Asked by: Ed Davey (Liberal Democrat - Kingston and Surbiton)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, if he will impose Magnitsky-style sanctions on people based in the UK who are alleged sponsors of the Belarusian senior leadership.
Answered by Wendy Morton - Shadow Minister (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK has been at the forefront of the international response towards the fraudulent election and human rights violations in Belarus. Alongside Canada, we led on implementing sanctions against Lukashenko and his inner circle under the UK's Global Human Rights Regime. We have also carried over the EU's Belarus sanctions regime into UK law. To preserve the integrity of the sanctions process, it would be inappropriate to speculate publicly on future designations.
Asked by: Ed Davey (Liberal Democrat - Kingston and Surbiton)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent assessment he has made of the political situation in Uganda.
Answered by James Duddridge
GROUPED WITH PQ 146764.
The UK Government has significant concerns about the treatment of opposition candidates in the run-up to and since the Ugandan elections, as well as the internet shutdown immediately before and during the elections. This does not provide for an open political landscape, within which democracy can flourish. I [Minister Duddridge] set out our concerns in a statement on 17 January about the political climate surrounding the elections and have urged the Government of Uganda to meet its international human rights commitments. Our High Commissioner has met with both President Museveni and leader of the opposition, Robert Kyagulanyi (also known as Bobi Wine), to convey our concerns and discuss democratic process.
The UK Government supports programmes for civil society groups and organisations in Uganda that promote democracy and transparent elections. We have spent more than £30 million since 2014 helping to strengthen institutions in Uganda to uphold democratic freedoms and advocate for the equal treatment of all Ugandans according to the terms of the Ugandan constitution and laws. As a long-standing partner to Uganda, the UK will continue to follow post-election developments closely, and engage with the Ugandan Government and Ugandans to advocate for democracy.
Asked by: Ed Davey (Liberal Democrat - Kingston and Surbiton)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assistance the UK is providing in Uganda to support the development of transparent and peaceful democratic processes.
Answered by James Duddridge
GROUPED WITH PQ 146764.
The UK Government has significant concerns about the treatment of opposition candidates in the run-up to and since the Ugandan elections, as well as the internet shutdown immediately before and during the elections. This does not provide for an open political landscape, within which democracy can flourish. I [Minister Duddridge] set out our concerns in a statement on 17 January about the political climate surrounding the elections and have urged the Government of Uganda to meet its international human rights commitments. Our High Commissioner has met with both President Museveni and leader of the opposition, Robert Kyagulanyi (also known as Bobi Wine), to convey our concerns and discuss democratic process.
The UK Government supports programmes for civil society groups and organisations in Uganda that promote democracy and transparent elections. We have spent more than £30 million since 2014 helping to strengthen institutions in Uganda to uphold democratic freedoms and advocate for the equal treatment of all Ugandans according to the terms of the Ugandan constitution and laws. As a long-standing partner to Uganda, the UK will continue to follow post-election developments closely, and engage with the Ugandan Government and Ugandans to advocate for democracy.
Asked by: Ed Davey (Liberal Democrat - Kingston and Surbiton)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what support his Department is providing to tackle global child malnutrition during the covid-19 pandemic.
Answered by Wendy Morton - Shadow Minister (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Prevention and treatment of malnutrition remains a priority for the UK as part of our commitment to end the preventable deaths of mothers, newborns and children, particularly as malnourished people are likely to be more severely affected by COVID-19. The wider impacts of COVID-19 are also predicted to increase malnutrition across Africa and Asia in particular.
The Foreign Secretary has appointed the UK's first Special Envoy on Famine Prevention and Humanitarian Affairs to make sure malnutrition is averted in countries where food insecurity, conflict and COVID-19 have increased risk. The FCDO is continuing to deliver programmes to address malnutrition in countries such as Somalia, Yemen, South Sudan and Ethiopia. We are also supporting UNICEF to maintain provision of treatment for child wasting and to adapt relevant services in light of the pandemic.
