Asked by: Lord Campbell of Pittenweem (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what discussions they have had with the US government on facilitating the supply of humanitarian relief to the government of Iran for the treatment of Iranian citizens with COVID-19.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon
The? UK, along with France and Germany (the E3), have expressed their full solidarity with all impacted by? COVID-19? in Iran. We are working with the international community to ensure that Iran receives the humanitarian support it needs: the E3 have provided a EUR 5 million package of financial and material assistance to Iran via the World Health Organisation and UN bodies to help with the response. We also continue to engage the US on a range of policy matters relating to Iran, including how the international community can best support the Iranian Government's response to the COVID-19 crisis in Iran. We welcome the new US Treasury factsheet issued on 16th April summarising the humanitarian exemptions to sanctions against Iran and offering additional guidance for individuals and governments.
Asked by: Lord Campbell of Pittenweem (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask Her Majesty's Government how many members of the UK Armed Forces are currently deployed on NATO operations, broken down by service.
Answered by Baroness Goldie - Shadow Minister (Defence)
In total there are 2,005 members of the UK Armed Forces deployed on NATO operations. The Navy has 14 deployed, the Army has 1,727 deployed and the RAF has 264 deployed.
This table provides greater detail should it be required.
Country | Army | RAF | Navy | Total |
LITHUANIA | 2 | 164 | 1 | 167 |
ESTONIA | 838 | 1 | 1 | 840 |
POLAND | 136 | 1 | 0 | 137 |
KOSOVO | 20 | 0 | 0 | 20 |
IRAQ | 4 | 1 | 1 | 6 |
AFGHANISTAN | 727 | 97 | 11 | 835 |
Total | 1727 | 264 | 14 | 2005 |
Asked by: Lord Campbell of Pittenweem (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they intend to continue meeting their NATO commitment to spending two per cent of GDP on defence in real terms.
Answered by Baroness Goldie - Shadow Minister (Defence)
Her Majesty's Government is committed to spending at least 2% of GDP on Defence each year of this Parliament, as per the Defence Investment Pledge. The UK is one of only a handful of nations that meets, and in our case exceeds the 2% target, and remains the largest European Defence spender in NATO.
Asked by: Lord Campbell of Pittenweem (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for International Trade:
To ask Her Majesty's Government how many open general export licences have been granted in the last five years to Commonwealth countries; and to which countries.
Answered by Lord Grimstone of Boscobel
Open General Export Licences (OGELs) are not granted for specific exports to specific destinations, rather they are pre-published licences that permit the export of specified items to a range of specified countries, following an online registration. They remove the need for exporters to apply for individual licences, providing the exporters can meet the terms and conditions set out in the licence.
There are also EU General Export Authorisations (EUGEAs) under the dual-use regulations. These permit the export of certain specified dual-use items to specified destinations, subject to the terms and conditions of the licences. They are equivalent to OGELs and are available for use by any exporter within the EU, as well as the United Kingdom for now.
At the end of the transition period, the EUGEAs will be retained as part of the retained Dual-Use Regulation. They will be renamed as “Retained General Export Authorisations” and will be available for use by exporters based in the United Kingdom, to export from the United Kingdom.
In total, there are 65 OGELs and six EUGEAs currently available. To provide actual registrations over the last five years can only be provided at disproportionate cost, as my Department would have to review each live and archived OGEL/EUGEA, which will include reviewing country additions/removal dates and analysing specific registrations over each period.
Asked by: Lord Campbell of Pittenweem (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for International Trade:
To ask Her Majesty's Government how many open general export licences have been granted in the last five years to African countries not in the Commonwealth; and to which countries.
Answered by Lord Grimstone of Boscobel
Open General Export Licences (OGELs) are not granted for specific exports to specific destinations, rather they are pre-published licences that permit the export of specified items to a range of specified countries, following an online registration. They remove the need for exporters to apply for individual licences, providing the exporters can meet the terms and conditions set out in the licence.
There are also EU General Export Authorisations (EUGEAs) under the dual-use regulations. These permit the export of certain specified dual-use items to specified destinations, subject to the terms and conditions of the licences. They are equivalent to OGELs and are available for use by any exporter within the EU, as well as the United Kingdom for now.
At the end of the transition period, the EUGEAs will be retained as part of the retained Dual-Use Regulation. They will be renamed as “Retained General Export Authorisations” and will be available for use by exporters based in the United Kingdom, to export from the United Kingdom.
In total, there are 65 OGELs and six EUGEAs currently available. To provide actual registrations over the last five years can only be provided at disproportionate cost, as my Department would have to review each live and archived OGEL/EUGEA, which will include reviewing country additions/removal dates and analysing specific registrations over each period.
Asked by: Lord Campbell of Pittenweem (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for International Trade:
To ask Her Majesty's Government how many open general export licences have been granted in the last five years to South American countries; and to which countries.
Answered by Lord Grimstone of Boscobel
Open General Export Licences (OGELs) are not granted for specific exports to specific destinations, rather they are pre-published licences that permit the export of specified items to a range of specified countries, following an online registration. They remove the need for exporters to apply for individual licences, providing the exporters can meet the terms and conditions set out in the licence.
There are also EU General Export Authorisations (EUGEAs) under the dual-use regulations. These permit the export of certain specified dual-use items to specified destinations, subject to the terms and conditions of the licences. They are equivalent to OGELs and are available for use by any exporter within the EU, as well as the United Kingdom for now.
