Asked by: Andrew Selous (Conservative - South West Bedfordshire)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, what discussions he has had with his Israeli counterpart on opening up the port of Ashdod to aid supplies for Gaza.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
The British Government has repeatedly called on Israel to open fully Ashdod Port for aid delivery.
Asked by: Andrew Selous (Conservative - South West Bedfordshire)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, what assessment he has made of the autonomy of Hong Kong’s (a) economic, (b) monetary and (c) financial systems.
Answered by Anne-Marie Trevelyan - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The latest Six-Monthly report on Hong Kong, published on 19 September, notes that Hong Kong's economic, monetary, and financial systems remain distinct and robust from mainland China. The Hong Kong SAR Government has maintained a free market economic and trade system, retaining autonomy in deciding their economic and trade policies. Hong Kong continues to be recognised as an international financial centre with sole discretion over its monetary and financial policies.
Asked by: Andrew Selous (Conservative - South West Bedfordshire)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, what information his Department holds on (a) the raid by Israel Defence Forces on the premises of Action around Bethlehem Children with Disability in Gaza on 3 January 2024 and (b) the destruction of paperwork and the removal of children's clothing; and whether he has held discussions with his Israeli counterpart on this matter.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
We are aware of these reports. We continue to stress the importance of the Israeli security forces providing appropriate protection to the Palestinian civilian population, in particular the need to protect children. In our dialogue with the Israeli authorities we have recognised their legitimate need to deploy security measures. However, we encourage them to deploy these in a way which minimises tension. In instances where there have been accusations of excessive use of force, we have advocated swift, transparent investigations.
We continue to call for international humanitarian law to be respected and civilians to be protected. Too many civilians have been killed and we want to see Israel take greater care to limit its operations to military targets and avoid harming civilians and destroying homes. We regularly raise the issue with the Israeli authorities, including encouraging transparent investigations into whether use of live fire had been appropriate and to use restraint in deploying live fire.
Asked by: Andrew Selous (Conservative - South West Bedfordshire)
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 Brazilian counterpart on preventing illegal gold mining in Brazil since 1 January 2023.
Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK regularly engages with the Brazilian Government, indigenous leadership, and civil society to understand the drivers and impacts of illegal gold mining and to promote human rights. In late February, His Majesty's Ambassador accompanied Sonia Guajajara, Brazil's Minister for Indigenous Peoples, to the Javari Valley to discuss these issues with the Association for Indigenous Peoples (UNIVAJA). The UK is funding a three-year initiative to reduce environmental crime in the Amazon region and supports the Challenge Fund which investigates the impact of illegal gold mining across northern Brazil.
Asked by: Andrew Selous (Conservative - South West Bedfordshire)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether he has held discussions with representatives of Indigenous peoples and local communities in Brazil on gold mining on Indigenous land.
Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK regularly engages with the Brazilian Government, indigenous leadership, and civil society to understand the drivers and impacts of illegal gold mining and to promote human rights. In late February, His Majesty's Ambassador accompanied Sonia Guajajara, Brazil's Minister for Indigenous Peoples, to the Javari Valley to discuss these issues with the Association for Indigenous Peoples (UNIVAJA). The UK is funding a three-year initiative to reduce environmental crime in the Amazon region and supports the Challenge Fund which investigates the impact of illegal gold mining across northern Brazil.
Asked by: Andrew Selous (Conservative - South West Bedfordshire)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether he is taking diplomatic steps to support the partnership between the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Indonesia and Brazil to reduce deforestation.
Answered by Anne-Marie Trevelyan - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK is committed to working with partners to halt and reverse forest loss globally by 2030. Indonesia, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and Brazil are home to some of the world's most important forests, which must be protected to meet our goal of keeping within 1.5 degrees of temperature rise. The UK is committed to working with forest countries to ensure that we collectively deliver on the commitment made by 145 governments at COP26 in Glasgow to halt and reverse forest loss while delivering sustainable development and promoting an inclusive rural transformation.
Asked by: Andrew Selous (Conservative - South West Bedfordshire)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with his international counterparts on tackling illegal gold mining across the world.
Answered by Anne-Marie Trevelyan - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK Government is committed to responsible gold extraction, for example, through encouraging compliance with the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) Due Diligence Guidance for Responsible Mineral Supply Chains from Conflict-Affected and High-Risk Areas. The UK has funded OECD projects in West Africa and Colombia to promote local capacity building and uptake of the OECD guidance. The UK has also funded European Partnership for Responsible Minerals projects in the Great Lakes region in Africa to increase the proportion of responsibly sourced minerals, working across the whole of the supply chain. In April, we are preparing to discuss responsible mining with industry leaders at the Ghana Responsible Gold Mining Summit as part of Ghana's commitment to eradicate illegal mining.
Asked by: Andrew Selous (Conservative - South West Bedfordshire)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether he has had recent discussions with his Qatari counterpart on (a) the deaths of migrant workers building the World Cup stadia, (b) LGBTQ+ freedoms in Qatar and (c) freedom of religion and belief in Qatar for people of all faiths; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
We welcome the steps Qatar has taken on workers' rights. The priority is now full implementation and enforcement of those reforms. The UK Migration and Modern Slavery Envoy visited Doha on 9 October to discuss how the UK can partner with Qatar and the International Labour Organisation to support progress. The Foreign Secretary raised LGBT+ concerns ahead of and during his recent visit to Qatar. We welcome Qatar's establishment of the Doha International Centre for Interfaith Dialogue which hosts an annual interfaith dialogue. We will continue to encourage equal treatment and the respect of individual rights including LGBT+ and the freedom of religion or belief for all.
Asked by: Andrew Selous (Conservative - South West Bedfordshire)
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 reports that Israel will retrospectively legalise outposts in the West Bank; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
We are clear that settlements are illegal under international law and threaten the viability of a Two State Solution. The UK urges the Government of Israel to permanently end its settlement expansion and settlement activity in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem. Israeli outposts in the West Bank are also illegal under international and Israeli law, and should be removed entirely.
Asked by: Andrew Selous (Conservative - South West Bedfordshire)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether British businesses were given the opportunity to bid for the St Helena airport contract; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Nigel Adams
British businesses were given the opportunity to bid for the St Helena Airport contract. On three separate occasions the St Helena Government sought expressions of interest through Official Journal of the European Union (OJEU), this was in line with UK Government procurement regulations for large infrastructure projects at the time.