Asked by: Lord Godson (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they will place in the Library of the House a copy of the different presentations given to civil servants on the Issues in Countering Terrorism course by the Centre for Defence Studies at King's College London, redacted as necessary for national security and public safety.
Answered by Lord Benyon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The FCDO does not own the Intellectual Property Rights for the presentations given on the course and cannot place them in the Library of the House.
Asked by: Lord Godson (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government how much the Home Office has spent on the Issues in Countering Terrorism course by the Centre for Defence Studies at King's College London in the last 12 months, and on what dates the training has taken place.
Answered by Lord Sharpe of Epsom - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)
The Issues in Countering Terrorism course, delivered by King's College London, was held four times in 2023: 28th February to 2nd March; 28th to 30th March; 18th, 19th and 21st September; and 18th to 20th December. The FCDO has spent £109,583.68 on those courses in total, with 32 people attending each course. The course is administered through a Cabinet Office contract.
Civil servants attend a variety of training courses in order to learn. As required by the Civil Service Code, and as the public rightly expects, all civil servants must act impartially.
Asked by: Lord Godson (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they plan to provide further advice to the Metropolitan Police and other territorial police forces as to the selection of, and relationships with, strategic partners, with a view to ensuring diversity in approach but excluding partnerships with those who have expressed extremist views, following recent reports concerning two members of the London Muslim Communities Forum.
Answered by Lord Sharpe of Epsom - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)
The Police operate independently from the Home Office. The Prevent Duty Guidance (2023) provides recommendations to police on what to consider when conducting due diligence and ensuring they have an understanding of associated risks.
The Government does not tolerate those who spread divisive and harmful narratives and efforts to counter extremism span a broad range of Government and law enforcement activity and we must persist in our efforts to challenge extremist narratives, disrupt the activity of radicalising groups, and directly tackle the causes of radicalisation.