Asked by: Hywel Williams (Plaid Cymru - Arfon)
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 human rights situation in Somaliland; and what humanitarian support his Department has provided to support people affected by violence in Somaliland.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
Since 2022, the human rights situation in Somaliland has deteriorated, in particular the curtailing of media freedoms and the use of disproportionate force in response to protests. We see the promotion of respect for human rights across Somalia, including Somaliland, as essential to peace and stability. We regularly engage with the Somaliland authorities to urge them to uphold their human rights commitments. The UK has been pressing for an urgent end to the fighting in Las Anod. We are providing a range of humanitarian support to those affected by violence, including the UK-supported Start Fund delivering through Oxfam to support households displaced from Las Anod.
Asked by: Hywel Williams (Plaid Cymru - Arfon)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 6 March 2023 to Question 155046 on UK Internal Trade: Northern Ireland, how the transit procedure which will allow goods to travel from Wales to Northern Ireland through the Republic of Ireland using the green lane will operate; whether goods arriving in the Republic of Ireland from Wales which are destined for Northern Ireland will be subject to the same degree of checks as those which go directly from Great Britain to Northern Ireland; and which part of the Windsor Framework provides for that transit procedure.
Answered by Leo Docherty - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for the Armed Forces)
We have delivered a new Green Lane which means that goods staying in the UK will be freed of unnecessary paperwork, checks and duties when they move into Northern Ireland. The Green Lane is open to all UK businesses where they import or sell goods that are not ultimately destined for the EU market. This will include goods travelling from Wales to Northern Ireland through the Republic of Ireland using the transit procedure, as the processes otherwise applied for goods imported into the Republic of Ireland are a matter for the Irish Government. Following EU exit, the UK successfully negotiated membership of the Common Transit Convention. This is already part of domestic UK law by the Customs Procedures (EU Exit) Regulations 2018. There is already guidance on the use of transit procedures on Gov.uk, and as we bring the new green lane on stream we will set out further guidance on how those arrangements operate.
Asked by: Hywel Williams (Plaid Cymru - Arfon)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, with reference to the Windsor Framework, published on 27 February 2023, CP 806, whether the green lanes will apply to goods travelling from Wales to Northern Ireland through the Republic of Ireland.
Answered by Leo Docherty - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for the Armed Forces)
We have delivered a new Green Lane which means that goods staying in the UK will be freed of unnecessary paperwork, checks and duties when they move into Northern Ireland. The Green Lane is open to all UK businesses where they import or sell goods that are not ultimately destined for the EU market. This includes goods travelling from Wales to Northern Ireland through the Republic of Ireland using the transit procedure, as the processes otherwise applied for goods imported into the Republic of Ireland are a matter for the Irish Government.
Asked by: Hywel Williams (Plaid Cymru - Arfon)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, with reference to he Windsor Framework, published on 27 February 2023, what assessment he has made of the effect of the Framework on time-sensitive exports coming from Northern Ireland, including ready meals, via Holyhead to the south east of England.
Answered by Leo Docherty - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for the Armed Forces)
The Windsor Framework guarantees unfettered access for Northern Ireland's businesses to the UK market on a permanent basis. This removes any proposed requirement to provide export declarations, or equivalent information, for goods moving from Northern Ireland to Great Britain.
Asked by: Hywel Williams (Plaid Cymru - Arfon)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, if he will make an assessment of the potential impact of the number of countries who have not imposed sanctions on Russia on the UK's sanctions regime; and whether he has had recent discussions with his counterparts in countries that have not imposed sanctions on Russia on that issue.
Answered by Anne-Marie Trevelyan - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Sanctions are imposing significant costs on the Russian economy. Its budget is in deficit and is expected to remain so until 2025. Russia's imports of sanctioned goods are down by almost 50 percent and have declined from both sanctioning countries and countries who have not imposed sanctions on Russia.
The UK also continues to engage the international community on sanctions, explaining the measures we have introduced, building support for our approach countering Russian disinformation. As set out in the G7 statement published on 24 February we will work with our G7 partners to take action against third country actors materially supporting Russia's illegal war.
