Asked by: Drew Hendry (Scottish National Party - Inverness, Nairn, Badenoch and Strathspey)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, what steps his Department is taking to increase the number of people sanctioned for creating propaganda in support of the Russian offensive in Ukraine.
Answered by Anne-Marie Trevelyan - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The Government keeps potential sanctions designations under close and regular review; it is not appropriate to speculate on future sanctions as this could reduce their impact.
Asked by: Drew Hendry (Scottish National Party - Inverness, Nairn, Badenoch and Strathspey)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, whether he has made an estimate of how many UK citizens have family members in Rafah.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
We are working with the Israeli and Egyptian authorities to discuss the border crossing and encourage timely processing of UK consular cases. We are not in a position to provide a running commentary on the number of wider UK family members in Rafah.
Asked by: Drew Hendry (Scottish National Party - Inverness, Nairn, Badenoch and Strathspey)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, if he will hold discussions with his Egyptian counterpart on opening the Rafah border crossing into Egypt to Palestinian refugees.
Answered by Leo Docherty - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for the Armed Forces)
We continue to discuss with our Egyptian counterparts a wide range of issues relating to the humanitarian situation in Gaza. Our priority is addressing the crisis in Gaza itself - we recognise that there is a desperate need for increased humanitarian support and so our focus must be on practical solutions that save lives.
As we have said, Israel must take steps, working with other partners including the UN and Egypt, to significantly increase the flow of aid into Gaza including allowing prolonged humanitarian pauses, opening more routes into Gaza and restoring and sustaining water, fuel and electricity. The Foreign Secretary discussed the urgency of getting significantly more aid into Gaza to alleviate the desperate situation there with Prime Minister Netanyahu on 24 January. He reiterated the need for Israel to open more crossing points into Gaza, for Nitzana and Kerem Shalom to be open for longer, and for Israel to support the UN to distribute aid effectively across the whole of Gaza. An immediate pause is now necessary to get aid in and hostages out.
Asked by: Drew Hendry (Scottish National Party - Inverness, Nairn, Badenoch and Strathspey)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, if he will hold discussions with his Israeli counterpart on taking steps to help ensure the safety of the family members of British citizens in the event that combat operations take place in Rafah.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
We continue to urge Israel take greater care to limit its operations to military targets and avoid harming civilians and destroying homes. The Foreign Secretary reiterated this during his visit to Israel on 24 January.
We have helped to facilitate over 300 British Nationals to leave Gaza so far. We are working with the Israelis and Egyptian authorities to ensure any remaining British nationals still in Gaza that want to leave are cleared to cross as soon as possible and encourage timely processing of UK consular cases.
Asked by: Drew Hendry (Scottish National Party - Inverness, Nairn, Badenoch and Strathspey)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, what support his Department provides to UK citizens with family members in Gaza; and what assessment he has made of the adequacy of that support.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
Government support to individuals affected by a crisis abroad is set out on gov.uk: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/how-to-deal-with-a-crisis-overseas. This includes the support provided in certain circumstances to immediate family members of British nationals.
We are engaging with the Israeli and Egyptian authorities on a regular basis to discuss the border crossing and encourage timely processing of UK consular cases. We have helped to facilitate over 300 British nationals to leave Gaza so far. A small number remain.
Asked by: Drew Hendry (Scottish National Party - Inverness, Nairn, Badenoch and Strathspey)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, what assessment he has made of the implications for his policies of levels of international support for South Africa's referral of Israel to the International Court of Justice.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
This development is unhelpful and we do not support it. As we have said previously, we recognise that Israel has the right to defend itself against Hamas, in accordance with IHL. Ultimately, it is for courts to decide on matters of genocide, not for states. We of course respect the role and independence of the ICJ.
Asked by: Drew Hendry (Scottish National Party - Inverness, Nairn, Badenoch and Strathspey)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, what steps his Department is taking to help ensure the prosecution of individuals working for service companies which support evasion of sanctions by Russia.
Answered by Leo Docherty - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for the Armed Forces)
The UK is committed to ensuring that our sanctions are robustly enforced, potential breaches are investigated and appropriate action is taken.
Departments from across His Majesty's Government are working together and with UK companies to ensure that sanctions are enforced, including through criminal prosecution and civil enforcement. Departments and Agencies with responsibility for criminal enforcement of sanctions refer appropriate cases to the Crown Prosecution Service for consideration
The launch of the Office of Trade Sanctions Implementation (OTSI) under DBT will enhance guidance and engagement with industry, as well as civil enforcement of trade sanctions, including those on services. The Government also announced a new Economic Deterrence Initiative in the 2023 Integrated Review Refresh. With funding of up to £50 million over two years, the initiative is maximising the impact of our trade, transport and financial sanctions, and improving implementation and enforcement including by cracking down on evasion. Through these funds HMG is recruiting more civil and criminal investigators to bear down on people and businesses in breach of sanctions.
Asked by: Drew Hendry (Scottish National Party - Inverness, Nairn, Badenoch and Strathspey)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with Cabinet colleagues on the target of spending 0.7% of GDP on Official Development Assistance.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
The government's commitment to returning Official Development Assistance (ODA) spending to 0.7% of Gross National Income (GNI) once the fiscal situation allows is well established: when, on a sustainable basis, the government is no longer borrowing for day-to-day spending and underlying debt is falling. MPs voted in support of this approach in July 2021. ODA spending will remain at around 0.5% of GNI until these fiscal principles have been met.
Asked by: Drew Hendry (Scottish National Party - Inverness, Nairn, Badenoch and Strathspey)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether his Department was given advance notice of the Hong Kong National Security Police issuing arrest warrants for Hong Kong pro-democracy activists based in the UK.
Answered by Anne-Marie Trevelyan - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK did not receive advance notice.
The Foreign Secretary made clear in his statement on 3 July that we will not tolerate any attempts by China to intimidate and silence individuals. The UK will always defend the universal right to freedom of expression and stand up for those who are targeted.
Asked by: Drew Hendry (Scottish National Party - Inverness, Nairn, Badenoch and Strathspey)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what consultation his Department undertook when drafting amendments to the proposed Convention on International Cooperation in the Investigation and Prosecution of the Crime of Genocide, Crimes Against Humanity, War Crimes and other International Crimes.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office coordinated and agreed UK negotiating positions with other government departments in advance of and during the negotiations on the Ljubljana-The Hague Convention. UK negotiators also consulted widely during the Diplomatic Conference with delegations from other participating States and observers, including civil society representatives. Following the negotiations, the Convention was adopted by consensus on 26 May.