Asked by: Ed Davey (Liberal Democrat - Kingston and Surbiton)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps he will take with his European counterparts to help protect the rights of LGBTQ+ people in Poland following the election of President Duda; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Wendy Morton - Shadow Minister (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK is implacably opposed to all forms of discrimination and committed to promoting and protecting the rights and freedoms of LGBT people in all circumstances. Our Embassy in Warsaw is working actively on this agenda: it is engaged in dialogue with both civil society and the Polish Government, as well as with our diplomatic partners. It will continue to work with the LGBT community in Poland to identify opportunities to tackle discrimination and promote inclusion.
The Embassy has established itself as one of the diplomatic missions in Warsaw that is most active on the LGBT agenda. During last year's Pride season, it brought the diplomatic community in Warsaw together to endorse a joint letter expressing support for LGBT equality and respect for human rights, which over 50 diplomatic missions signed. On 17 January, our Embassy in Warsaw hosted a roundtable on the role of business and NGOs in promoting LGBT+ rights. The roundtable brought together the Polish business and LGBT+ communities to discuss how to jointly build a more inclusive society. This year, the Embassy flew the rainbow flag over the weekend of 20/21 June as part of its activity to promote Pride month.
Asked by: Ed Davey (Liberal Democrat - Kingston and Surbiton)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, whether he has made representations to the US Administration on the stockpiling of Remdesivir in the US for the treatment of patients with covid-19; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Wendy Morton - Shadow Minister (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The coronavirus outbreak is the biggest public health emergency in a generation, and needs a strong and coordinated global health response. The UK Government is working closely with our international partners, including the United States, to deliver a robust global response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Our Ministers and diplomatic network continue to galvanise international support and financial commitments to support research, development and equitable access to vaccines, treatments and tests, including through the G7, G20 and other international fora.
Asked by: Ed Davey (Liberal Democrat - Kingston and Surbiton)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what representations he has made to the Chinese Government on the alleged practice of forced sterilisations among ethnic minority women in the Xinjiang region in China; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Nigel Adams
We are aware of reports that the Chinese Government is using forced sterilisation to minimise Uyghur birth rates. I set out during an Urgent Question in the House of Commons on 29 June, these reports add to our concern about the human rights situation in Xinjiang and we are considering them carefully. On 9 March the Foreign Secretary raised our concerns about the human rights situation in Xinjiang with his Chinese counterpart, Foreign Minister and State Councillor Wang Yi. On 30 June, the UK read out a statement on behalf of 28 countries at the 44th session of the UN Human Rights Council highlighting concerns about arbitrary detention, widespread surveillance and restrictions in Xinjiang.
Asked by: Ed Davey (Liberal Democrat - Kingston and Surbiton)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, how much energy his departmental buildings used in (a) 2020 and (b) each of the last five years.
Answered by Nigel Adams
Information relating to the FCO's commitment to reducing energy consumption can be found in the FCO Sustainability Report 2018/19 on the gov.uk website here. A breakdown of energy consumption by site can be found on page 34.
Asked by: Ed Davey (Liberal Democrat - Kingston and Surbiton)
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 potential for NSO's Pegasus software being used to target foreign journalists and campaigners; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by James Cleverly - Shadow Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government
There have been allegations that this software has been used in a way that is not in line with UK Human Rights Standards. We continue to champion human rights and media freedom around the world. Given these allegations are subject to ongoing investigations, it would not be appropriate for us to comment further.
Asked by: Ed Davey (Liberal Democrat - Kingston and Surbiton)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, how many (a) solar panels and (b) wind turbines his Department's buildings (a) have in 2020 and (b) had in each of the last five years.
Answered by Nigel Adams
Energy suppliers providing services to departments through Crown Commercial Service (CCS) agreements are supportive of any decarbonisation strategy that is applied. It is for each department to determine their strategy for decarbonisation and CCS agreements allow the identification, analysis and installation of any decarbonisation solution required across the department's estate. The Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) has no solar panels or wind turbines on its UK Estate, nor has it had in the last 5 years.