Asked by: Hywel Williams (Plaid Cymru - Arfon)
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 availability of (a) food, (b) medicine and (c) energy supply in Nagorno Karabakh; and what discussions he has had with his international counterparts on recent developments and ensuring freedom and security of movement along the Lachin corridor.
Answered by Leo Docherty - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for the Armed Forces)
The UK Government has made clear that the closure of the Lachin corridor risks severe humanitarian consequences, particularly during winter. I [Leo Docherty] spoke to Armenian Foreign Minister Mirzoyan on 18 January where we agreed on the importance of the immediate re-opening of the Lachin Corridor and the need to ensure gas and electricity supplies into Nagorno-Karabakh are not switched off. UK officials, including our Ambassador in Baku, have engaged extensively with Azerbaijani counterparts. On 18 January officials spoke to the ICRC regarding the humanitarian situation, including the dwindling food and medical supplies, and will remain in contact in the coming weeks to share their assessment of the impact of the closure.
Asked by: Hywel Williams (Plaid Cymru - Arfon)
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 potential impact of (a) 2022 supply constraints and (b) fertiliser costs on global food security in 2023; and what steps he is taking to improve global food security.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
FCDO is monitoring food security. Global food production will be constrained, including by high fertiliser prices. Whilst there will be no absolute risk to food availability, we expect hotspots of reduced availability and increased levels of food insecurity and malnutrition. The challenge will be possibly unprecedented numbers of people not able to afford or access the food that they need to survive and live a healthy and productive life.
FCDO is addressing underlying causes; promoting robust food systems in low-income countries; saving lives in famine risk areas; and ensuring an effective international response, including through a focus on the most vulnerable.
Asked by: Hywel Williams (Plaid Cymru - Arfon)
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 potential long-term impacts of Russia's invasion of Ukraine on global food security; and what steps is he taking to mitigate these impacts.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
Russia's invasion is destroying Ukraine's farms and infrastructure. Reductions in food on global markets caused price spikes in 2022. Instability will continue into 2023. The most vulnerable globally will suffer the worst impacts, such as increased malnutrition which can be deadly, and for survivors has lifelong implications.
We have supported the Black Sea Grain Initiative, under which over 17 million tonnes of grain have been exported from Ukraine. We also provided £10 million for equipment to move grain by rail. Elsewhere, we are working with international partners to support the vulnerable, including contributing £4.2 million to the Nutrition Match Fund.
Asked by: Hywel Williams (Plaid Cymru - Arfon)
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 his Department’s policy to freeze non-essential aid spending until 31 October 2022 on (a) tackling food poverty, (b) water sanitation and (c) education for girls.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
The FCDO is closely monitoring the risks and impacts of pausing some ODA spend.
The FCDO tackles food insecurity and supports food systems through interventions in low-income countries and is prioritising spending that will prevent people falling into humanitarian need when food production drops or food price increase.
Improved access to water supply, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) is key to the UK's approach to ending the preventable deaths of mothers, children, infants and for pandemic preparedness and response. The UK is prioritising spend on hand hygiene as part of our approach to tackling Covid-19; strengthening the climate resilience of WASH services; and reinforcing accountability for the delivery of WASH services.
Girls' education remains a development priority. In FCDO, we are prioritising spend to ensure continued access to primary education for girls, especially the most marginalised and those caught up in crisis situations.
Asked by: Hywel Williams (Plaid Cymru - Arfon)
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 Bahraini counterpart on the case of Hasan Mushaima; and will he make representations to the Bahraini Government on ending his imprisonment.
Answered by Gillian Keegan - Secretary of State for Education
Officials and ministers have regular discussions with senior Bahraini counterparts on human rights, including most recently at UNGA where Lord Ahmad met with the Bahraini Foreign Minister. We continue to follow and discuss the case of Hasan Mushaima and others, as necessary, with the Bahraini Government as well as with the independent oversight bodies.