Asked by: Ian Byrne (Labour - Liverpool West Derby)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, with reference to the resolution agreed at COP27 to establish a loss and damage fund to assist countries that are more affected by climate change, if he will have discussions with the Chancellor of the Exchequer on the potential merits of a tax on companies with higher carbon emissions to help fund the UK's contribution to the loss and damage fund.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell
The UK is committed to making progress on a loss and damage fund that supports those particularly vulnerable to the adverse effects of climate change. Maximising support to this end is critical. The UK believes this requires the fund to have a wide contributor base and be open to a range of sources of finance, including public, private, and innovative. As noted at the third Loss and Damage Transitional Committee meeting (29 Aug - 1 Sep), the UK is open to considering new ideas for innovative finance options.
Asked by: Ian Byrne (Labour - Liverpool West Derby)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, with reference to United Nations Security Council Resolution 2417, what steps his Department is taking to (a) help ensure that civilians in conflict zones can access food and (b) stabilise global food supply chains.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell
In 2022, the UK provided £1.1 billion in humanitarian aid, including food aid to communities affected by conflict and other crises.
The UK is working with other UN Security Council members to improve reporting on conflict-induced food insecurity and increase accountability for the use of starvation as a weapon of war. We are supporting the development of a legal handbook on Conflict, Hunger and International Humanitarian Law.
Our development and diplomatic efforts to deliver sustainable food security solutions, as illustrated in the International Development Strategy and Integrated Review Refresh, continue to contribute to global food systems and supply chain stability.
Asked by: Ian Byrne (Labour - Liverpool West Derby)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, if his Department will publish information on the campaign to improve global food security and nutrition as part of the Integrated Review Refresh.
Answered by Anne-Marie Trevelyan
Minister Mitchell set out further details of the global food security and nutrition campaign in his recent speech on international development at Chatham House. This included announcing an event towards the end of the year to bring together British and international expertise in tackling hunger and starvation with the support of the academic, medical, research, philanthropic, and NGO and charity community. We will publish further information on actions that have been taken to deliver the campaign throughout the year, for example funding announcements and details of Ministerial visits and engagements (such as this publication on .gov.uk on the UK-hosted Agriculture Breakthrough: https://www.gov.uk/government/speeches/agriculture-breakthrough-ministerial-meeting-minister-trevelyans-speech-in-washington-dc). The Department engages regularly with a range of stakeholders to consult and inform them on the progress of the campaign.
Asked by: Ian Byrne (Labour - Liverpool West Derby)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, if he will increase the amount of humanitarian funding committed to tackling hunger in East Africa.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell
The UK is a longstanding and major humanitarian donor to East Africa. Since 2019 the UK has allocated more than £1 billion in humanitarian support throughout the region. UK funded relief activities have benefitted tens of millions of people. We will share details of our planned humanitarian expenditure for the region in 2023/2024 at the upcoming Horn of Africa pledging conference which takes place in New York on 24 May.
Asked by: Ian Byrne (Labour - Liverpool West Derby)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, if the Government will accept the recent request from the UN Special Rapporteur on the Right to Food to visit the UK.
Answered by David Rutley
We have a long-standing policy of accepting requests for visits by the Special Rapporteurs and other independent experts established by the UN Human Rights Council. We have already had one such visit in January this year and are working to prepare another visit in the coming months. We will engage with the office of the Special Rapporteur on the Right to Food to agree suitable dates for a visit in due course.
Asked by: Ian Byrne (Labour - Liverpool West Derby)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether she has had discussions with her Colombian counterparts about the security of former FARC combatants based at the Agua Bonita reincorporation zone in Caquetá following reports that two individuals were killed on 6 and 12 July 2022.
Answered by Vicky Ford
Colombia is a UK Human Rights Priority Country and UK ministers and senior officials regularly discuss security issues with the Colombian Government and in multilateral fora. Most recently, our Permanent Representative at the United Nations raised the need to ensure security for vulnerable communities affected by violence, displacement and confinement at the UN Security Council on 14 July. The UN Security Council subsequently agreed a UK-drafted press statement stressing concerns regarding the persistent threats, attacks and killings targeting former FARC combatants.
Through our Conflict, Stability, and Security Fund (CSSF) programme, which has provided £69 million in support of Peace Agreement implementation, security and stability in Colombia since 2015, we will continue to support programmes that help to protect former FARC combatants and other groups affected by violence, including in areas such as Caquetá.