Asked by: Chris Green (Conservative - Bolton 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 implications for his policies of confirmation by Iran's envoy to the International Atomic Energy Agency that Iran has two cascades of advanced centrifuges with almost four times the enrichment capacity of previous ones in operation at its underground Natanz facility.
Answered by James Cleverly - Shadow Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government
Iran's continued systematic non-compliance with its nuclear commitments under the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPoA) is jeopardising our efforts to preserve the JCPoA and risks compromising the important opportunity for a return to diplomacy with the new US Administration. We continue to engage closely with the US and JCPoA participants on this, and have made our position clear, including in recent E3 statements, that Iran must halt this activity, and return to compliance with its JCPoA commitments without delay.
Asked by: Chris Green (Conservative - Bolton 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 US counterpart on reports that Iran has started enriching uranium with a new cascade of centrifuges in its underground Natanz plant.
Answered by James Cleverly - Shadow Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government
Iran's continued systematic non-compliance with its nuclear commitments under the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPoA) is jeopardising our efforts to preserve the JCPoA and risks compromising the important opportunity for a return to diplomacy with the new US Administration. We continue to engage closely with the US and JCPoA participants on this, and have made our position clear, including in recent E3 statements, that Iran must halt this activity, and return to compliance with its JCPoA commitments without delay.
Asked by: Chris Green (Conservative - Bolton West)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, whether (a) Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps and (b) other groups subject to UK terrorism and terrorist financing sanctions will be targeted under the Global Human Rights Sanctions Regulations 2020.
Answered by James Cleverly - Shadow Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government
The UK is committed to holding Iran to account on a wide range of human rights issues. The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps is already sanctioned by the UK, as are a further 82 serious human rights violators and one entity, as an important part in keeping pressure on the Iranian regime to change its approach.
It is not appropriate to speculate on who may be designated under the Global Human Rights sanctions regime in the future. To do this could reduce the impact of the designations. We will keep all evidence and potential listings under close review.
Asked by: Chris Green (Conservative - Bolton West)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
What his diplomatic priorities are for Africa after the UK leaves the EU.
Answered by Harriett Baldwin - Shadow Minister (Business and Trade)
The UK’s diplomatic priorities for Africa are to support a prosperous, safer, healthier continent, which sees the UK as a partner of choice for peace and security, trade and economic development, and which is less reliant on aid and more resilient to shocks and stresses.
Asked by: Chris Green (Conservative - Bolton West)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
What recent assessment he has made of diplomatic relations with Poland.
Answered by Alan Duncan
British-Polish relations are extremely strong. As the Prime Minister said during the recent second Intergovernmental Consultations (IGC) in Warsaw, “Our annual dialogue demonstrates the common ground we share, the importance we attach to our bilateral relationship, and the benefits it brings.”
Asked by: Chris Green (Conservative - Bolton West)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps the Government is taking to end the violence against Rohingya people in Myanmar; and what support the Government is providing to Bangladesh to support displaced Rohingya refugees.
Answered by Mark Field
The UK has raised Burma three times at the UN Security Council (UNSC) since the outbreak of violence. On 13 September, we secured the first agreed UNSC press elements on Burma in eight years, which called on the Burmese authorities to stop the violence and allow humanitarian access. The Security Council discussed Burma in an open session on 28 September. We are considering with other Council members what further steps are needed.
The Foreign Secretary convened a meeting of foreign ministers at the UN on 18 September which echoed the Security Council's call for an end to the violence. I reiterated this call at the Organisation for Islamic Cooperation's ministerial meeting on 19 September where the UK was praised for its humanitarian and political leadership in response to this crisis.
The UK supported the UN Human Rights Council's decision in September to extend the mandate of its Fact-Finding Mission to Burma to cover the recent outbreak of violence in Rakhine.
The Foreign Secretary represented the UK at the EU Foreign Affairs Council on 16 October, securing agreement by member states to the suspension of all Burmese military visits to the EU and a review of all defence cooperation, and to consider additional measures if the situation in Rakhine does not improve. This followed the UK's lead in suspending co-operation with the Burmese military announced by the Prime Minister in September.
The UK is the largest bilateral donor in Bangladesh supporting displaced Rohingya refugees and the vulnerable communities which host them. DFID has worked for a number of years in Cox's Bazar, and has stepped up efforts since the latest wave of Rohingya arrived in Bangladesh from Burma following the outbreak of violence in Rakhine on 25 August. DFID has committed an additional £42 million to support the latest influx of refugees from Rakhine with the most recent tranche of £12m, which I announced at a UN pledging conference in Geneva on 23rd October, and will match £5 million of UK public donations to the Disasters Emergency Committee (DEC) emergency appeal.