Asked by: Ruth Jones (Labour - Newport West and Islwyn)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether he has made a recent assessment of access to adequate burial rights for members of the Bahá'í community in Egypt; and whether he has raised this issue with his Egyptian counterpart.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK is committed to defending freedom of religion or belief (FoRB), for all. The Egyptian Government has stated its commitment to protecting the rights and freedom of worship as well as the protections enshrined in the Egyptian constitution. We continue to regularly raise rights concerns with the Egyptian authorities.
Asked by: Ruth Jones (Labour - Newport West and Islwyn)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent assessment he has made of the potential implications for his policies on freedom of religion or belief of reports of official interference in peaceful gatherings of the Baha’i community in Iran.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Iran's abhorrent repression of Baha'is is unacceptable. We continue to take action in multilateral fora to spotlight abuses against Baha'is and hold Iran to account. On 18 March, at the Human Rights Council, the UK's Permanent Representative to the UN, said: "The past year has seen an escalation in the arrest and detention of Baha'i women as authorities seek to suppress their religious identity and autonomy as women". We were integral to the delivery of a new Iran human rights resolution, adopted by the Human Rights Council on 3 April, which renewed and expanded the mandate of the Fact-Finding Mission on Iran, which will investigate a broader range of abuses including against religious minorities, in an important step towards accountability. Our Ambassador to Iran continues to raise human rights directly with the Iranian Government.
Asked by: Ruth Jones (Labour - Newport West and Islwyn)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment he has made of recent reports that India forcibly deported over 80 Rohingya refugees to Myanmar; and what steps his Department is taking to raise concerns about the (a) religious freedom and (b) safety of Rohingya Muslims facing refoulement with his Indian counterpart.
Answered by Catherine West - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK is firmly committed to the protection and promotion of human rights around the world. We are aware of reports concerning the deportation of Rohingya refugees from India to Myanmar, and we take such reports seriously.
We regularly engage with the Government of India on a range of human rights issues, including the treatment of minority communities and international humanitarian principles. We continue to encourage all countries to ensure that the rights and safety of vulnerable populations, including the Rohingya, are respected and protected. The UK is a strong supporter of international efforts to assist Rohingya refugees. The long-term solution for Rohingya refugees remains a voluntary, safe and dignified return to Rakhine state in Myanmar, once the conditions there allow.
Asked by: Ruth Jones (Labour - Newport West and Islwyn)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to support faith-based organisations providing humanitarian assistance to vulnerable communities impacted by recent conflict in Lebanon.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Whilst the UK does not currently directly support any faith-based organisations in Lebanon, we remain committed to supporting vulnerable Lebanese communities, including refugees, regardless of religion or nationality. The UK has played a leading role in addressing the humanitarian situation in Lebanon and provided £56 million in humanitarian aid to support thousands of people affected by the conflict in Financial Year 2024/25. This included support to both displaced and host communities, to help them meet their basic needs and support them to access essential services It also included £4.5 million to the Lebanon Humanitarian Fund, which delivers multisectoral support through a network of local and international Non-Governmental Organisations, including faith-based organisations.
We recognise that post-ceasefire needs in Lebanon remain high. The UK's ongoing response will continue, including our work with international partners to tackle immediate and long-term priorities.
Asked by: Ruth Jones (Labour - Newport West and Islwyn)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent steps he has taken to (a) monitor violence against Christian communities in northern Nigeria and (b) support efforts to hold perpetrators to account.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK Government continues to monitor events in northern Nigeria closely. Terrorist groups, including Boko Haram and Islamic State West Africa, target all those who do not subscribe to their extremist views, including both Christians and Muslims. These incidents are distinct from the ongoing intercommunal violence across Nigeria. We regularly raise both issues with key stakeholders in Nigeria, most recently during Lord Collins's visit to Nigeria (28-30 May), where he held discussions with the Foreign Minister, Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Head of the National Centre for Counter-Terrorism, and UN partners on these issues. Additionally, through the UK-Nigeria Security and Defence Partnership (SDP), the UK is working with Nigeria to tackle violence against all civilian communities, including those of different religious backgrounds and belief systems. As part of this dialogue, we previously welcomed a commitment from Nigeria on timely, effective, and human rights compliant investigations of, and prosecutions for, terrorism crimes.
