Asked by: Kevan Jones (Labour - North Durham)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, pursuant to the Answer of 15 March 2024 to Question 18074 on Falkland Islands: Ports, whether the Falkland Islands Government sought advice from his Department prior to the awarding of a contract to Harland & Wolff to support delivery of a port facility.
Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office played no role in Harland & Wolff being named as the preferred bidder for the delivery of a new port facility in Stanley. Further to my answer of 15 March 2024 to written PQ 18074, any potential redevelopment of the port facility in Stanley is a matter for the Falkland Islands Government and the awarding of contracts for the redevelopment of the port is a commercial matter between the Falkland Islands Government and the companies involved.
Asked by: Kevan Jones (Labour - North Durham)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, whether his Department has had discussions with the Falkland Islands Government on the awarding of a contract to Harland & Wolff to support delivery of a port facility.
Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK Government is proud of the expertise offered by British companies such as Harland and Wolff.
As a self-governing UK Overseas Territory, any potential redevelopment of the port facility in Stanley is a matter for the Falkland Islands Government. The awarding of contracts for the redevelopment of the port is a commercial matter between the Falkland Islands Government and the companies involved.
Asked by: Kevan Jones (Labour - North Durham)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what discussions he has had with his counterparts in Cyprus on the National Security Bill.
Answered by Leo Docherty - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for the Armed Forces)
The UK government has engaged extensively - including at senior official and Ministerial level - with the Republic of Cyprus on the National Security Bill. This included a meeting with the FCDO Permanent Under-Secretary on 14 March and the Security Minister on 29 March. We continue to engage the government of Cyprus at all levels, in both the UK and in Cyprus, on our wide-ranging bilateral interests.
Asked by: Kevan Jones (Labour - North Durham)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether he has made an assessment of the potential impact of the National Security Bill on diplomatic relations with the Government of Cyprus.
Answered by Leo Docherty - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for the Armed Forces)
The bilateral relationship between the UK and Cyprus has never been stronger. Our shared commitment to working together on a wide range of priority areas is underlined in the 2019 Defence and Security Co-operation Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) and the comprehensive bilateral MoU signed last year. The National Security Bill (NSB) will ensure that the UK can continue to protect its sensitive sites under UK law, as is currently the case under the Official Secrets Act 1911. As Lord Sharpe said when he made a statement in the House of Lords on 18 January, the NSB will in no way contravene the 1960 Treaty of Establishment of the Republic of Cyprus.
Asked by: Kevan Jones (Labour - North Durham)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps her Department is taking to support the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea.
Answered by Vicky Ford
It is a priority for the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office with the UK Government to implement, uphold and strengthen the United Nations Convention on the Law of The Sea (UNCLOS). UNCLOS provides a framework for developing more detailed treaties and instruments that tackle areas of interest to the UK such as the Protocol against smuggling migrants, fisheries instruments, instruments concerning pollution and conservation.
The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office are championing the development of a new Implementing Agreement on marine biodiversity of the High Seas negotiations on which were recently suspended in New York but are expected to resume early in 2023. The UK continues to work through the International Maritime Organisation, Regional Fisheries Management Organisations and other bodies to develop regulations, guidance and best practices that support safety, security and conservation of the ocean. We are also deploying our military assets to uphold freedoms where they are challenged, and delivering capacity building to countries to support effective and sustainable management of their marine zones.
Asked by: Kevan Jones (Labour - North Durham)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, with reference to the Answer to Question 45069 on 13 September 2021 on Palestinians: Overseas Aid, for what reason her Department does not publish Partnership Principles Assessments.
Answered by Amanda Milling - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
In line with our transparency commitment policy, the FCDO publishes Memorandums of Understanding and Annual Programme Reviews for programmes in the Occupied Palestinian Territories on DevTracker. We do not publish Partnership Principles Assessments. We have an active dialogue with the Palestinian Authority (PA) on issues relating to the 'partnership principles' and assess that the PA continues to demonstrate a credible commitment to our agreements.
Asked by: Kevan Jones (Labour - North Durham)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, with reference to the Memorandum of Understanding between the UK and the Palestinian Authority, whether her Department has raised concerns with representatives of the Authority about an article in Al-Hayat Al-Jadida on 5 April 2021 referring to the Park Hotel suicide bombers as self-sacrificing and heroic.
Answered by Amanda Milling - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
Our partnership with the Palestinian Authority includes a commitment from the Palestinian leadership to adhere to the principle of non-violence and to tackle any language and actions that could incite violence or hatred. We continue to urge the Israeli and Palestinian leaderships to avoid engaging in, or encouraging, any type of action and language that makes it more difficult to achieve a negotiated solution to the conflict.
Asked by: Kevan Jones (Labour - North Durham)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, if she will place a copy of her Department’s Memorandums of Understanding with the Palestinian Authority for 2020/21 and 2021/22 in the House of Commons Library.
Answered by James Cleverly - Home Secretary
In line with our transparency commitments, our 2020/2021 and 2021/2022 Memorandums of Understanding with the Palestinian Authority will be made available on DevTracker shortly.
Asked by: Kevan Jones (Labour - North Durham)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment she has made of further opportunities for UK-Israel collaboration following the signing of UK-Israel Strategic Partnership.
Answered by James Cleverly - Home Secretary
The memorandum of understanding, signed on 29 November and accessible here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/uk-israel-strategic-partnership-memorandum-of-understanding-2021, commits to the development of a new, bespoke UK-Israel Bilateral Roadmap. This Roadmap will define UK-Israel cooperation for the next decade across the breadth of the bilateral relationship.
Asked by: Kevan Jones (Labour - North Durham)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether all British Council staff that have applied under the ARAP scheme are now in the UK.
Answered by James Cleverly - Home Secretary
45 former British Council employees have already arrived in the UK, together with their dependents. In August we also agreed to resettle over 50 British Council contractors. Many of these have already arrived in the UK with their families. We are working with the Home Office and the Ministry Of Defence in order to make sure that the rest of those who are eligible to come to the UK can do so.