China

Lord Collins of Highbury Excerpts

Wednesday 17th June 2020 Lords Chamber

[Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon]

My Lords, the noble Lord makes an important point about students—not just Hong Kong students but Chinese students—who study here. That will be very much in the mix in the announcements made on the BNO issue.

[Lord Collins of Highbury (Lab)]

My Lords, it is two years after the sanctions Act, and the noble Lord assured us that we would see secondary legislation on Magnitsky. Two weeks ago, the Foreign Secretary even said that these news powers of targeted sanctions could be used in respect of breaches in Hong Kong, police brutality and other actions. Will the noble Lord assure us that we will use those sanctions and that they will be in force before the Summer Recess, and that we will be able to target those abuses, so that we have action on human rights abuses and not simply words?

[Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon]

My Lords, I assure the noble Lord that I am cognisant of his continued interest in this respect. To quote the Prime Minister: “Watch this space.”

Press Freedom

Lord Collins of Highbury Excerpts

Monday 8th June 2020 Lords Chamber

[Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon]

My Lords, on the noble Baroness’s second question, obviously, given the focus on Covid-19, we have not been able to make progress on that Security Council resolution to the extent that I would have liked, as Minister for the UN. However, I assure her that our work in this respect will continue, and I will shortly have a discussion with our acting representative in New York on how we can make further progress. I will write to her regarding the question she raised concerning Colombia.

[Lord Collins of Highbury (Lab) [V]]

My Lords, UNESCO and the Netherlands have set a new date in October for hosting the World Press Freedom Conference. Will the UK participate with a high-level delegation, and what consideration has been given to the International Federation of Journalists’ draft UN convention on the safety and independence of journalists and other media professionals?

[Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon]

My Lords, I can confirm that we will look to participate in the next media freedom confidence—with Canada and other key partners—and to have high-level representation in that respect. On the resolution that has been passed, we certainly look to that and indeed other representations we receive on strengthening collaboration and collective action in order to protect journalists and ensure media freedom around the world.

Yemen: Humanitarian Aid Funding

Lord Collins of Highbury Excerpts

Thursday 4th June 2020 Lords Chamber

Asked by

[Lord Collins of Highbury]

To ask Her Majesty’s Government, following the United Nations fundraising summit for Yemen on 2 June, what plans they have (1) to increase their humanitarian aid funding to Yemen, and (2) to make representations to other countries regarding similar funding increases.

The Question was considered in a Virtual Proceeding via video call.

--- Later in debate ---

[Lord Collins of Highbury (Lab)]

My Lords, I thank the Minister for that response. However, as he knows, the summit failed to reach its target by $1 billion. Last night, “Channel 4 News” showed how Covid has arrived in Aden and clearly has spread to the rest of the country. What are the Government doing to encourage others to alleviate it, in particular the United Arab Emirates, which is itself contributing to the hardship? Why has it not given money? What is he doing to ensure that the peace process gets back on track?

[Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon]

The noble Lord makes two important points. I assure him that we share the disappointment over the fact that the target for the summit was not met. He is indeed correct that countries such as the UAE did not announce any donations. However, we continue to lobby those countries to step up, as I said in my original Answer, and we will continue to do so bilaterally.

On the Covid response, the challenge is immense. Yemen was suffering prior to Covid, and it has made the situation worse. We are working closely with the likes of the World Health Organization, which has led the UN Covid-19 response in Yemen. The UN has set out an additional $180 million-budget to tackle Covid in Yemen. I also assure the noble Lord that we will continue to lobby partners for a lasting peace agreement to resolve the conflict, without which we will continue to have these crisis situations. We are very cognisant of our role as the UN Security Council penholder on Yemen.

Hong Kong: Human Rights

Lord Collins of Highbury Excerpts

Thursday 4th June 2020 Lords Chamber

[Lord Collins of Highbury (Lab)]

My Lords, I have two quick points. I welcome the Government’s announcements on visa arrangements. The Foreign Secretary suggested that this would apply only to the 350,000 current BNO passport holders in Hong Kong. The Prime Minister subsequently indicated that it would also include the 2.5 million eligible to apply for the passport. Which is correct?

Hong Kong has seen the most brutal response to peaceful protest. Earlier this week, the Foreign Secretary said that he raised with the Hong Kong authorities last August the need for an independent inquiry. He then indicated that one response to the failure of the Hong Kong authorities to act would be to consider the new Magnitsky-type sanctions. When will we see the promised legislation from the sanctions Act approved by Parliament?

Hong Kong

Lord Collins of Highbury Excerpts

Tuesday 2nd June 2020 Lords Chamber

[Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon]

My Lords, I assure my noble friend that we continue to stand by our obligations as a co-signatory to “one country, two systems”. We give hope to those human rights defenders who fight for democracy in Hong Kong that we will continue to uphold those obligations, not just for the United Kingdom but to remind China and the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of their obligations and commitment to both that agreement and the obligations that lie beneath it.

