Asked by: Gregory Stafford (Conservative - Farnham and Bordon)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps he is taking to repatriate British citizens in Tel Aviv.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Support to British nationals remains our top priority and we have worked at pace to ensure those who wanted to leave left safely. Consular teams have worked round the clock to support British nationals in the region. As soon as Israeli airspace re-opened UK government charter flights left Israel carrying more than 380 people on six flights. In allocating seats, we prioritised those who were most vulnerable, including those with medical needs, children, and the elderly. Commercial flights are now available.
Asked by: Gregory Stafford (Conservative - Farnham and Bordon)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to support people stranded in Tel Aviv.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The safety and security of British nationals is our top priority. Since the beginning of this crisis, when Israeli airspace closed, we deployed specialist teams to the Egyptian and Jordanian borders to support British nationals wishing to leave Israel by land and facilitate their onward travel. When Israeli airspace opened on 24 June we worked at pace to ensure those who wanted to leave Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories could do so, with six evacuation flights leaving Israel.
Asked by: Gregory Stafford (Conservative - Farnham and Bordon)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment he has made of the potential implications for his policies of the Tokyo District Court’s dissolution order against the Unification Church; and what steps he is taking to help protect (a) religious freedom and (b) minority rights.
Answered by Catherine West
This is a matter that is subject to ongoing court proceedings. It is therefore reserved for the Government of Japan and institutions of Japan. The UK has always been clear that the right to adopt a religion or belief, practise it without hindrance, and to share it with others are all key freedoms that everyone should have. As the Minister for the Indo-Pacific, I will continue to champion the UK's long-standing policy to defend freedom of religion or belief for all and promote respect between different religious and non-religious communities internationally.
Asked by: Gregory Stafford (Conservative - Farnham and Bordon)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, with reference to the Answer of 29 June 2022 to Question 27497 on Diplomatic Service: Pilot Schemes, what recent assessment his Department has made of the potential merits of establishing a UK-Ukraine Relief Augmentation Taskforce; and whether his Department plans to utilise a reserve cadre of former (a) diplomats and (b) military officers to support crisis response operations in (i) Ukraine and (ii) other conflict-affected regions.
Answered by Stephen Doughty - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The Foreign Commonwealth and Development Office maintains a roster of deployable expertise to support crisis response operations overseas, including humanitarian and conflict specialists.
Asked by: Gregory Stafford (Conservative - Farnham and Bordon)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether Hongkongers who (a) arrived in the UK on British National (Overseas) visas and (b) have subsequently become UK citizens receive consular protection in (i) Hong Kong and (ii) mainland China.
Answered by Catherine West
The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) provides consular assistance to British nationals abroad. This includes BN(O)s who, under the Memoranda to the Joint Declaration, are eligible for consular assistance in third countries, but not in Hong Kong, Macao or mainland China. If individuals have formally renounced Chinese citizenship, it's advised that they carry clear evidence they have done so. We advise seeking legal advice where appropriate for individual cases. Individuals should also familiarise themselves with the FCDO's Travel Advice.
Asked by: Gregory Stafford (Conservative - Farnham and Bordon)
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 not provide Official Development Assistance to countries that have higher (a) gross domestic product and (b) purchasing parity power than the UK.
Answered by Stephen Doughty - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Decisions on how the Official Development Assistance (ODA) budget will be used are being worked through as part of the ongoing Spending Review. We plan to publish final 2025/26 ODA programme allocations in the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office Annual Report & Accounts this summer.
All UK ODA spending is consistent with the international rules agreed by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development's Development Assistance Committee. Under these rules, ODA can only be provided to countries with a per capita Gross National Income of less than US$13,845 in 2022.
Asked by: Gregory Stafford (Conservative - Farnham and Bordon)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what discussions he has had with his counterpart in China on the treatment of (a) Falun Gong and (b) Shen Yun practitioners outside China.
Answered by Catherine West
Within China, the environment for freedom of religion or belief is restrictive, which includes the persecution of Falun Gong practitioners. This government will work to uphold the right to freedom of religion and belief for all abroad, for example through bilateral engagement. The Prime Minister, Foreign Secretary, and Chancellor all raised human rights recently with their counterparts (President Xi, Foreign Minister Wang and Vice Premier He respectively).
The freedom of speech and other fundamental rights of all people in the UK are protected under UK law, regardless of their nationality.
Asked by: Gregory Stafford (Conservative - Farnham and Bordon)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what discussions he has had with his counterparts in Pakistan on ensuring the safety of Ahmadiyya Muslims, in the context of the destruction of the UN mosque in Daska, Pakistan.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Promoting the rights of religious minorities is an important part of the UK's diplomatic engagement in Pakistan. I underlined the importance of promoting religious tolerance and harmony when I met Pakistan's Human Rights Minister on 19 November, and discussed this issue in Parliament on 28 November. We are aware of reports of the desecration of an Ahmadi Mosque in Daska and continue to monitor the situation. In response to this incident, the British High Commissioner raised the issue of Ahmadi Muslim rights in a message to the Punjab Minorities Minister on 23 January. We will continue to urge the Government of Pakistan to guarantee the rights of all people in accordance with international standards.
Asked by: Gregory Stafford (Conservative - Farnham and Bordon)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps the Government is taking to help stop the persecution of Ahmadi Muslims in Pakistan; and if he will have discussions with his Pakistani counterpart on steps to protect Ahmadi Muslims and their mosques and graves, in the context of the recent demolition of an Ahmadi mosque in Daska, Punjab, by local authorities on 16 January 2025.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Promoting the rights of religious minorities is a core part of the UK's diplomatic engagement in Pakistan. I underlined the importance of promoting religious tolerance and harmony when I met Pakistan's Human Rights Minister on 19 November, and discussed this issue in Parliament on 28 November. We are aware of reports of the desecration of an Ahmadi Mosque in Daska and continue to monitor the situation. In response to this incident, the British High Commissioner raised the issue of Ahmadi Muslim rights in a message to the Punjab Minorities Minister on 23 January. We will continue to urge the Government of Pakistan to guarantee the rights of all people in accordance with international standards.
Asked by: Gregory Stafford (Conservative - Farnham and Bordon)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of the agreement with Mauritius on the British Indian Ocean Territory on global security.
Answered by Stephen Doughty - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The base on Diego Garcia is critical to national and international security. It has enabled the UK, the US, and our allies and partners to combat some of the most challenging threats to global peace and security, including those from terrorism, organised crime, and wider instability.
Following this agreement, for the first time in over 50 years, the base will be undisputed and legally secure, able to operate to its full strategic capability without risk of challenge. The Agreement will mean that the UK and US will continue to operate the base well into the next century with strong protections from malign influence.