Asked by: Helen Goodman (Labour - Bishop Auckland)
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 effect of the charges made against Future Forward leader Thanathorn Juangroongruangkit on political stability in Thailand.
Answered by Mark Field
We continue to monitor the situation in Thailand following 24 March's elections. I issued a statement welcoming the fact that elections had taken place and highlighting that it was important that any reported irregularities were investigated swiftly, fairly and transparently. I also emphasised that the process of government formation should be conducted in a proper and open manner to reflect what people voted for.
On 6 April our Embassy joined 11 other diplomatic missions in observing Thanathorn Juangroongruangkit, the leader of the Future Forward Party, attend a police station to hear several charges, including one of sedition. These charges relate to an incident in 2015 and could lead to him facing trial in a military court, despite being a civilian.
The United Kingdom has a long standing position against the use of military courts for civilians, including in Thailand. Observing trials, court hearings, and charges at police stations is normal diplomatic practice, which we and other states follow around the world.
The British Government does not support any Thai political party and believes that the outcome of the election should reflect the will of the Thai people.
Asked by: Helen Goodman (Labour - Bishop Auckland)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, if he will make representations to his Colombian counterpart on the need to pursue a negotiated settlement with the National Liberation Army of Colombia.
Answered by Alan Duncan
The UK has reaffirmed its unwavering support to the Colombian authorities as they seek to ensure sustainable peace in Colombia and has reiterated the importance of pressing ahead with work to implement the peace agreement in order to consolidate peace and build stability. At the same time, the UK, alongside international partners, has continued to urge a negotiated end to the conflict.
Asked by: Helen Goodman (Labour - Bishop Auckland)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment of the refusal of the Colombian President Ivan Duque to sign the Statutory Law on the Special Jurisdiction for Peace on the political situation in that country; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Alan Duncan
The United Kingdom has expressed concern to the Colombian Government over delays to the transitional justice system, which is a critical part of the peace process. The Special Jurisdiction for Peace continues to function under existing legal provisions despite recent objections of President Duque to certain articles of the law. The law has now been returned to Congress. The UK believes that the delay risks undermining the system's authority and reducing cooperation with the FARC. We believe that the Transitional justice law must be approved swiftly to ensure continued confidence in the peace process. On 11 March, our Ambassador in Colombia informed President Duque of the UK position. On 15 March, the UK Permanent Representative to the UN urged Foreign Minister Holmes Trujillo to support the transitional justice system.
Asked by: Helen Goodman (Labour - Bishop Auckland)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what progress has been made on the individual project components of the Caribbean - Serious and Organised Crime Programme.
Answered by Alan Duncan
Information on individual projects and intended outcomes is included in the Caribbean Programme Summary, while a summary of progress of programmes meeting their objectives and delivering outputs is included in the Annual Review summary. Both of these documents are published online annually (https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/conflict-stability-and-security-fund-cssf).
Asked by: Helen Goodman (Labour - Bishop Auckland)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what progress has been made on the individual project components of the Colombia: security and access to justice for peace programme.
Answered by Alan Duncan
Information on individual projects and intended outcomes is included in the Colombia Programme Summary, while a summary of progress of programmes meeting their objectives and delivering outputs is included in the Annual Review summary. Both of these documents are published online annually (https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/conflict-stability-and-security-fund-cssf).
Asked by: Helen Goodman (Labour - Bishop Auckland)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what progress has been made on the individual project components of the Conflict, Stability and Security Fund Anguilla Programme.
Answered by Alan Duncan
The aim of the Conflict, Stability and Security Fund (CSSF) Anguilla Territory Programme is to rebuild Anguilla's critical public infrastructure with enhanced resilience, to enable further progress towards sustainable economic development and self-sufficiency, following Hurricane Irma in 2017.
Since it was established in May 2018, the programme has delivered against its primary objective to rebuild Anguilla's critical national infrastructure, including emergency services buildings and equipment, hurricane shelters, airport and ferry terminal operations in time for the 2018 hurricane season (funded in part by the Global Britain Fund).
The Programme continues to make steady progress. To date 17 projects have been progressed with Business Cases agreed for 16. Fire-fighting appliances arrived in early 2019 and a Combined Services Building is scheduled for completion at the end of May 2019. Work on a range of longer term projects, covering education, health and infrastructure is ongoing. One primary school has already been refurbished and another is in progress. Upgrades to wards in the Territory's hospital are continuing while the roof has been strengthened, and new equipment is either on order or already in use.
All remaining projects are due to start construction by summer 2019. A full assessment, with contributions by all Government departments involved in the CSSF programme in Anguilla will be made on completion of the programme in 2021.
Asked by: Helen Goodman (Labour - Bishop Auckland)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what progress has been made on the individual project components of the Conflict, Stability and Security Fund British Virgin Island Territory (BVITP) Programme.
