Asked by: Keith Vaz (Labour - Leicester East)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, which Yemeni institutions and individuals have funds frozen in the Bank of England.
Answered by John Glen
Responsibility for the implementation of financial sanctions transferred from the Bank of England to Her Majesty’s Treasury in 2007. The Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation (OFSI), which is part of HM Treasury, ensures that financial sanctions are properly understood and implemented in the UK. It is for holders of assets subject to sanctions to ensure that they are frozen under the regulations.
The Yemen sanctions regime imposes an asset freeze against five individuals. Details of the Yemen regime, including the designated persons, can be publicly accessed on GOV.UK at the following web address: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/financial-sanctions-yemen.
OFSI undertakes an Annual Review of frozen assets in the UK, requiring all persons or institutions that hold or control frozen assets in the UK to report to OFSI. As of 28 September 2018, the value of frozen funds associated with designated persons on the Yemen regime was some £3,500,000 (see OFSI Annual Review 2018 – 2019, available at: https://gov.uk/ofsi.) HM Treasury does not provide a breakdown of the value of frozen assets held by certain individuals or entities, nor does it provide detailed information of frozen assets associated with specific designated persons.
Asked by: Keith Vaz (Labour - Leicester East)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what the value is of funds frozen of Yemeni institutions and individuals in the Bank of England.
Answered by John Glen
Responsibility for the implementation of financial sanctions transferred from the Bank of England to Her Majesty’s Treasury in 2007. The Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation (OFSI), which is part of HM Treasury, ensures that financial sanctions are properly understood and implemented in the UK. It is for holders of assets subject to sanctions to ensure that they are frozen under the regulations.
The Yemen sanctions regime imposes an asset freeze against five individuals. Details of the Yemen regime, including the designated persons, can be publicly accessed on GOV.UK at the following web address: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/financial-sanctions-yemen.
OFSI undertakes an Annual Review of frozen assets in the UK, requiring all persons or institutions that hold or control frozen assets in the UK to report to OFSI. As of 28 September 2018, the value of frozen funds associated with designated persons on the Yemen regime was some £3,500,000 (see OFSI Annual Review 2018 – 2019, available at: https://gov.uk/ofsi.) HM Treasury does not provide a breakdown of the value of frozen assets held by certain individuals or entities, nor does it provide detailed information of frozen assets associated with specific designated persons.
Asked by: Keith Vaz (Labour - Leicester East)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent representations he has received on the situation in Kashmir.
Answered by Heather Wheeler
We are following the situation in Kashmir closely and are in regular contact with the Government of India and the Government of Pakistan.
Asked by: Keith Vaz (Labour - Leicester East)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what criteria the Government uses when deciding whether to freeze funds of Yemeni institutions and individuals.
Answered by Andrew Murrison
Sanctions against Yemen were imposed by the UN (under UN Security Council Resolution 2140) in 2014 following an escalation in violence in Yemen, including attacks against military and security facilities. Specific designation criteria set out by that resolution can be applied when there is evidence of individuals or entities engaging in or providing support for acts that threaten the peace, security or stability of Yemen. Five individuals are currently designated under this regime and are subject to asset freezes and travel bans. The UK implements these sanctions as part of its international legal obligations.
Asked by: Keith Vaz (Labour - Leicester East)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, when the next meeting of the Yemen Quad is scheduled to take place.
Answered by Andrew Murrison
A date has not yet been fixed for the next Yemen Quad meeting, but we continue to work closely with our Quad partners (US, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates) on Yemen, and with other international partners. On 26 September, the UK co-hosted a political event at the UN General Assembly to coordinate the international community’s support for the UN-led peace process and endorse the UN Special Envoy’s plan to begin wider political discussion.
Asked by: Keith Vaz (Labour - Leicester East)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment his Department has made of the accuracy of reports of fighting in Najran, Al Dhale and Hajjah governorates of Yemen.
Answered by Andrew Murrison
We monitor the conflict in Yemen closely and are concerned about reports of increased violence in parts of Yemen and in Najran, Saudi Arabia. All parties must engage constructively and in good faith to overcome obstacles and find a political solution to end the conflict. We continue to call on all parties to the conflict in Yemen to exercise restraint, comply fully with International Humanitarian Law and engage constructively with the peace process led by the UN Special Envoy, which is the only way to end the cycle of violence.
Asked by: Keith Vaz (Labour - Leicester East)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what preparations his Department is making for the 2020 UN High-Level Pledging Event for Yemen.
Answered by Andrew Murrison
We thank all donors who have provided funding to the UN’s 2019 Yemen Humanitarian Response Plan, including Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Kuwait, who provided approximately $800 million between them in September.
We continue to encourage all donors to rapidly release their remaining pledges and consider providing further funding to this year’s UN appeal.
We await the release of the UN’s 2020 Yemen Humanitarian Needs Overview and accompanying Humanitarian Response Plan, which will inform our decisions on how we provide our funding next year.
Asked by: Keith Vaz (Labour - Leicester East)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, when he will announce the name of the successor to Sir Kim Darroch as British Ambassador to the USA.
Answered by Christopher Pincher
A new appointment will be made in due course. The United Kingdom has a strong relationship with the US which is based on many decades of close cooperation and partnership, and that will remain the case.