Asked by: Christian Matheson (Independent - City of Chester)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what diplomatic steps she is taking to help protect environmental defenders in Colombia who face potential threats and attacks for protecting their lands from corporate activity.
Answered by Wendy Morton - Shadow Minister (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
UK ministers and senior officials regularly raise human rights issues, as well as specific cases of concern, with the Colombian Government. The UK's Minister for the Environment, Lord Goldsmith, raised our concerns around violence and threats toward environmental defenders on a visit to Colombia from 5-8 October.
Colombia is a UK 'Human Rights Priority Country' and we consistently raise our concerns regarding violence against human rights defenders and social leaders at the UN Security Council, as we did at meetings in July and on 14 October. We will continue to raise our concerns with the relevant state actors in Colombia.
Through our Conflict, Stability, and Security Fund (CSSF) programme, which has provided £63 million in support of peace agreement implementation, security, and stability in Colombia since 2015, we will continue to prioritise funding interventions to protect human rights defenders, including environmental activists, and social leaders.
Asked by: Christian Matheson (Independent - City of Chester)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what diplomatic steps she is taking to help protect environmental defenders in Colombia who are being threatened by international companies as a result of their lawful and legitimate protest against illicit activities on their land.
Answered by Wendy Morton - Shadow Minister (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
UK ministers and senior officials regularly raise human rights issues, as well as specific cases of concern, with the Colombian Government. The UK's Minister for the Environment, Lord Goldsmith, raised our concerns around violence and threats toward environmental defenders on a visit to Colombia from 5-8 October.
Colombia is a UK 'Human Rights Priority Country' and we consistently raise our concerns regarding violence against human rights defenders and social leaders at the UN Security Council, as we did at meetings in July and on 14 October. We will continue to raise our concerns with the relevant state actors in Colombia.
Through our Conflict, Stability, and Security Fund (CSSF) programme, which has provided £63 million in support of peace agreement implementation, security, and stability in Colombia since 2015, we will continue to prioritise funding interventions to protect human rights defenders, including environmental activists, and social leaders.
Asked by: Christian Matheson (Independent - City of Chester)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, pursuant to the answer of 17 December 2020 to Question 128190, whether his Department plans to launch a public consultation as part of the internal prioritisation process.
Answered by Nigel Adams
We are working closely with our partners on the impacts and priorities of our Official Development Assistance (ODA) spend, including through roundtables with Civil Society Organisations such as one recently chaired by Lord (Tariq) Ahmad of Wimbledon. Country Plans will also be informed by consultation with partner governments and other partners on key priorities.
As with any major fiscal event, it is right the outcome of the process is formally communicated to Parliament first. We will work closely with our partners and suppliers to explain how this will impact our joint work.
Asked by: Christian Matheson (Independent - City of Chester)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, how much Official Development Assistance will be allocated to basic nutrition services during 2021.
Answered by Wendy Morton - Shadow Minister (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Addressing malnutrition and acute food insecurity remains important for our objectives on global health and humanitarian preparedness and response. In September 2020, the Foreign Secretary announced a £119 million package of support to combat famine and acute hunger. This includes a new 5-year partnership with UNICEF to improve prevention and treatment of acute malnutrition.
The Department is beginning a rigorous internal prioritisation process in response to the spending review announcement and we will update on this in due course.
Asked by: Christian Matheson (Independent - City of Chester)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
What recent discussions he has had with his Colombian counterpart on increased incidents of violent conflict in that country.
Answered by Wendy Morton - Shadow Minister (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Colombia has made significant progress since the 2016 peace agreement was signed with the FARC. For Colombians in most parts of the country where security was an issue, conditions are much improved. Significant challenges remain in some areas, due to illegal armed groups competing for territory and control of the drugs trade and other illicit activities. This has led to violence, and the death and displacement of ordinary Colombians. We regularly raise this violence with Colombian counterparts and in multilateral bodies. I discussed the UK’s concerns in a phone call with Claudia Blum, Colombian Foreign Minister, on 2 June. We also use our position as UNSC penholder on Colombia’s peace process to emphasise the issue and to urge the Colombian government to ensure the rule of law applies to the entire country, most recently at the UNSC session on 14 July. The UK is the biggest donor to the UN Trust Fund for Colombia. Since 2015 we have contributed over £53m to support implementation of the peace agreement. Programmes run by our Embassy in Bogotá aim to tackle the root causes of this violence, by helping communities develop sustainable livelihoods. This issue is a priority for the Colombian government. We will continue to support their efforts to bring long-term security to all communities.