Asked by: Fleur Anderson (Labour - Putney)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, what assessment his Department has made of the implications for his policies of changes to the law of blasphemy in Denmark.
Answered by Leo Docherty
Denmark has no law against blasphemy. On 7 December, the Danish Parliament passed a law banning the inappropriate treatment of religious texts. We have condemned recent incidents of Quran burning in Europe and we unequivocally denounce hatred and incitement of violence on the basis of religion or belief. Our position remains unchanged: we are committed to both freedom of expression and Freedom of Religion or Belief (FoRB), and will continue to promote mutual respect between different communities.
Asked by: Fleur Anderson (Labour - Putney)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, what recent steps the Government has taken to help improve access to healthcare for older people in the Global South.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell
The UK is committed to championing universal health coverage (UHC) - for the young and the old. We worked with other countries to ensure that the 2023 UN Political Declaration on UHC reaffirmed the 2019 commitment to promote healthy and active ageing and to respond to the needs of ageing populations. We also went further, recognising the importance of providing sustainable home and community care services for older people. We continue to work with country and global partners including the World Health Organization on integrated and equitable approaches to strengthening health systems and achieving UHC for all.
Asked by: Fleur Anderson (Labour - Putney)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, whether his Department has taken recent steps to help ensure that Tamils in northern Sri Lanka have access to clean drinking water.
Answered by Anne-Marie Trevelyan
We are aware of the challenges Sri Lanka faces around water management and quality, particularly by communities in the Northern Province. The British High Commission Colombo regularly meets a range of stakeholders in the Northern Province to hear their experiences and issues. A number of public bodies in Sri Lanka, including the National Water Supply and Drainage Board, have conducted tests into the water quality, after concerns were raised by local communities. The UK Government supports the International Water Management Institute, an international water management research organisation, to provide solutions to increasing water scarcity in Puttalam and Kilinochchi.
Asked by: Fleur Anderson (Labour - Putney)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, whether he has held discussions with his Israeli counterpart on the reported air strike on two Palestine Red Crescent Society ambulances in Gaza on 5 December 2023.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell
The UK is aware of reports of attacks against healthcare facilities and infrastructure. Healthcare workers, emergency services personnel, civilian buildings including hospitals and medical facilities not used for military purposes must not be targeted. We support Israel's right to defend itself against Hamas, but Israel must ensure its campaign protects civilians in Gaza, complies with International Humanitarian Law and targets Hamas fighters and military objectives only. The Prime Minister and Foreign Secretary continue to press these in engagements with Israeli counterparts.
Asked by: Fleur Anderson (Labour - Putney)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, for what reason freedom of religious belief was not included in the UK-Middle East and North Africa region development partnership summary, published in July 2023.
Answered by David Rutley
The UK is committed to defending Freedom of Religion or Belief (FoRB) for all, and reaffirmed the importance of upholding this right in the International Development White Paper, which was published last month. We monitor the situation for religious and non-religious communities globally, and work bilaterally and multilaterally to promote FoRB. Earlier this year, the Minister for the Middle East and North Africa discussed interfaith dialogue when he met the Secretary General of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation. The Minister also visited Abu Dhabi's Abrahamic Family House, the interfaith complex housing the Imam Al-Tayeb Mosque, St Francis Church and Moses Ben Maimon Synagogue, and was clear that, "we must never be complacent on protecting freedom of religion and belief."
Asked by: Fleur Anderson (Labour - Putney)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, what steps his Department has taken to distribute humanitarian aid to Afghanistan since the recent earthquake.
Answered by Leo Docherty
UK funded prepositioned supplies supported humanitarian partners in the immediate aftermath of the October earthquake. An additional £1 million was allocated to the Red Cross and £1 million to the Afghanistan Humanitarian Fund (AHF) to help meet emergency needs. A further £1 million has been allocated to United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) to provide targeted support to affected women and girls. This support ensured affected communities received emergency shelter, food and health assistance. Overall, $10 million has been allocated from the AHF and a $5 million from the United Nations Central Emergency Response Fund, which the UK supports.
Asked by: Fleur Anderson (Labour - Putney)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, if he will make an assessment of whether the aid his Department has provided to Afghanistan has been distributed equitably to religious minority groups since the recent earthquake.
Answered by Leo Docherty
The FCDO has provided £3 million to people affected by the recent earthquake in Herat. In line with established humanitarian principles, no direct data on religious affiliation is collected as part of these responses. Assistance is provided impartially on the basis of detailed assessments to identify the worst affected populations. Our partners have not reported any restrictions on their access to affected populations following the earthquake. We are committed to ensuring human rights are respected in Afghanistan, including those of vulnerable minority communities.
Asked by: Fleur Anderson (Labour - Putney)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, whether he had discussions on the persecution of Christians in Tunisia during the second ministerial meeting of the UK-Tunisia Association Council in October.
Answered by David Rutley
The subject of the persecution of Christians in Tunisia was not discussed during the 2nd UK-Tunisia Association Council. However, Freedom of Religion or Belief (FoRB) is part of British Embassy Tunis' holistic approach to human rights and open society in Tunisia, which monitors the FoRB aspects in these areas, and maintains active relationships with local FoRB groups.
Asked by: Fleur Anderson (Labour - Putney)
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 his French counterpart on facilitating school visits to France.
Answered by Leo Docherty
At the UK-France Summit in Paris on 10 March, both countries committed to facilitating smoother entry for children travelling between the UK and France as part of a school trip. Officials have been in regular contact to deliver these changes, including through the UK-France Mobility Dialogue.
Asked by: Fleur Anderson (Labour - Putney)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, if he will make it his policy to (a) reassess his Department's funding allocation for overseas aid and (b) prioritise spending on the improvement of (i) water, (ii) sanitation and (iii) hygiene infrastructure in healthcare facilities to tackle antimicrobial resistance.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell
The UK remains committed to supporting access to water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH), including in healthcare facilities. The UK-funded Hygiene and Behaviour Change Coalition supported 14,800 facilities with WASH supplies and trained 460,000 health workers on hygiene improvements. We also help rally international attention on antimicrobial resistance through the global taskforce on WASH in Healthcare Facilities, working with World Health Organization (WHO), United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) and other partners. The Statistics on International Development publication confirmed that UK bilateral Official Development Assistance (ODA) spend on WASH totalled £46 million in 2022. Multilateral spend on WASH was £63 million in 2021. At this stage we are unable to confirm FCDO's future allocations to overseas aid or WASH specifically. The FCDO works closely with the Treasury on our aid budget.