Asked by: James MacCleary (Liberal Democrat - Lewes)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether her Department is taking steps to support (a) Shadi Khoury and (b) other Palestinian (i) children and (ii) young people.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
I refer the Hon. Member to the answer given on 13 October to Question 76963.
Asked by: James MacCleary (Liberal Democrat - Lewes)
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 help secure the safe return of Craig and Lindsay Foreman from Iran.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
We are deeply concerned by Craig and Lindsay's detention in Iran. We are providing them with consular assistance and remain in close contact with their family members. We continue to raise the case directly with the Iranian authorities.
Asked by: James MacCleary (Liberal Democrat - Lewes)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps he has taken to help secure the release of Alaa Abd el-Fattah.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The Government is committed to securing Mr El-Fattah's release so he can be reunited with his family. We continue to engage actively in pressing for his release at the highest levels of the Egyptian government. The Prime Minister raised the case with President Sisi on 26 June. The former Foreign Secretary has also raised the case regularly, most recently in a call with Foreign Minister Abdelatty on 31 August. I most recently raised Mr El-Fattah's case with Foreign Minister Abdelatty on 28 July and with the Egyptian Ambassador to the UK on multiple occasions.
Asked by: James MacCleary (Liberal Democrat - Lewes)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, when he plans to respond to Question 66793 tabled on the 10 July 2025 by the hon. Member for Lewes.
Answered by Stephen Doughty - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
I apologise for the delay in responding to the hon. Member's written parliamentary question. I issued a response to the hon. Member on 21 July 2025.
Asked by: James MacCleary (Liberal Democrat - Lewes)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether his Department has made an assessment of the potential merits of providing aid to women and girls in Afghanistan who had their special immigration visas for resettlement removed by the US government.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK is committed to supporting the rights of all women and girls in Afghanistan. Decisions on how the Official Development Assistance (ODA) budget will be used from 2026/27 onwards will be worked through as part of the ongoing Spending Review, based on various factors including impact assessments. In 2025/26 we have allocated up to £140 million to support those Afghans most in need, including marginalised and vulnerable groups. We also remain committed to ensuring at least 50 per cent of people reached by UK aid are women and girls.
Asked by: James MacCleary (Liberal Democrat - Lewes)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether his Department holds data on the number of EU airports which (a) offer and (b) are expected to offer e-gate access for UK passport holders by 23 July 2025.
Answered by Stephen Doughty - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
At the UK-EU Summit on 19 May, we secured confirmation that there will be no legal barriers for British nationals to use eGates after the introduction of the EU's Entry/Exit system (EES). Whether to grant British Citizens eGates access is a matter for Member States.
A number of Member States already offer British Citizens eGates access at certain airports and ports, in a range of circumstances, including Italy, France and Spain. We are working at pace with individual Member States to expand access to eGates for British Citizens where this is currently limited. Recently, Bulgaria has begun offering eGates access in Sofia airport and the UK-Germany Friendship and Bilateral Cooperation Treaty signed on 17 July commits to rolling out eGate access for frequent travellers by the end of August, followed by rollout for all UK nationals as soon as technically possible.
We anticipate more Member States will be able to offer access at further locations over the coming months.
Asked by: James MacCleary (Liberal Democrat - Lewes)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether his Department holds data on the number of EU airports which (a) offer and (b) are expected to offer e-gate access for UK passport holders by 23 July 2025.
Answered by Stephen Doughty - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
At the UK-EU Summit on 19 May, we secured confirmation that there will be no legal barriers for British nationals to use eGates after the introduction of the EU's Entry/Exit system (EES). Whether to grant British Citizens eGates access is a matter for Member States.
A number of Member States already offer British Citizens eGates access at certain airports and ports, in a range of circumstances, including Italy, France and Spain. We are working at pace with individual Member States to expand access to eGates for British Citizens where this is currently limited. Recently, Bulgaria has begun offering eGates access in Sofia airport and the UK-Germany Friendship and Bilateral Cooperation Treaty signed on 17 July commits to rolling out eGate access for frequent travellers by the end of August, followed by rollout for all UK nationals as soon as technically possible.
We anticipate more Member States will be able to offer access at further locations over the coming months.
Asked by: James MacCleary (Liberal Democrat - Lewes)
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 recent imprisonment of Georgian opposition leaders (a) Mamuka Khazaradze, (b) Badri Japaridze and Giorgi Vashadze; whether he has made an assessment of the potential motivations of these; and what representations he has made to his Georgian counterparts in relation to these arrests.
Answered by Stephen Doughty - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
I am seriously concerned by the recent sentences imposed on several prominent Georgian opposition figures including Mr Japaridze, Mr Khazaradze and Mr Vashadze. These were blatantly politically-motivated, and aimed at blocking political opposition from future elections. On 23 June I called on Georgian Dream to end its misuse of the courts to silence dissent, and free all political prisoners. The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) summoned the Georgian Chargé d'Affaires on 30 June, to make clear the UK's firm opposition to Georgia's increasingly harmful trajectory. We continue to keep the worsening situation under close review, and on 1 July I spoke with a number of European partners to discuss our collective concerns.
I have consistently expressed my serious concerns about Georgia's deteriorating democratic trajectory, which has adversely affected UK-Georgia bilateral relations. Any assessment of the current situation must also take into account Mr Ivanishvili's and his affiliates' influence on Georgia's political landscape. The UK's support for the Georgian people's Euro-Atlantic aspirations remains steadfast, and we stand ready to assist in any return to a trajectory towards European values and democratic norms.
We do not comment on or speculate about future sanctions designations in any context, as to do so could reduce their effectiveness.
Asked by: James MacCleary (Liberal Democrat - Lewes)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether he has made an assessment of the potential impact of Bidzina Ivanishvili and his affiliates on support for Georgian democracy; and whether he is considering sanctions.
Answered by Stephen Doughty - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
I am seriously concerned by the recent sentences imposed on several prominent Georgian opposition figures including Mr Japaridze, Mr Khazaradze and Mr Vashadze. These were blatantly politically-motivated, and aimed at blocking political opposition from future elections. On 23 June I called on Georgian Dream to end its misuse of the courts to silence dissent, and free all political prisoners. The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) summoned the Georgian Chargé d'Affaires on 30 June, to make clear the UK's firm opposition to Georgia's increasingly harmful trajectory. We continue to keep the worsening situation under close review, and on 1 July I spoke with a number of European partners to discuss our collective concerns.
I have consistently expressed my serious concerns about Georgia's deteriorating democratic trajectory, which has adversely affected UK-Georgia bilateral relations. Any assessment of the current situation must also take into account Mr Ivanishvili's and his affiliates' influence on Georgia's political landscape. The UK's support for the Georgian people's Euro-Atlantic aspirations remains steadfast, and we stand ready to assist in any return to a trajectory towards European values and democratic norms.
We do not comment on or speculate about future sanctions designations in any context, as to do so could reduce their effectiveness.