At the end of the transition period, the EUGEAs will be retained as part of the retained Dual-Use Regulation. They will be renamed as “Retained General Export Authorisations” and will be available for use by exporters based in the United Kingdom, to export from the United Kingdom.
In total, there are 65 OGELs and six EUGEAs currently available. To provide actual registrations over the last five years can only be provided at disproportionate cost, as my Department would have to review each live and archived OGEL/EUGEA, which will include reviewing country additions/removal dates and analysing specific registrations over each period.
Asked by: Lord Campbell of Pittenweem (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for International Trade:
To ask Her Majesty's Government how many open general export licences have been granted in the last five years to the United States.
Answered by Lord Grimstone of Boscobel
Open General Export Licences (OGELs) are not granted for specific exports to specific destinations, rather they are pre-published licences that permit the export of specified items to a range of specified countries, following an online registration. They remove the need for exporters to apply for individual licences, providing the exporters can meet the terms and conditions set out in the licence.
There are also EU General Export Authorisations (EUGEAs) under the dual-use regulations. These permit the export of certain specified dual-use items to specified destinations, subject to the terms and conditions of the licences. They are equivalent to OGELs and are available for use by any exporter within the EU, as well as the United Kingdom for now.
At the end of the transition period, the EUGEAs will be retained as part of the retained Dual-Use Regulation. They will be renamed as “Retained General Export Authorisations” and will be available for use by exporters based in the United Kingdom, to export from the United Kingdom.
In total, there are 65 OGELs and six EUGEAs currently available. To provide actual registrations over the last five years can only be provided at disproportionate cost, as my Department would have to review each live and archived OGEL/EUGEA, which will include reviewing country additions/removal dates and analysing specific registrations over each period.
Asked by: Lord Campbell of Pittenweem (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask Her Majesty's Government how many Armed Forces personnel have been deployed to support activities related to the COVID-19 pandemic, broken down by service.
Answered by Baroness Goldie - Shadow Minister (Defence)
As of 11 May 2020, the breakdown by single Service of personnel currently deployed to support the Government’s response to COVID-19 is as follows:
Navy | 180 |
Army | 3,505 |
Air | 154 |
Asked by: Lord Campbell of Pittenweem (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to support the (1) aerospace, (2) aviation, and (3) automotive industries in the UK.
Answered by Lord Callanan - Shadow Minister (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
We are supporting the aerospace industry through the Aerospace Growth Partnership (AGP) with £1.95 billion of funding for research and development (R&D), matched by industry, over 13 years up to 2026. UK Research & Innovation (UKRI) is also providing £125 million to the Future Flight Challenge for research on greener ways of flying through advances in electric and autonomous flight technology, which is expected to generate an additional £175 million of match-funding from industry. We are also co-investing in aerospace productivity improvement and innovation programmes to support small and medium-sized businesses backed with over £135 million of public funding.
In addition, aerospace companies are currently drawing upon the unprecedented £330 billion package of additional COVID-19 business support measures that the Government has put in place. We are in discussion with the sector, through the AGP, about how to best support the industry to recover.
Aviation is also an important sector for the UK’s economy, and businesses across the industry will also be able to draw on our package of economic measures. This includes a Bank of England scheme for firms to raise capital, two business interruption loan guarantee schemes for businesses of all sizes, Time to Pay flexibilities with tax bills, financial support for employees, and VAT deferrals.
If businesses across these sectors face severe and urgent financial difficulties due to COVID-19 following the Government’s cross-economy wage and financial interventions, we remain open to discussions about bespoke financial support as a last resort. Any intervention would need to protect the interests of taxpayers. Requests may be made formally, in writing, to the Business Secretary.
Furthermore, the Government has a long-standing programme of support to maintain the competitiveness of the UK automotive sector. Through our landmark Automotive Sector Deal, we have secured joint investment and long-term commitments to develop world-leading battery technologies, positioning the UK as the location of choice for the development and deployment of connected and autonomous vehicle technologies.
The Government, alongside industry, has jointly committed almost £1.5 billion through the Advanced Propulsion Centre and Faraday Battery Challenge to research, develop, and commercialise low-carbon automotive innovations. In October last year, we announced up to £1 billion of new money to support R&D to support electric vehicle manufacture.
Asked by: Lord Campbell of Pittenweem (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what discussions they have had with the governments of Russia and the United States about extending the New Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty, which is due to expire in February 2021.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon
We recognise the contribution the New START Treaty has made to international security by increasing transparency and mutual confidence amongst the two largest Nuclear Weapons States. The Treaty has delivered a reduction of strategic nuclear arsenals, enhanced notably by its robust verification mechanism. We support its continued implementation and have encouraged the US to extend New START while negotiating any successor agreement.
However, we are also clear that New START has limitations. It does not include new Russian systems. Nor does it place any limits on China's growing nuclear arsenal. We therefore see real advantage in President Trump's call for a new strategic arms control agreement including China. We urge both Russia and China to engage seriously with the US on this initiative.
The UK regularly discusses these issues with the US and Russia. We recently had discussions on strategic arms control at a meeting of the five Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) nuclear weapon states, or "P5", which took place in London on 12-13 February. At that meeting, all five states, including the US and Russia, underlined the importance of reducing nuclear risk and promoting stability, and agreed that dialogue on strategic risk reduction should continue.