Asked by: Carol Monaghan (Scottish National Party - Glasgow North West)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what financial support his Department is making available to tackle disease and infections in the developing world.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
The UK is committed to the fight against infectious diseases in the developing world and has a strong record of leadership in combatting their spread and impact. This includes our £1 billion contribution to the seventh replenishment of the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, TB and Malaria; as well as £1.65 billion to Gavi (the Vaccine Alliance) to immunise 300 million children and save up to 8 million lives from vaccine preventable diseases by 2025. We also invest in world-leading Product Development Partnerships such TB Alliance for new drugs, the global non-profit FIND for new diagnostics, Medicines for Malaria Venture (MMV) and Innovative Vector Control Consortium (IVCC). Our funding for catalytic interventions brings down the prices of new products and tackles barriers to widespread access.
Asked by: Carol Monaghan (Scottish National Party - Glasgow North West)
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 efforts to detect and treat HIV in sub-Saharan Africa.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
The UK remains a world leader in efforts to end the global AIDS epidemic and funds all key partners in the global AIDS response, including the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS), World Health Organization, Unitaid and the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria as well as the Robert Carr Fund.
Our recent pledge of £1 billion to the Global Fund will help to save over 1 million lives, including by providing antiretroviral therapy for 1.8 million people and HIV counselling and testing for 48 million people. Our funding for the Robert Carr Fund and UNAIDS supports initiatives to empower local civil society and grassroots organisations, predominantly in the Global South, to increase access to HIV prevention, testing and care services.
Asked by: Carol Monaghan (Scottish National Party - Glasgow North West)
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 the potential impact of the (a) proposed demolition of property in Haldwani and (b) other potential human rights abuses on the progress of trade discussions with her Indian counterpart.
Answered by Anne-Marie Trevelyan - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The British High Commission in New Delhi continues to monitor the situation in Haldwani, while recognising that this is a matter for India.
We will not pursue trade to the exclusion of human rights. We regard both as an important part of a mature and wide-ranging relationship with our international trading partners. We engage India on a range of human rights matters and, where we have issues, we raise them directly with the Government of India, including at Ministerial level.
Asked by: Carol Monaghan (Scottish National Party - Glasgow North West)
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 (a) Armenia and (b) Azerbaijan on de-escalating of tensions between those nations following recent developments in the Lachin corridor.
Answered by Leo Docherty - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for the Armed Forces)
I [Minister Docherty] issued a statement highlighting the importance of re-opening the Lachin corridor on 13 December and our Ambassadors in the region and other senior UK officials have reinforced this message with key interlocutors. This is consistent with our long-standing support for international efforts to facilitate a sustainable and peaceful settlement to the conflict. I [Minister Docherty] spoke to Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Bayramov on 17 September and met the Azerbaijani Ambassador on 9 November. The Rt. Hon Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon met Armenian Foreign Minister Mirzoyan on 15 December and reinforced the importance of de-escalation and a return to internationally facilitated negotiations. We continue to urge the governments of both Azerbaijan and Armenia to abide by all ceasefire commitments in good faith.
Asked by: Carol Monaghan (Scottish National Party - Glasgow North West)
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 (a) effectiveness and (b) appropriateness of Russian forces upholding the peace between Armenian and Azerbaijan.
Answered by Leo Docherty - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for the Armed Forces)
At this time the UK Government has not made an assessment of the effectiveness of the Russian 'peacekeeping' forces although we are aware of the terms of their deployment, as set out in the Trilateral Ceasefire Agreement of 2020. Any deployment of international observers should follow recognised and accepted international norms. We have been clear that there can be no military settlement to this conflict. As such, we welcome the continued efforts of international partners, including the recent deployment of EU and OSCE Monitoring Missions, to support stability and security in the region.
Asked by: Carol Monaghan (Scottish National Party - Glasgow North West)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps the Government is taking to help support the re-opening of the Lachin corridor in Nagorno Karabakh.
Answered by Leo Docherty - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for the Armed Forces)
The UK Government has made clear that the closure of the Lachin corridor during winter risks severe humanitarian consequences. Officials are in contact with humanitarian agencies, including the ICRC, about their assessment of the impact of the closure and the Government is a significant donor to agencies providing assistance on the ground. I [Minister Docherty] issued a statement highlighting the importance of re-opening the Lachin corridor on 13 December and our Ambassadors in the region and other senior UK officials have reinforced this message with key interlocutors. We also called for early resolution of this issue in our interventions in Vienna at the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) on 15 December and in New York at the UN Security Council on 20 December.
Asked by: Carol Monaghan (Scottish National Party - Glasgow North West)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, if he will support an independent fact finding mission on the Lachin corridor.
Answered by Leo Docherty - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for the Armed Forces)
The UK Government's primary objective has been to restore freedom of movement along the Lachin corridor in line with agreed principles and to avoid a situation requiring a humanitarian response. If an independent fact-finding mission was welcomed by all parties and would contribute to an early solution, then the UK would, in principle, support it. We have been clear that there can be no military settlement to this conflict. As such, we welcome the continued efforts of international partners, including the recent deployment of EU and OSCE Monitoring Missions, to support stability and security in the region.
Asked by: Carol Monaghan (Scottish National Party - Glasgow North West)
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 human rights situation in Pakistan following reports of attacks, harassment and the severe marginalisation of the Ahmadi community in that country.
Answered by Leo Docherty - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for the Armed Forces)
Pakistan is an FCDO human rights priority country. Protecting freedom of religion or belief for minority communities is central to the UK Government's human rights engagement in Pakistan. Minister for Development Andrew Mitchell raised the treatment of Ahmadi Muslims with Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on 9 January. On 14 December 2022 Lord (Tariq) Ahmad of Wimbledon, Minister for South Asia and Minister for Human Rights, also raised this issue with Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari. The British High Commission in Islamabad continues to engage at a senior level with government representatives and civil society; the High Commissioner raised the matter with Minister of State Hina Rabbani Khar on 4 January.
Asked by: Carol Monaghan (Scottish National Party - Glasgow North West)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether he has made recent representations to his Pakistani counterpart on the persecution of Ahmadi Muslims in Pakistan.
Answered by Leo Docherty - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for the Armed Forces)
Pakistan is an FCDO human rights priority country. Protecting freedom of religion or belief for minority communities is central to the UK Government's human rights engagement in Pakistan. Minister for Development Andrew Mitchell raised the treatment of Ahmadi Muslims with Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on 9 January. On 14 December 2022 Lord (Tariq) Ahmad of Wimbledon, Minister for South Asia and Minister for Human Rights, also raised this issue with Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari. The British High Commission in Islamabad continues to engage at a senior level with government representatives and civil society; the High Commissioner raised the matter with Minister of State Hina Rabbani Khar on 4 January.
Asked by: Carol Monaghan (Scottish National Party - Glasgow North West)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps he is taking with his Indian counterpart to ensure that the (a) human rights and (b) property rights of the residents of Haldwani are being respected.
Answered by Anne-Marie Trevelyan - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The British High Commission in New Delhi continues to monitor the situation in Haldwani, while recognising that this is a matter for India.
We engage India on a range of human rights matters, working with Union and State Governments, and with Civil Society, to build capacity and share expertise to promote human rights for all. Where we have any issues, we raise them directly with the Government of India, including at Ministerial level.