Asked by: Baroness Helic (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the possibility of a new United Nations, African Union or other regional peacekeeping force in Sudan.
Answered by Lord Benyon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Neither the UN nor the African Union have suggested peacekeeping as a suitable response to Sudan's conflict at this stage. The UK Government's main objectives remain to pursue all diplomatic avenues to end the violence in Sudan, improving humanitarian access and addressing human rights violations carried out by both the Sudanese Armed Forces and Rapid Support Forces. We continue to work closely with the UN, African Union and with counterparts from African and Gulf states as well as our closest allies to achieve these aims, which our partners share.
Asked by: Baroness Helic (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of (1) the number of children injured in Israel and Palestine since 7 October 2023, and (2) the level of medical support available for children in Gaza.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
We are supporting NGO and UN partners to deliver medical aid and care in the Gaza Strip. This includes support for primary healthcare, trauma and emergency care services, disease surveillance and outbreak response, and deployment of Emergency Medical Teams. We have targeted support for children through our £5.75 million contribution to UNICEF.
We are also exploring further options to help meet the medical needs of Palestinians.
The early work we have done shows there is much we can do in the region, for example helping in the field hospitals that have been established, helping to send medical teams to referral hospitals in the region and supporting organisations such as Medical Aid for Palestinians.
A shocking number of civilians including children, have been injured and killed in Gaza. We are calling for an immediate pause to get aid in and hostages out, then progress towards a sustainable, permanent ceasefire, without a return to destruction, fighting and loss of life.
Asked by: Baroness Helic (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask His Majesty's Government what (1) financial, and (2) non-financial, support they have provided to UK firms operating in Bosnia and Herzegovina since 2020; and whether this support is contingent on any (a) environmental, or (b) transparency, commitments.
Answered by Lord Johnson of Lainston - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
We have not provided financial support to UK businesses operating in Bosnia and Herzegovina since 2020. The Department for Business and Trade's Export Strategy sets out the support available, including the Export Support Service, a Country Director based in Sarajevo, the PM's Trade Envoy for the Western Balkans and a UK Export Finance Officer covering the region. UK companies focused on the green transition are a strategic priority for this support. Any UKEF support would follow robust transaction due diligence to ensure that any projects or contracts supported meet stringent international Environmental, Social and Human Rights standards.
Asked by: Baroness Helic (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what consideration they have given to supporting the temporary medical evacuation of severely injured children from Israel and Palestine to the UK in order to receive short-term, life-saving, specialist medical treatment.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
We are currently supporting NGO and UN partners to deliver medical aid and care in the Gaza Strip. This includes support for primary healthcare, trauma and emergency care services, disease surveillance and outbreak response, and deployment of Emergency Medical Teams. We are also exploring further options to help meet the medical needs of Palestinians.
Asked by: Baroness Helic (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the International Court of Justice handing down its ruling in South Africa's case against Israel, what measures they will put in place to meet their international obligations under the Genocide Convention.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
As a party to the Genocide Convention, the UK is fully committed to the prevention and punishment of genocide as appropriate under the Convention. We of course respect the role and independence of the International Court of Justice (ICJ). However we have stated that we have considerable concerns about this case, which is not helpful in the goal of achieving a sustainable ceasefire. Israel has the right to defend itself against Hamas in line with International Humanitarian Law (IHL), as we have said from the outset. Our view is that Israel's actions in Gaza cannot be described as a genocide, which is why we thought South Africa's decision to bring the case was wrong and provocative. We have long advocated for the release of hostages and the need to get more aid in. We are clear that an immediate pause is necessary to get aid in and hostages out, and then we want to build towards a sustainable, permanent ceasefire, without a return to the fighting.
Asked by: Baroness Helic (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government how many children from Ukraine have been evacuated to the UK to receive specialist medical care since February 2022.
Answered by Lord Markham - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government is committed to supporting the health needs of Ukrainian arrivals. All arrivals are entitled to full and free access to the National Health Service, including specialist services where required. On 14 March 2022, 21 Ukrainian children with cancer and their families were evacuated to England and triaged at seven NHS hospitals. The funding for the oncology patients was agreed by local NHS trusts, and the Government continues to support the cohort and their families.
Asked by: Baroness Helic (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government how much funding they have provided to support specialist medical care in the UK for children evacuated from Ukraine since February 2022.
Answered by Lord Markham - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government is committed to supporting the health needs of Ukrainian arrivals. All arrivals are entitled to full and free access to the National Health Service, including specialist services where required. On 14 March 2022, 21 Ukrainian children with cancer and their families were evacuated to England and triaged at seven NHS hospitals. The funding for the oncology patients was agreed by local NHS trusts, and the Government continues to support the cohort and their families.
Asked by: Baroness Helic (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what discussions they have had with the government of Israel on the provision of UK practical support for investigating, and caring for survivors and witnesses of, sexual and gender-based violence committed on 7 October in Israel.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
We are aware of the shocking reports of sexual violence perpetrated by Hamas on 7 October. It is vital that reports of sexual violence are investigated independently, rigorously, and sensitively to avoid re-traumatisation, that perpetrators are held to account, and that survivors receive holistic support. We continue to engage regularly with partners, including Israel and the United Nations, to urge that all reports of sexual violence in conflict are investigated, that survivors have access to specialized services and justice, and that parties abide by applicable international humanitarian and human rights law.
Asked by: Baroness Helic (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask His Majesty's Government how many transfers of residency orders have been issued by family courts in the past two years; and of those, (1) how many were issued following findings or allegations of parental alienation, and (2) how many were made in favour of a parent previously accused of child sexual abuse.
Answered by Lord Bellamy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)
Transfers of residency orders, incidences of findings of child sexual abuse in private law proceedings, and cases involving allegations of parental alienation or alienating behaviours are not recorded centrally. Such information could only be obtained by analysis of individual case files at disproportionate costs.
Regarding the term “parental alienation”: as part of his judgment in the case of Re C, the President of the Family Division outlined that most family judges regard the label of “parental alienation”, and the idea that it “may be a diagnosable syndrome” as being “unhelpful”. He noted that instead the courts should focus on identifying any specific “alienating behaviours”.
Asked by: Baroness Helic (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask His Majesty's Government how many cases involving allegations of parental alienation or alienating behaviours have been heard in private law family proceedings in each of the past five years; and how many findings of parental alienation or alienating behaviours were made in those proceedings.
Answered by Lord Bellamy - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)
Transfers of residency orders, incidences of findings of child sexual abuse in private law proceedings, and cases involving allegations of parental alienation or alienating behaviours are not recorded centrally. Such information could only be obtained by analysis of individual case files at disproportionate costs.
Regarding the term “parental alienation”: as part of his judgment in the case of Re C, the President of the Family Division outlined that most family judges regard the label of “parental alienation”, and the idea that it “may be a diagnosable syndrome” as being “unhelpful”. He noted that instead the courts should focus on identifying any specific “alienating behaviours”.