Answered by Alan Duncan
The aim of the Conflict, Stability and Security Fund (CSSF) British Virgin Island Territory Programme (BVITP) is to support the Government of the Virgin Islands to ensure the successful long-term recovery and development of the British Virgin Islands, following the hurricanes of 2017.
The initial focus of the BVITP is to support the set-up and operation of the Virgin Islands Recovery and Development Agency (RDA), enabling the RDA to attract investment and successfully deliver the Recovery to Development Plan of the British Virgin Islands Government (BVIG) in accordance with principles of accountability, transparency and good governance. The BVITP also directly supports the transition of early recovery projects into the long-term recovery plan as well as the implementation of priority activity from the Recovery to Development Plan in areas that are key enablers for the recovery process and constitutional responsibilities of the Governor. These include robust disaster preparedness, support to improve good governance in the recovery structures and strengthened justice and security.
Good progress is being made on all components of the BVITP: the RDA has been established and is now delivering projects from Phase One of the Recovery to Development Plan. A number of priority security and justice and disaster preparedness projects have been directly supported and are either complete or expected to complete to schedule. The majority of early recovery activity supported by BVITP has now been completed and incorporated into the BVIG's long-term recovery plan. All of the activity has been undertaken in partnership with the Government of the Virgin Islands.
A full assessment, with contributions by all UK Government departments involved in the CSSF programme in the British Virgin Islands will be made on completion of the programme in 2021.
Asked by: Helen Goodman (Labour - Bishop Auckland)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what progress has been made on the individual project components of (a) the Overseas Territories: Justice, Security and Governance (JSG) Programme and (b) Overseas Territories: Maritime Governance and Environment Programme.
Answered by Alan Duncan
In 2018-19, the Conflict Stability and Security Fund (CSSF) Overseas Territories’ Justice, Security and Governance (JSG) Programme worked with relevant Government Departments and Overseas Territories (OTs) Governments to support a range of areas including law enforcement, prisons, child safeguarding, criminal justice, public health, public sector reform and disaster resilience. Progress against objectives has included post-hurricane infrastructure projects for prisons in Anguilla, the British Virgin Islands and the Turks and Caicos Islands; provision of a fit-for-purpose counter-terrorism training facility for the Royal Gibraltar Police Force and inclusion of OTs in INTERPOL’s Ballistic Identification Network (IBIN) to support the tackling of gun crime. It also included: support to Chief Medical Officers on the control of vector-borne diseases; development of a multi-agency approach in responding to sexual assaults; and a threat analysis and needs assessment on maritime and border security to prevent drug- and people-trafficking and tackle serious and organised crime.
The Maritime Governance and Environment Programme works with the Maritime and Coastguard Agency, UK Home Office, Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs and the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) to deliver a range of projects including the Blue Belt, which is on track to deliver the UK’s commitment to protect over 4 million km2 of waters around the OTs by 2020. The CSSF has been working alongside OT governments and administrations to ensure these Marine Protected Areas are properly managed, monitored and enforced. Work has been undertaken in the OTs to progress effective maritime legislation in preparation for the International Maritime Organisation Audit 2020; update seabed mapping and navigation products; improve compliance on vessel safety; and deliver training and equipment to support and maintain an effective search and rescue capability and pollution response. Gap analysis and targeted support increase OT capability to tackle the threat posed by invasive non-native species and improve the evidence base on environmental issues across the OTs. Both the FCO and CSSF will produce Annual Reports which will cover support provided to the OTs with a full finance update.
Asked by: Helen Goodman (Labour - Bishop Auckland)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what progress has been made under each of the individual project components of the Burma Conflict, Stability and Security Fund programme.
Answered by Mark Field
In the last financial year the Burma Conflict, Stability and Security Fund programme provided funding for projects supporting the peace process and peacebuilding including through mediation and negotiation skills for key stakeholders; improving public administration approaches and strengthening community-led mechanisms for safer communities; and working towards reconciliation and rehabilitation among communities in Rakhine. Information on individual projects and intended outcomes is included in the Burma Programme Summary, while a summary of progress of programmes meeting their objectives and delivering outputs is included in the Annual Review summary. Both of these documents are published online annually (https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/conflict-stability-and-security-fund-cssf).
Asked by: Helen Goodman (Labour - Bishop Auckland)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what estimate his Department has made of the projected cost of the planned UK embassy building in Beijing.
Answered by Mark Field
The Foreign and Commonwealth Office is committed to redevelop our embassy site in Beijing which is not fit- for-purpose and does not meet the scale of ministerial ambitions in China. Our SR15 Settlement commits us to provide £80 million of funding towards this raised by the sale of our assets. Project planning continues and is at an early stage. However, details of costs are commercially sensitive.