Asked by: Baroness Berridge (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government how much of the Magna Carta Fund for Human Rights and Democracy will be allocated in 2017–18 to projects on freedom of religion or belief.
Answered by Baroness Anelay of St Johns
Projects that directly support freedom of religion or belief remain an important element of the Magna Carta Fund programme. In 2017/18 the Foreign and Commonwealth Office will spend £758,717 across six freedom of religion or belief projects. This equates to 7.2 percent of next year's Magna Carta Fund allocation and represents an increase on the funding awarded in 2016/17. This demonstrates Her Majesty's Government's continued commitment to supporting freedom of religion or belief worldwide.
Asked by: Baroness Berridge (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of reports of a new armed militia group, 3R, operating in Cameroon and the Central African Republic border region; and of the capacity of that group, the weapons they possess, the impact on the distribution of aid in that region, and whether they control any territory in that border region.
Answered by Baroness Anelay of St Johns
We are aware of the emergence of a new armed militia group called "Return, Reclamation, Rehabilitation," or "3R" which operates in the north of the Central African Republic (CAR). This group, and other militias operating in the transhumance corridors in the Ouham prefecture in northern CAR, are responsible for some of the most violent incidents reported in the country in the last 12 months.
We are also aware of recent claims that 3R is responsible for sexual violence, burning villages and displacing vulnerable people, with some reports listing the number of those displaced at 17,000. However, we do not hold information on the capacity of 3R or the weapons they possess.
We support President Touadera's efforts to implement disarmament, demobilization, repatriation and reintegration and call on all armed groups in the CAR to engage in the government's dialogue.
Asked by: Baroness Berridge (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the current security situation in the Central African Republic.
Answered by Baroness Anelay of St Johns
Despite encouraging political advances in the Central African Republic (CAR) in 2016, the security situation remains of grave concern. It is particularly bad outside the capital Bangui, where violence, looting and human rights abuses continue to occur with impunity with recent reports indicating that the violence has grown more severe since September 2016. We continue to advise against all travel to CAR.
Asked by: Baroness Berridge (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many staff members in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office are in the top five civil service grades; and how many of those are from a black or minority ethnic background.
Answered by Baroness Anelay of St Johns
As of the 30 November the total number of staff in the top five civil service grades and those that were from a black or minority ethnic (BME) background were:
Grade | Total | Total number of staff who have reported an ethnicity | Those that reported they were BME |
D7 | 430 | 368 | 22 |
SMS1 | 263 | 230 | 11 |
SMS2 | 102 | 92 | 6 |
SMS3 | 27 | 24 | 1 |
SMS4 | 3 | 2 | 0 |
Asked by: Baroness Berridge (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many heads of mission to international organisations from the Foreign and Commonwealth Office are from a black or minority ethnic background.
Answered by Baroness Anelay of St Johns
As of the 30 November, of the seven of Heads of Mission to international organisations that have reported their ethnicity (86% of the total number of Heads of Mission to international organisations), none are from a black or minority ethnic (BME) background.
Continuing to improve the Foreign and Commonwealth Office's record on diversity, equality and inclusion is fundamental to our aim of being the best diplomatic service in the world. We undertake a range of interventions to improve our leadership and management capability and to remove barriers to the progress of under-represented groups in the FCO, to help people reach their full potential. Action includes a bespoke talent development scheme for BME staff; role models from all backgrounds; diverse interview panels at all grades; diverse shortlists for senior positions as the norm; and outreach to attract diverse talent into the FCO, focused on BME candidates and those from a low-socio economic background.
Asked by: Baroness Berridge (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many resident heads of mission from the Foreign and Commonwealth Office are from a black or minority ethnic background.
Answered by Baroness Anelay of St Johns
As of the 30 November, 5.3% of our Heads of Mission reported they were from a black or minority ethnic (BME) background (based on a 98% reporting rate).
Asked by: Baroness Berridge (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what representations they have made to the government of Pakistan about the application of the death penalty for blasphemy.
Answered by Baroness Anelay of St Johns
I remain concerned about Ms Asia Bibi, following the postponement of her Supreme Court appeal hearing on 13 October. The British High Commission in Islamabad continues to monitor developments in her case closely. We raise regularly our concerns about misuse of the blasphemy laws with the Pakistani Government, and continue to urge Pakistan to adhere to its international obligations and uphold the rule of law. During his visit to Pakistan in March, the former Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my Rt Hon. Friend the Member for Runnymede and Weybridge (Mr Hammond), made clear our concerns about minority communities and misuse of the blasphemy laws.
The UK supported the EU statement of October 2014 following the decision of the Lahore High Court to uphold the conviction of Ms Bibi. We will continue to work with our EU and other international partners to ensure our views are made clear to the Pakistani authorities.
Asked by: Baroness Berridge (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government when they last made representations to the government of Pakistan concerning the trial of Asia Bibi for blasphemy; what was the nature of those representations; and what was the response by the government of Pakistan to those representations.
Answered by Baroness Anelay of St Johns
I remain concerned about Ms Asia Bibi, following the postponement of her Supreme Court appeal hearing on 13 October. The British High Commission in Islamabad continues to monitor developments in her case closely. We raise regularly our concerns about misuse of the blasphemy laws with the Pakistani Government, and continue to urge Pakistan to adhere to its international obligations and uphold the rule of law. During his visit to Pakistan in March, the former Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my Rt Hon. Friend the Member for Runnymede and Weybridge (Mr Hammond), made clear our concerns about minority communities and misuse of the blasphemy laws.
The UK supported the EU statement of October 2014 following the decision of the Lahore High Court to uphold the conviction of Ms Bibi. We will continue to work with our EU and other international partners to ensure our views are made clear to the Pakistani authorities.
Asked by: Baroness Berridge (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is their latest assessment of the security situation in the Central African Republic.
Answered by Baroness Anelay of St Johns
The security situation in the Central African Republic (CAR) is grave. Outside the capital Bangui, violence, looting, road-blocks, hostage-taking and human rights abuses continue to occur with relative impunity.
The security situation in Bangui is more stable than the rest of the country, having improved following the surge in violence in late September, but tensions still run high and we continue to advise against all travel to CAR.
Asked by: Baroness Berridge (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government how much the United Kingdom contributes to the cost of the UN peacekeeping force in the Central African Republic.
Answered by Baroness Anelay of St Johns
The UK contributes £23.2 million for the financial year 2014/15, and a projected £33.02 million for the financial year 2015/16, to the UN Peacekeeping Budget for the UN Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in the Central African Republic (MINUSCA). These are assessed (i.e. mandatory) contributions which are based on funding a fixed percentage of MINUSCA’s budget.