Asked by: Brendan O'Hara (Scottish National Party - Argyll and Bute)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, on what date her Department's officials started planning to provide HM Passport Office executive and administrative officers to assist UKVI teams; and who proposed the request for assistance.
Answered by Robert Jenrick
Staff resources are regularly redeployed across the Home Office to meet business demands and priorities. HM Passport Office take a flexible approach in supporting these priorities and demands when necessary.
Asked by: Brendan O'Hara (Scottish National Party - Argyll and Bute)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how much time was allocated to training (a) EO and (b) PO3 staff at HM Passport Office who have assisted UK Visas and Immigration teams with asylum applications; and what level of training was provided.
Answered by Robert Jenrick
Home Office staff are given all the necessary training to ensure that they are fully equipped to carry out their role. HM Passport Office staff who have assisted in the processing of asylum applications, were given the standard training time, with further supplementary training provided as necessary.
Asked by: Brendan O'Hara (Scottish National Party - Argyll and Bute)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many (a) EO and (b) PO3 staff are employed by HM Passport Office in (i) Glasgow, (ii) Liverpool and (iii) Belfast; and how many and what proportion of these staff have been asked to assist with (A) booking and (B) conducting interviews with asylum applicants on behalf of UK Visas and Immigration in the latest period for which data is available.
Answered by Robert Jenrick
The Home Office are unable to provide this information due to security reasons. The way data is captured does not differentiate between bookings and interviews.
Asked by: Brendan O'Hara (Scottish National Party - Argyll and Bute)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps he is taking to support for (a) victims of violence and (b) protesters in Suwayda.
Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The FCDO is following the protests in Suweida closely. The UK's permanent representative to the UN drew global attention to the protestors' cause in the UK's statement to the UN Security Council on 27 September. We condemned the regime's use of violence against peaceful demonstrators and demanded Damascus' adherence to international human rights standards. We will continue to monitor the situation and urge the regime to treat protestors with dignity respect. It is vital that Assad heed their calls for regime participation in the political process established by UNSCR 2254.
Asked by: Brendan O'Hara (Scottish National Party - Argyll and Bute)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent assessment his Department has made of the adequacy of the level of UK Official Development Assistance to Syria.
Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
FCDO aid budget is allocated in accordance with UK strategic priorities against a challenging financial climate.
There is a robust framework in place for allocating Official Development Assistance (ODA). In 2023, the UK committed up to £150 million at the Brussels Pledging Conference and up to £43 million to support the response to the earthquakes in Syria and Turkey, raising our total commitment to over £3.8 billion.
However, the situation's scale is immense, with Syria's overall aid requirements for 2023 only 29.44% funded. HMG encourages all international actors to do everything possible to ensure that sufficient aid reaches those in need.
Asked by: Brendan O'Hara (Scottish National Party - Argyll and Bute)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what representations he has made to his counterparts in Iraq on the potential effects of the proposed amnesty law that could result in Daesh members who have been convicted of (a) genocide against the Yazidi people and (b) other crimes being freed from detention.
Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK continues to support survivor and minority communities who suffered immense atrocities under Daesh. As members of the Global Coalition to Counter Daesh, we will continue to work with Iraq in order to ensure that Daesh cannot re-emerge. Together with our international partners we will continue holding Daesh accountable for their crimes and bringing them to justice. We are not able to comment on any individual investigations. We are monitoring the proposed amnesty bill, which has not been finalised or passed in to law.
Asked by: Brendan O'Hara (Scottish National Party - Argyll and Bute)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment he has made of the implications for his policies of the proposed amnesty law in Iraq that could result in Daesh members who have been convicted of (a) genocide against Yazidi people and (b) other crimes being freed from detention.
Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK continues to support survivor and minority communities who suffered immense atrocities under Daesh. As members of the Global Coalition to Counter Daesh, we will continue to work with Iraq in order to ensure that Daesh cannot re-emerge. Together with our international partners we will continue holding Daesh accountable for their crimes and bringing them to justice. We are not able to comment on any individual investigations. We are monitoring the proposed amnesty bill, which has not been finalised or passed in to law.
Asked by: Brendan O'Hara (Scottish National Party - Argyll and Bute)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, how many UK Daesh fighters (a) are currently serving criminal sentences and (b) may be freed if the proposed amnesty law for Daesh fighters is implemented in Iraq.
Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK continues to support survivor and minority communities who suffered immense atrocities under Daesh. As members of the Global Coalition to Counter Daesh, we will continue to work with Iraq in order to ensure that Daesh cannot re-emerge. Together with our international partners we will continue holding Daesh accountable for their crimes and bringing them to justice. We are not able to comment on any individual investigations. We are monitoring the proposed amnesty bill, which has not been finalised or passed in to law.
Asked by: Brendan O'Hara (Scottish National Party - Argyll and Bute)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with his international counterparts on steps to help secure the release of Yazidi women and girls abducted by Deash.
Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
We condemn in the strongest terms the atrocities committed by Daesh against all civilians, including Yazidi women and girls in Syria and Iraq. The UK led the UN Security Council to establish the UN Investigative Team to Promote Accountability for Crimes Committed by Daesh/ISIL (UNITAD) which has supported the Government of Iraq look for missing Yazidi women and girls. We continue to use our position at the UN to raise the plight of the Yazidi community, most recently at a UNITAD council session on 7 June.
We also advocated for the passing of the Iraqi Yazidi Survivors Law, an important step toward assistance and justice for survivors of sexual violence by Daesh. The UK is committed to helping Iraq fully implement the legislation, including providing funding support to the Directorate of Yazidi Affairs. The Minister of State for the Middle East, Lord (Tariq) Ahmad of Wimbledon met Yazidi communities and leaders to hear their experiences and reiterate UK support during his recent visit to Iraq.
Asked by: Brendan O'Hara (Scottish National Party - Argyll and Bute)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what (a) financial and (b) diplomatic support the Government is providing to help keep the peace process in South Sudan on track.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
Poor implementation of South Sudan's peace agreement is driving violence and a humanitarian crisis. On 8 May, I [Minister Mitchell] met with the South Sudanese Minister of Presidential Affairs and emphasised the need for immediate, tangible action on the peace process. The UK also raises concerns about lack of progress at the UN Security Council and Human Rights Council, and through Troika (UK, US, Norway) or Troika and EU statements. The UK funds peacebuilding programmes to address the root causes of subnational conflict in South Sudan and funds the placement of technical experts in both the ceasefire (Ceasefire & Transitional Security Arrangements Monitoring & Verification Mechanism) and peace agreement implementation (Reconstituted Joint Monitoring and Evaluation Commission) monitoring mechanisms.