Asked by: Daniel Zeichner (Labour - Cambridge)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
What recent assessment he has made of the situation of refugees in Lesbos.
Answered by Wendy Morton - Shadow Minister (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
I am grateful to my Honourable Friend for his question, and for raising this with the Leader of the House at Business Questions on 8 October. I too am deeply concerned by the situation on Lesvos, following the devastating fire which destroyed the Moria migrant camp.
The UK has responded to Greek requests for humanitarian aid, providing kitchen sets to nearly 2,000 vulnerable families to prepare and cook food, and solar lanterns to help them stay safe. This is in addition to our commitment earlier this year of £510k worth of humanitarian supplies and equipment to help vulnerable migrants and refugees on Greek islands. We will continue to monitor the situation carefully.
Asked by: Daniel Zeichner (Labour - Cambridge)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what criteria was used to exclude Thailand from the list of countries exempt from quarantine measures.
Answered by Nigel Adams
A list of countries and territories from which passengers arriving in England will no longer have to self-isolate for 14 days was published on 3 July. This follows the Government's first review of public health measures at the border, which were introduced in June 2020. The Government has always been clear that any decisions on border measures will be proportionate and science-led.
We are continuing to engage with all partners on all aspects of the global response to the Coronavirus pandemic.
Asked by: Daniel Zeichner (Labour - Cambridge)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had since the beginning of covid-19 pandemic with (a) the European Commission and (b) the Greek Government on resettling refugees from the island of Lesbos.
Answered by Wendy Morton - Shadow Minister (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The Foreign Secretary last discussed the migration situation with the Greek Foreign Minister on 18 March, and on 22 April the Minister for Immigration Compliance signed the UK-Greece Migration Action Plan with his Greek counterpart and discussed a range of bilateral and regional migration issues.
This Migration Action Plan sets out the framework for future bilateral co-operation with Greece on migration. It includes renewed deployment of a Border Force cutter to the Aegean to carry out search and rescue; facilitation of family reunification of unaccompanied asylum seeking children, where it is in their best interests; sharing of expertise on asylum processes and migrant returns in line with international laws; and the establishment of a strategic migration dialogue.
In terms of the Greek migrant camps, we remain in close contact with the Greek authorities. We are also in regular discussions with our European partners, both bilaterally and through multilateral channels, and continue to monitor the situation via our Embassy in Athens closely.
The UK's refugee resettlement schemes offer a safe and legal route to the UK for the most vulnerable refugees, and purposefully target those in greatest need of assistance. The Government's long-standing policy is to provide support to and resettle the most vulnerable refugees directly from conflict regions.
Asked by: Daniel Zeichner (Labour - Cambridge)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what plans the Government has to mark Europe Day 2020.
Answered by Wendy Morton - Shadow Minister (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
As the UK is no longer a member of the European Union we have no plans to mark Europe Day.
Asked by: Daniel Zeichner (Labour - Cambridge)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, if he will set up an emergency hotline to assist UK citizens stranded abroad by border closures and flight cancellations.
Answered by Nigel Adams
The FCO has an emergency hotline which is manned 24/7. We are increasing the capacity of our phone lines to manage the exceptionally high volumes of calls. We recommend that those seeking travel advice look at gov.uk and call only if they require urgent consular assistance.