[Lord Collins of Highbury (Lab)]

I want to return to the issue of British national overseas citizens in Hong Kong. In this morning’s Statement, the Foreign Secretary said, as the Minister just repeated, that if China pushes through this legislation, we will act on their rights. I welcome the announcement, but clarity is needed now. When will the Government tell BNOs in Hong Kong what their rights will be? Will they take urgent consultation now?

[Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon]

My Lords, I assure the noble Lord that we take our obligations to BNO passport holders very seriously. Both the Foreign Secretary and the Home Secretary are directly engaged on this agenda. We have made our position absolutely clear: if China acts, we will be compelled to act on the basis that I have outlined.

Covid-19: Refugee Camps

Lord Collins of Highbury Excerpts

Wednesday 20th May 2020 Lords Chamber

Asked by

[Lord Collins of Highbury]

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the response of international institutions to the impact of COVID-19 on refugee camps.

The Question was considered in a Virtual Proceeding via video call.

[The Minister of State, Foreign and Commonwealth Office and Department for International Development (Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon) (Con)]

My Lords, I am deeply concerned about Covid-19’s impact on refugees. The United Kingdom is at the forefront of the response and we have pushed to ensure that vulnerable groups, including refugees, are factored into international plans. We are working closely with international partners to provide dedicated support in refugee camps, including hand-washing stations and isolation and treatment centres. Partners are rigorously assessed before they receive funding, with robust checks and measures to ensure that they are delivering effectively.

[Lord Collins of Highbury (Lab)]

My Lords, the head of the UN Refugee Agency warned earlier this week that Covid cases appear to be multiplying fast in Yemen. Almost 10 million people are one step away from famine and half the country’s health facilities have been destroyed. Can the Minister detail what we are doing in the UN and with allies to urgently support the people of Yemen?

British Citizens Stranded Overseas

Lord Collins of Highbury Excerpts

Thursday 14th May 2020 Lords Chamber

[Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon]

The noble Viscount raises two questions. On the point made by him and the noble Lord, Lord Campbell, anyone who works within the charter sphere will know that this is not a free-for-all. Manifests have to be determined and air traffic has to be allowed for. Equally, airspace in various parts of the world has been closed, and we have been working under extremely challenging circumstances. On a central command centre, that has been operating through the Foreign Office. As I said earlier, we have seen a very successful repatriation effort.

[Lord Collins of Highbury (Lab)]

The Foreign Secretary announced on Monday a special fund for those stranded, to help with food, accommodation and other essential items. Yesterday, when I checked the UK Government website, it still said that assistance was limited to travel. Can the Minister tell us when and how people will be told about this new fund? Is it a loan or a grant?

[Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon]

It is a loan which the noble Lord has asked about. It has been rolled out as a pilot exercise in four countries. We hope to announce the more general rollout in the coming days and weeks.

Syria

Lord Collins of Highbury Excerpts

Wednesday 13th May 2020 Lords Chamber

[The Lord Speaker (Lord Fowler)]

Minister, there is something seriously wrong with your sound production, but we will go on.

[Lord Collins of Highbury (Lab)]

I agree with the Minister that no one should be able to act with impunity, and that includes agents of the Assad regime. Certainly, the NGO experience of distributing through a Damascus hub suggests that lifting sanctions would not change the situation for millions of Syrians in the north. Can the Minister update us on what his efforts are achieving in keeping aid corridors open through renewal of UN Resolution 2504?

[Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon]

The noble Lord raises an important point on Resolution 2504. Most recently, my right honourable friend the Foreign Secretary had a call with the Minister about the importance of keeping those corridors open. We hope that not only will this happen but that we will be able to open up additional humanitarian corridors.

Syria

Lord Collins of Highbury Excerpts

Thursday 30th April 2020 Lords Chamber

[The Lord Speaker (Lord Fowler)]

I call the noble Baroness, Lady Cox. We cannot hear her, so will move on to the noble Lord, Lord Collins of Highbury,

[Lord Collins of Highbury (Lab)]

Perhaps I may press the Minister more strongly on Resolution 2504. All NGOs are really concerned about the routes providing access to Idlib, so what will he be doing before the July deadline to ensure that we get other allies and P5 members to support greater humanitarian access?

[Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon]

As the noble Lord will be aware, we were really disappointed that Russia and China vetoed that humanitarian Security Council resolution, which had provided cross-border life-saving measures for many people in Syria. We are currently working with partners in the P5 as well as the other members of the Security Council to ensure that we get a resolution that works and which, most importantly, retains and opens further corridors for humanitarian relief on the ground to allow the NGOs, which do an incredible job, increased access.

Covid-19: Repatriation of UK Nationals

Lord Collins of Highbury Excerpts

Thursday 30th April 2020 Lords Chamber

[Lord Collins of Highbury (Lab)]

I thank the noble Lord for repeating the Statement. First, I thank him and all the FCO staff for their tireless efforts to support those stranded. I know from the cases I have referred and raised how committed they have been to help, and it has been much appreciated. However, it is difficult to fully grasp the scale of the repatriation still required. Even if we consider only those who have reached out to their MPs, the issue is clearly an enormous one.