Asked by: Ruth Jones (Labour - Newport West and Islwyn)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent assessment he has made of the potential implications for his policies of the treatment of Christian (a) leaders and (b) communities in Nicaragua.
Answered by Catherine West - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
We share widespread international concern about the relentless suppression of human rights in Nicaragua, including in relation to freedom of religion or belief, which the UK remains committed to championing for all. We continue to urge the Nicaraguan authorities to re-establish democratic freedoms through our engagements in country and with the Nicaraguan Embassy in London, and through our public statements in international fora. We most recently raised these concerns on 28 February 2025 at the 58th session of the UN Human Rights Council.
Asked by: Ruth Jones (Labour - Newport West and Islwyn)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether his Department has made any recent representations to Nigeria on the security situation for Christians in northern Nigeria.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK Government regularly advocates for the protections of all vulnerable communities, including religious minorities, through our position at the UN, G7 and other multilateral fora as well as raising Freedom of Religion or Belief (FoRB) directly with the Government of Nigeria. In his meeting with the Deputy Speaker of the Nigerian House of Representatives on 22 January, the Minister for Africa raised the importance of FoRB and resolving intercommunal conflict and tensions. Additionally, through our Strengthening Peace and Resilience programme (SPRiNG) the UK is providing £38 million to help tackle the root causes of intercommunal conflict and reduce rural violence in northwest and north-central Nigeria, including by supporting collaboration and productive livelihoods for both farmers and pastoralists, and strengthening conflict early warning, management and response.
Asked by: Ruth Jones (Labour - Newport West and Islwyn)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what criteria his Department uses to determine which countries are monitored for violations of freedom of religion or belief.
Answered by Stephen Doughty - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK remains strongly committed to freedom of religion or belief (FoRB) for all abroad. It is our firm opinion that no one should live in fear because of what they do or do not believe in. We are championing the right to FoRB and promoting tolerance and mutual respect through our engagement in multilateral fora including the UN and Article 18 Alliance, our bilateral work, working collaboratively with the Special Envoy for FoRB, David Smith and our programme funding.
Our network of diplomatic posts around the world monitor and report on human rights, including FoRB. We also draw on other information sources including the regular reports of the United Nations Special Rapporteur for FoRB.
Asked by: Ruth Jones (Labour - Newport West and Islwyn)
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 international partners on fostering interfaith tolerance in Myanmar in light of the recent military attacks on churches, monasteries, and other religious sites; and what plans his Department has to integrate education on religious freedom and tolerance within its initiatives in the region.
Answered by Catherine West - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK supports the protection of all religious minority groups in Myanmar. We consistently raise concerns about the discrimination of religious minorities and their places of worship in international fora, including co-sponsoring a UN Human Rights Council resolution on Myanmar in April 2024, which underlined the importance of addressing the root cause of violations against religious minorities. Additionally, we fund the UN's Independent Investigative Mechanism for Myanmar, and the Myanmar Witness programme to collect and preserve evidence of violations and abuses, including atrocities against religious minority groups. Freedom of Religion or Belief (FoRB) is incorporated within the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office's broader human rights training programme across the region, including workshops on religious engagement for our staff.
Asked by: Ruth Jones (Labour - Newport West and Islwyn)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment he has made of the implications for his Department’s policies of the call for investigations into the recent violence in Latakia, Syria, on religious communities by the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
We welcome the interim authorities' establishment of a fact-finding committee to investigate and prosecute individuals who committed crimes during the violence. We are in regular discussion with our UN and NGO partners, as well as with other international partners, to get a fuller understanding of the impact of the violence and to assess needs and responses. As my statement to the House on 10 March made clear, the interim authorities must ensure the protection of all Syrians, set out a clear path to transitional justice, and make progress towards an inclusive political transition. We will judge them by their actions and will continue to monitor closely the treatment of all civilians in Syria.