Asked by: Chris Law (Scottish National Party - Dundee Central)
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 adequacy of the Government's policy on the 2030 roadmap for UK-Israel bilateral relations.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
As the Foreign Secretary said in his statement to the house on 20 May, the UK will be reviewing our cooperation with Israel on the UK-Israel 2030 Bilateral roadmap. The continued actions of this Israeli Government mean that it is necessary for the UK Government to take this step. We have been clear that we need to see an immediate ceasefire in Gaza with the release of all hostages and significantly more aid consistently entering Gaza.
Asked by: Chris Law (Scottish National Party - Dundee Central)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether he plans to encourage China to (a) ratify the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and (b) uphold commitments under the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights.
Answered by Catherine West - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
As UN member states, both the UK and China have a responsibility to uphold core pillars of the UN, including universal human rights. We continue to encourage China to ratify the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, and to uphold the various international obligations they have freely signed up to.
We raise our concerns at the highest levels: the Prime Minister, Foreign Secretary, Chancellor, Energy Secretary and I all raised human rights recently with our Chinese counterparts. We also continue to work closely with our international partners to hold China to account for human rights violations. For example, joining a statement led by Australia on Xinjiang and Tibet at the UN General Assembly in October.
Asked by: Chris Law (Scottish National Party - Dundee Central)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether his Department officially recognises the Tibetan people as having a distinct (a) religious, (b) cultural, (c) linguistic and (d) historical identity.
Answered by Catherine West - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
This Government stands firm on human rights, including China's repression of the people of Tibet, and the erosion of Tibetan language, history and culture.
We raise our concerns at the highest levels: the Prime Minister, Foreign Secretary, Chancellor, Energy Secretary and I all raised human rights recently with our Chinese counterparts. We also continue to work closely with our international partners to hold China to account for human rights violations. On July 2 the UK convened an event in the Human Rights Council to reaffirm the right to Freedom of Religion or Belief for all, including Tibetan Buddhists.
Asked by: Chris Law (Scottish National Party - Dundee Central)
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 implications for his policies of the Promoting a Resolution to the Tibet-China Dispute Act in the US.
Answered by Catherine West - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
This Government stands firm on human rights, including China's repression of the people of Tibet. This includes concerns about the erosion of Tibetan cultural rights and traditions by the Chinese authorities.
We raise our concerns at the highest levels: the Prime Minister, Foreign Secretary, Chancellor, Energy Secretary and I all raised human rights recently with our Chinese counterparts. We also continue to work closely with our international partners to hold China to account for human rights violations. For example, joining a statement led by Australia on Xinjiang and Tibet at the UN General Assembly in October.
Asked by: Chris Law (Scottish National Party - Dundee Central)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, when the Government plans to respond to the correspondence of 28 April 2025 from the hon. Member for Dundee Central.
Answered by Abena Oppong-Asare - Parliamentary Secretary (Cabinet Office)
There are no plans to respond to the letter dated 28 April 2025.
Asked by: Chris Law (Scottish National Party - Dundee Central)
Question to the Scotland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of the Government's policies on child poverty on children in Scotland.
Answered by Kirsty McNeill - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Scotland Office)
The Honourable Member will be aware of recent announcements about Best Start Family Hubs, free school meals and affordable childcare - actions made possible because of a budget he and his colleagues voted against.
A key way to tackle poverty is through decent work which is why I'm proud that more than 4,000 workers in Dundee got a pay rise through this government’s plans to Make Work Pay. The Child Poverty Taskforce is considering all available levers to give every child the best start in life as part of the strategy.
Asked by: Chris Law (Scottish National Party - Dundee Central)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority claims from Scottish applicants remain unresolved more than (a) 12, (b) 24 and (c) 36 months after a judicial‑review judgment quashing the original decision.
Answered by Alex Davies-Jones - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)
The table below shows the number of applications for criminal injuries compensation which are unresolved more than (a) 12 months, (b) 24 months, and (c) 36 months after the Court of Session quashed the decision of the First-tier Tribunal in judicial review proceedings.
Time | Number unresolved |
12 months to 24 months | 5 or fewer |
Over 24 months to 36 months | 5 or fewer |
Over 36 months | 5 or fewer |
The Criminal Injuries Compensation Scheme 2012 contains safeguards where an applicant is dissatisfied with the outcome of their application. All applicants have the right to request that their initial decision is reviewed by a different claims officer. If the applicant remains dissatisfied following review, they have the right to appeal to the independent First-tier Tribunal. Thereafter, an applicant can apply for ‘judicial review’ of the First-tier Tribunal’s decision. In Scotland, judicial review claims are heard by the Court of Session. In England & Wales, judicial review claims are heard by the Upper Tribunal.
We have answered ‘5 or fewer’ to mitigate the risk of individuals being identifiable from our response.
Asked by: Chris Law (Scottish National Party - Dundee Central)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps her Department is taking to secure an agreement on a balanced youth experience scheme with the EU; when the Balanced Youth Experience Scheme for 18-30 year olds between the EU and UK will become operational; who will be eligible to participate; and what support her Department will provide to UK nationals who wish to participate in it.
Answered by Seema Malhotra - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)
I refer the Hon Member to the answer given on 12 June to Question 57692.
Asked by: Chris Law (Scottish National Party - Dundee Central)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what assessment his Department has made of the potential implications for its policies of the Global Rights Compliance report entitled Risk at the Source: Critical Mineral Supply Chains and State-Imposed Forced Labour in the Uyghur Region, published on 11 June 2025.
Answered by Douglas Alexander - Minister of State (Cabinet Office)
This government will continue to speak up on human rights in China, including the repression of people in Xinjiang, and will continue to hold China to account.
The new Critical Minerals Strategy will help secure the supply of critical minerals vital for the UK's economic growth and clean energy transition. The strategy will promote responsible and transparent supply chains, including through greater adoption of responsible business practices to protect local communities and the environment.
We will continue to assess and monitor the effectiveness of the UK's existing measures, alongside the impacts of new policy tools, to ensure we can best promote responsible business practices and take action where appropriate.
Asked by: Chris Law (Scottish National Party - Dundee Central)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether it is her Department's policy that existing PIP claimants of pension age who request a change of circumstances review from November 2026 are required to score at least four points in one daily living activity in order to (a) maintain and (b) increase their award.
Answered by Stephen Timms - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
In keeping with existing policy, people on state pension age are not routinely fully reviewed and will not be affected by these changes. We are considering further how the 4-point minimum requirement will affect claimants over state pension age who report a change of circumstances, and we will provide further information in due course.