Asked by: David Anderson (Labour - Blaydon)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, if he will make it his policy to impose an embargo on the sale of arms between the UK and Israel.
Answered by Tobias Ellwood
The Government takes its arms export responsibilities very seriously and operates one of the most robust arms export control regimes in the world. All export licence applications are assessed on a case-by-case basis against the consolidated EU and national arms export licensing criteria. We do not believe that imposing a blanket arms embargo on Israel would promote the urgent progress towards the resolution of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict which we want to see. We continue to monitor the situation in Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories and take into account the latest circumstances when assessing licence applications. Israel, like any state, has the right to ensure its own security, as its citizens also have the right to live without fear of attack and we will continue to support Israel’s right to defend itself.
Asked by: David Anderson (Labour - Blaydon)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment he has made of the implications of UK withdrawal from the EU for UK pensions and healthcare provision for UK citizens (a) currently residing in other EU member states and (b) wishing to retire to other EU member states.
Answered by David Lidington
As the Prime Minister, my Rt Hon. Friend the Member for Witney (Mr Cameron) has said, there will be no immediate changes in the circumstances of British citizens living in European countries. It will be for the next Prime Minister to determine, along with their Cabinet, exactly the right approach to take in negotiating these provisions going forward but the Government's guiding principle will be ensuring the best possible outcome for the British people.Asked by: David Anderson (Labour - Blaydon)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, if he will make an assessment of the implications for his policies of the findings of the Human Rights Watch report on Ethiopia, Such a brutal crackdown, published in June 2016, on alleged human rights violations by government security forces in that country.
Answered by James Duddridge
We are aware of the Human Rights Watch report on Ethiopia and are considering its findings. I met with Ethiopian Foreign Minister Tedros at the African Union Summit in Addis Ababa on 27 January. I raised the UK’s concerns with regards to the human rights situation. We will continue to raise our concerns with the government of Ethiopia both through our bilateral engagement, most notably our ongoing Human Rights Dialogue, as well as jointly with our international partners.
We remain deeply concerned about the handling of demonstrations in Oromia, including the reported deaths of a number of protestors, and about those detained under the Anti-Terrorism Proclamation. We have repeatedly made representations to the Ethiopian Government over the situation in that region.
The Ethiopian Human Rights Commission has been appointed to look into the handling of the protests in Oromia and presented their findings to the Ethiopian parliament on 10 June 2016. We have not seen the report, but are pressing for its publication and will take a view on what further actions, if any, might be appropriate.
Asked by: David Anderson (Labour - Blaydon)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what the implications for his policies are of the 19 January 2016 Motion for a Resolution of the European Parliament on the situation in Ethiopia and the report by UN special rapporteurs of 21 January 2016 on Ethiopia's use of force against Oromo protestors; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by James Duddridge
The UK Government is aware of both the European parliament’s Motion for a Resolution on the situation in Ethiopia and the UN special rapporteurs’ report on Ethiopia’s alleged use of force against protestors in Oromia. We remain deeply concerned about the handling of demonstrations in Oromia and the reported deaths of a number of protestors, and have repeatedly made representations to the Ethiopian Government over the ongoing situation in that region. Justine Greening, the Secretary of State for International Development, raised our concerns with Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn on 21 January, as did I, with the Ethiopian Foreign Minister, Dr Tedros, at the African Union Summit in Addis Ababa on 27 January. Our Ambassador also raised the issue with Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn on 26 April. We will continue to monitor the situation closely and raise our concerns with the Ethiopian government, including on the use of force.
We will continue to work with our partners, including the US, in urging the Ethiopian government to use restraint in their handling of the protests in Oromia.
Asked by: David Anderson (Labour - Blaydon)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what the implications for his policies are of the position of the US State Department on Ethiopia's use of anti-terror legislation to detain politicians and protestors, set out in its press release of 29 April 2016; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by James Duddridge
The UK Government is aware of both the European parliament’s Motion for a Resolution on the situation in Ethiopia and the UN special rapporteurs’ report on Ethiopia’s alleged use of force against protestors in Oromia. We remain deeply concerned about the handling of demonstrations in Oromia and the reported deaths of a number of protestors, and have repeatedly made representations to the Ethiopian Government over the ongoing situation in that region. Justine Greening, the Secretary of State for International Development, raised our concerns with Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn on 21 January, as did I, with the Ethiopian Foreign Minister, Dr Tedros, at the African Union Summit in Addis Ababa on 27 January. Our Ambassador also raised the issue with Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn on 26 April. We will continue to monitor the situation closely and raise our concerns with the Ethiopian government, including on the use of force.
We will continue to work with our partners, including the US, in urging the Ethiopian government to use restraint in their handling of the protests in Oromia.
Asked by: David Anderson (Labour - Blaydon)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, if he will disclose a summary of his Department's legal advice to the (a) Joint Committee on Human Rights and (b) Intelligence and Security Committee relevant to the drone strike that killed Reyaad Khan on 21 August 2015.
Answered by Tobias Ellwood
I refer the hon. Member to the answer on this subject given to him by the Prime Minister on 25 January 2016, UIN 23433.
Asked by: David Anderson (Labour - Blaydon)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, if he will call on his Ethiopian counterpart to allow peaceful protest in the Oromia region and withdraw paramilitary forces.
Answered by James Duddridge
The UK Government is deeply concerned about the current situation in Oromia and in particular about the reported deaths of a number of students. The Department for International Development Parliamentary Under Secretary of State raised our concerns with the Ethiopian Deputy Prime Minister on 11 December and urged the authorities to exercise restraint. We will continue to raise our concerns with the Government of Ethiopia, including on the use of force.
Asked by: David Anderson (Labour - Blaydon)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, if he will instruct HM Ambassador to Ethiopia to investigate allegations that paramilitary and security forces have killed more than 60 people in the Oromia region of that country following protests about enforced evictions of indigenous people; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by James Duddridge
The UK Government takes these allegations extremely seriously. We have raised concerns with the Ethiopian government about the use of force and urged the authorities to exercise restraint. The Department for International Development Parliamentary Under Secretary of State raised this issue with the Ethiopian Deputy Prime minister on 11 December, as did our Chargé d'Affaires with the State Minister for Foreign Affairs on 15 December. Our Embassy in Ethiopia is monitoring closely the situation. We will continue to raise our concerns with the Government of Ethiopia, including on the use of force.