There used to be a system for recording data on UK citizens abroad, but it was scrapped. Last month, in questions to James Duddridge, my honourable friend Stephen Doughty asked that, at the very least, medical or vulnerable cases should be recorded immediately, so that they could be prioritised at a later stage when repatriation started. Sadly, that did not happen. Can the noble Lord confirm that the FCO is now fully recording numbers, and will he publish these at regular intervals, so that we can better understand progress? In the absence of data at present, is he able to estimate how many UK nationals are currently stranded abroad, or is the 57,500 estimate from Monday still applicable?

The chair of the Foreign Affairs Committee reported yesterday that it has been conducting a survey asking people about their experiences of being repatriated to the UK. The main issue it found is the difficulty some people encountered with communications when they were abroad, or the inability to receive communications, with one problem area being the High Commission in India. What is the FCO doing to address this issue, both in the short and the long term?

The announcement that 19,000 people have been brought back on 93 charter flights is welcome, but Germany, for example, had repatriated 60,000 citizens on 240 charter flights by early April. I appreciate that the noble Lord will be keen to stress that more than a million have returned to the UK on commercial routes, but when we consider IATA’s estimate that air traffic is currently down by 90% over Europe, it is clear that we can no longer rely on commercial flights. Will the Minister therefore commit his Government to urgently scale-up the number of chartered flights available? In response to reports of UK nationals being priced out by the cost of flights home, can he offer an update on the recent steps taken to remove that financial barrier?

Many UK nationals have been unable to travel to the airports which are still operating, due to either ill health or problems with internal travel, and so require consular support to help them in this journey. The Foreign Office must be equipped and prepared to support any UK national abroad in any aspect of their return home. I welcome what the Minister said about that support, but we need to address the issue of isolated people.

When UK nationals arrive home, it cannot be considered “job done”. If the Government are to contain the virus, there must be rigorous testing, tracing and isolation. It is therefore regrettable that the Government have yet to confirm any intentions to test or quarantine arrivals to the UK, despite press reports suggesting that such plans are in the pipeline. Can the Minister therefore confirm whether UK nationals, and others, will be asked to quarantine on arrival in the UK and, if so, for how long? Can he also confirm whether the Government will introduce testing of those arriving in the UK?

Finally, I very much welcome the pledge of support to Gavi. I hope that the Minister will be able to advise noble Lords what that pledge means for encouraging others; we do need more. I also welcome the commitment to, and investment in, CEPI. On Tuesday, I met its chief executive in a seminar, and I welcome its efforts to establish a vaccine. However, time is short, and action is necessary now.

[Baroness Northover (LD)]

My Lords, I too thank the noble Lord for repeating the Statement. I welcome the financial contributions to Gavi, the WHO and others, whose efforts are clearly vital in this crisis. As we know, their work saves lives. I also welcome the contribution to the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations, something which no Government after this must neglect. I pay tribute to the huge amount of work undertaken by the FCO, DfID and our embassies and high commissions during this crisis. However, we seem to be behind other countries in getting people home.

On 27 March, the EU had brought home half a million citizens. The United Kingdom chartered six flights for 1,000 British citizens through the EU crisis scheme; Germany chartered over 100 flights for over 20,000 German citizens. On 1 April, the Independent reported that Air France had flown more than 200 rescue missions but that

“the UK has yet to reach double figures in government-sponsored repatriation flights.”


By mid-April, only 5,000 out of 20,000 UK citizens in India had been brought back. Why did we lag so far behind our EU colleagues? The Government emphasised —and still do—that they were working with other countries, yet we seemed particularly unwilling to work with our EU colleagues. Why was that? Looking at where we are now, can the Minister answer the question from the noble Lord, Lord Collins: how many more people need to be brought home?

The Minister mentioned Nigeria in the Statement. I am sure he will know that there has been a surge of deaths in Kano state, an indication that coronavirus may be more widespread there than the Nigerian authorities are admitting. Are we making quarantine plans for those who come back from Nigeria?

The Minister mentioned that we have tripled our capacity in consular centres. That is obviously welcome, but we have brought home many diplomats and their families from countries with weak health systems. Are we working jointly with the EU to maximise our capacity? There have been many complaints about inadequate capacity and communication.

The Minister mentioned PPE. Again, we all knew from reports on Twitter, if nowhere else, that the United Kingdom had been invited to join the original EU scheme. No one can say that we did not know about it. So why did we not? The Minister will know that the Government’s latest Statement on this is not persuasive.

However, I am very glad to hear that we intend to act globally. Some countries appear to be using the cover of this crisis. Some are taking authoritarian measures. In Hong Kong, human rights campaigners such as the esteemed lawyer Martin Lee have been arrested. What will we do to challenge these actions? Israel has just formed a coalition Government who may now plan to annex the Occupied Territories. Can the Minister assure us that we will make it plain that this is contrary to international law and will be resisted? I look forward to the Minister’s response.