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Written Question
Iraq
Monday 15th December 2014

Asked by: Ian C. Lucas (Labour - Wrexham)

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, when he last raised the inclusion and representation of Assyrians in the (a) Iraqi army and (b) Kurdish peshmerga with the (i) Iraqi government and (ii) Kurdistan regional government.

Answered by Tobias Ellwood

We have not raised this issue with the current Government of Iraq (GoI) or Kurdistan Regional Government.

We welcome the commitment that Prime Minister Abadi has made to inclusive government and to protecting the rights of all Iraqi citizens.

The recent agreement reached between the GoI and Kurdistan Regional Government on revenue-sharing, and the agreement reached between the GoI and three of the tribes of Anbar province to cooperate in the fight against ISIL, are evidence of the more inclusive approach Prime Minister Abadi is taking.

Likewise, the steps that have been taken to reform the Iraqi Security Forces, including the dismissal of commanders for corruption, and the creation of a National Guard which would bring militia groups under government control, are hopeful signs for the future.

Written Question
Iraq
Monday 15th December 2014

Asked by: Ian C. Lucas (Labour - Wrexham)

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent reports he has received on the effect of the appointment of Haider al-Abadi as Prime Minister of Iraq on (a) the relationship between the Kurdistan Regional Government and the Iraqi government and (b) the capacity of those governments to lead efforts to combat ISIL.

Answered by Tobias Ellwood

We welcome Prime Minister Abadi’s commitment to inclusive politics and national reconciliation. Under his tenure relations between the Government of Iraq (GoI) and Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) have improved significantly, with a landmark deal on oil revenues and budget payments agreed on 2 December. This deal commits the GoI to providing funding to the KRG for the Kurdish Security Forces and will hopefully lay the foundations for increased cooperation between the GoI and KRG in the fight against ISIL.

Prime Minister Abadi has also taken steps to reform and improve the effectiveness of the Iraqi Security Forces, including the dismissal of commanders for corruption, and to create a National Guard force which would bring militia groups under government control.

Written Question
Palestinians
Wednesday 29th October 2014

Asked by: Ian C. Lucas (Labour - Wrexham)

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with the Palestinian Authority about reconstruction in Gaza.

Answered by Tobias Ellwood

Our Consulate-General in Jerusalem met with the Palestinian Prime Minister on 8 September to discuss the issue of reconstruction in Gaza.
Written Question
Angola
Wednesday 15th October 2014

Asked by: Ian C. Lucas (Labour - Wrexham)

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with his Angolan counterpart on food supply in that country.

Answered by James Duddridge

The Angolan government is leading the response to food shortages in provinces in the West of Angola. The UK is supporting this work through multilateral organisations such as the EU and UN. The agricultural sector is one of the areas of focus of the High Level Prosperity Partnership between Angola and the UK that was launched in 2013. Officials from the Angolan Ministry of Agriculture and Trade have recently visited the United Kingdom for discussions about how to develop Angolan wheat production, storage and transport systems.


Written Question
Angola
Wednesday 15th October 2014

Asked by: Ian C. Lucas (Labour - Wrexham)

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for International Development on the food supply crisis in Angola.

Answered by James Duddridge

Although the Department for International Development (DfID) no longer has an in-country programme in Angola, it does provide humanitarian oversight and engages with multilateral organisations, such as the UN and EU. FCO and DfID officials are in regular discussions about the international response to food security issues.


Speech in Commons Chamber - Mon 13 Oct 2014
Palestine and Israel

"I begin by congratulating my hon. Friend the Member for Easington (Grahame M. Morris) on securing this historically significant debate. I will seek to limit my remarks and I hope that Members will forgive me if I do not refer to them by name. I do, however, want to refer …..."
Ian C. Lucas - View Speech

View all Ian C. Lucas (Lab - Wrexham) contributions to the debate on: Palestine and Israel

Written Question
Kurds
Monday 13th October 2014

Asked by: Ian C. Lucas (Labour - Wrexham)

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with his French and German counterparts about assistance to the Kurdistan regional government.

Answered by Tobias Ellwood

We continue to consult closely with other members of the coalition on how to defeat ISIL. The UK, France and Germany have all provided equipment to the Kurds.


Written Question
Israel
Monday 13th October 2014

Asked by: Ian C. Lucas (Labour - Wrexham)

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent assessment he has made of the security threat to Israel from Hamas.

Answered by Tobias Ellwood

We have not undertaken a formal assessment of the security threat to Israel from Hamas.


Written Question
Children: Detainees
Monday 1st September 2014

Asked by: Ian C. Lucas (Labour - Wrexham)

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent assessment he has made of the implementation of each of the recommendations in the report, Children in Military Custody, published in June 2012.

Answered by Tobias Ellwood

The UK has made repeated representations to Israel on their treatment of Palestinian prisoners, including child detainees. Since the Foreign and Commonwealth Office-funded independent report on Children in Military Custody, there has been some limited progress. This includes a pilot to use summons instead of night-time arrests, and steps to reduce the amount of time a child can be detained before seeing a judge. My predecessor wrote to the Israeli Attorney General on 31 March to welcome the steps taken to date and to call for further measures, including the mandatory use of audio-visual recording of interrogations, investigation into continued reports of single hand ties being used, and an end to solitary confinement for children. The British Government has been working with the delegation who compiled the Children in Military Custody report to make a return visit to Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories in the near future.


Written Question
St Helena
Monday 1st September 2014

Asked by: Ian C. Lucas (Labour - Wrexham)

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, how many St Helenians are in fuel poverty.

Answered by James Duddridge

The St Helena Government is reviewing how it might appropriately analyse and report fuel poverty statistics on the island, but currently it does not record this information. The FCO and DFID do not record this information.

DFID assists by contributing to efforts to alleviate the effect of the operating loss of the utilities company and to ensure that user tariffs are maintained.