealth Office"} , "date" : {"_value" : "2017-11-01", "_datatype" : "dateTime"} , "hansardHeading" : {"_value" : "Commonwealth: Religious Freedom"} , "houseId" : {"_value" : "2"} , "legislature" : [{"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/terms/25277", "prefLabel" : {"_value" : "House of Lords"} } ], "questionText" : "To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they are taking steps ahead of the Commonwealth Summit in 2018 to document levels of government restrictions and societal hostility towards religious freedom across the Commonwealth.", "registeredInterest" : {"_value" : "false", "_datatype" : "boolean"} , "tablingMember" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/members/4349", "label" : {"_value" : "Biography information for The Lord Bishop of Leeds"} } , "tablingMemberPrinted" : [{"_value" : "The Lord Bishop of Leeds"} ], "uin" : "HL2807"} , {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/resources/782034", "AnsweringBody" : [{"_value" : "Foreign and Commonwealth Office"} ], "answer" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/resources/782034/answer", "answerText" : {"_value" : "
The threat posed by individuals who have gained combat experience and been further radicalised by spending time fighting for Daesh is an important issue for the UK and its international partners. Approximately 850 UK-linked individuals of national security concern have travelled to engage in the Syrian conflict. We estimate that just under half have returned to the UK and over 15 per cent have been killed in fighting in the region.<\/p>
This is a global challenge and the international community must work together, learn from each other's experiences and share best practice. There are two aspects to how we manage this threat: focusing on UK-linked individuals returning to the UK, and considering foreign terrorist fighter flows overseas.<\/p>
Everyone who returns to the UK from taking part in the conflict in Syria or Iraq must expect to be investigated by the police to determine if they have committed criminal offences and ensure that they do not pose a threat to our national security. The police have a range of legal powers they can use to manage any risk they pose. The UK supports its counter terrorism partners around the world to manage this risk by sharing information and experience, and by providing support to develop capabilities to manage the risk.<\/p>
<\/p>"} , "answeringMember" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/members/4210", "label" : {"_value" : "Biography information for Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon"} } , "answeringMemberPrinted" : {"_value" : "Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon"} , "dateOfAnswer" : {"_value" : "2017-11-20", "_datatype" : "dateTime"} , "isMinisterialCorrection" : {"_value" : "false", "_datatype" : "boolean"} , "questionFirstAnswered" : [{"_value" : "2017-11-20T17:01:43.713Z", "_datatype" : "dateTime"} ]} , "answeringDeptId" : {"_value" : "16"} , "answeringDeptShortName" : {"_value" : "Foreign and Commonwealth Office"} , "answeringDeptSortName" : {"_value" : "Foreign and Commonwealth Office"} , "date" : {"_value" : "2017-11-01", "_datatype" : "dateTime"} , "hansardHeading" : {"_value" : "British Nationals Abroad: Terrorism"} , "houseId" : {"_value" : "2"} , "legislature" : [{"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/terms/25277", "prefLabel" : {"_value" : "House of Lords"} } ], "questionText" : "To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the statement by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon on 1 November, what is the basis for their assessment that terrorists are \u201cflooding\u201d back into the United Kingdom; and what plans they have to prevent this from continuing.", "registeredInterest" : {"_value" : "false", "_datatype" : "boolean"} , "tablingMember" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/members/1854", "label" : {"_value" : "Biography information for Lord Marlesford"} } , "tablingMemberPrinted" : [{"_value" : "Lord Marlesford"} ], "uin" : "HL2815"} ], "itemsPerPage" : 10, "page" : 0, "startIndex" : 1, "totalResults" : 3, "type" : "http://purl.org/linked-data/api/vocab#Page"} }