Asked by: Ben Maguire (Liberal Democrat - North Cornwall)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether he has made representations to his Saudi counterpart on the cases of seven Egyptian nationals facing execution for non-lethal drug offences.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK strongly opposes the death penalty in all countries and circumstances. We regularly discuss human rights with the Saudi authorities, including individual cases of concern. I raised the cases of several Egyptian nationals with the Saudi authorities this year. The Government will continue to engage on this matter.
Asked by: Ben Maguire (Liberal Democrat - North Cornwall)
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 President Trump on global security.
Answered by Stephen Doughty - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office are deepening defence and security ties with the US to uphold peace and security, working together to respond to a more contested and volatile world. Both the Prime Minister and the Foreign Secretary regularly engage with our US counterparts on wide ranging security issues. When the Foreign Secretary last spoke with Marco Rubio, they discussed efforts to reach a ceasefire in Gaza, the war in Ukraine, and our commitment to Iran never developing or acquiring a nuclear weapon.
Asked by: Ben Maguire (Liberal Democrat - North Cornwall)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether the formal mechanisms set out in section 2 of the International Criminal Court Act 2001 have been triggered in relation to the arrest warrant for Benjamin Netanyahu issued by the International Criminal Court on 21 November 2024.
Answered by Stephen Doughty - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
If the UK receives a request for arrest and surrender or a request for provisional arrest from the International Criminal Court (ICC) for an indicted individual who is visiting the UK, then these warrants will go into a domestic legal progress. It is this process through our independent courts that determines whether or not to endorse, or issue, the warrant in accordance with the UK's ICC Act 2001.
Asked by: Ben Maguire (Liberal Democrat - North Cornwall)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what the expected timeframe is between an ICC arrest warrant being issued and an arrest being made in the UK; and whether any preparatory legal or operational steps can be taken in advance of an individual's arrival in the UK to ensure immediate enforcement upon entry.
Answered by Stephen Doughty - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
We respect the independence of the International Criminal Court (ICC) which is the primary international institution for investigating and prosecuting the most serious crimes of international concern. There is a domestic legal process through our independent courts that determines whether to endorse an ICC arrest warrant in accordance with the UK's ICC Act 2001. The process has not been used to date because the UK has never been visited by an individual subject to an ICC arrest warrant. An individual subject to an ICC arrest warrant must be in the UK for any arrest to be made. The Government is unaware of any planned visits to the UK by individuals subject to ICC arrest warrants.
Asked by: Ben Maguire (Liberal Democrat - North Cornwall)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, if he will ensure that (a) warrants requested by the International Criminal Court are prepared promptly and (b) he is aware of potential visits by individuals subject to International Criminal Court scrutiny.
Answered by Stephen Doughty - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
We respect the independence of the International Criminal Court (ICC) which is the primary international institution for investigating and prosecuting the most serious crimes of international concern. There is a domestic legal process through our independent courts that determines whether to endorse an ICC arrest warrant in accordance with the UK's ICC Act 2001. The Government is unaware of any planned visits to the UK by individuals subject to ICC arrest warrants.
Asked by: Ben Maguire (Liberal Democrat - North Cornwall)
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 merits of introducing legislation to ratify the UN Global Ocean Treaty.
Answered by Anneliese Dodds
The Government is completely committed to ratification of the Agreement under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea on the Conservation and Sustainable Use of Marine Biological Diversity of Areas Beyond National Jurisdiction (BBNJ Agreement, also known as the "High Seas Treaty" or "Global Oceans Treaty"), which is in line with our determination to reinvigorate the UK's wider international leadership on climate and nature. Work is in hand on the measures needed to implement the detailed and complex provisions of the Agreement before the UK can ratify.
Asked by: Ben Maguire (Liberal Democrat - North Cornwall)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps he is taking to help protect the rights of children in countries experiencing the worst impacts of climate change.
Answered by Anneliese Dodds
This Government is committed to the promotion, protection and realisation of children's rights. We know that children are disproportionately at risk from the effects of climate change, and children and young people will be at the forefront of shaping a resilient, sustainable future. The UK-led Glasgow Climate Pact urges Parties and stakeholders to ensure meaningful youth participation and representation in multilateral, national and local decision-making processes. We championed this approach at COP29, where I met with youth climate activists from developing countries, and where UK Special Representative for Climate Rachel Kyte attended events alongside universities and the UN Youth Office to highlight the critical role of youth in climate action.
Asked by: Ben Maguire (Liberal Democrat - North Cornwall)
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 help support unsustainable debt burdens and service payments from countries in Africa.
Answered by Anneliese Dodds
Supporting developing countries to tackle unsustainable debt is a key development priority of this government. Where we are a creditor, we have fully engaged in debt restructuring negotiations. We welcome recent Common Framework debt agreements with Zambia and Ghana.
We are also focussed on strengthening the system for the future. This means improving debt transparency, strengthening debt management, global implementation of sustainable lending and borrowing practices, and wider roll out of Natural Disaster Clauses which pause debt repayments when a climate or health disaster hits.