Asked by: Neil Coyle (Labour - Bermondsey and Old Southwark)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, whether the British Consulate-General in Hong Kong has contacted Jimmy Lai during his detention in Stanley Prison.
Answered by Anne-Marie Trevelyan
We continue to press for consular access to Jimmy Lai and call for his release. Diplomats at our Consulate-General in Hong Kong continue to attend his court proceedings. The Foreign Secretary and I met with Jimmy's son Sebastien on 12 December to listen to his concerns for his father ahead of the trial starting in Hong Kong on 18 December. The Foreign Secretary raised Jimmy's case with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi in their introductory call on 5 December, setting out his concern at the highly politicised nature of the prosecution.
Asked by: Neil Coyle (Labour - Bermondsey and Old Southwark)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, whether officials in his Department have visited Jimmy Lai in Stanley Prison in Hong Kong ahead of his national security trial on 18 December 2023.
Answered by Anne-Marie Trevelyan
We continue to press for consular access to Jimmy Lai and call for his release. Diplomats at our Consulate-General in Hong Kong continue to attend his court proceedings. The Foreign Secretary and I met with Jimmy's son Sebastien on 12 December to listen to his concerns for his father ahead of the trial starting in Hong Kong on 18 December. The Foreign Secretary raised Jimmy's case with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi in their introductory call on 5 December, setting out his concern at the highly politicised nature of the prosecution.
Asked by: Neil Coyle (Labour - Bermondsey and Old Southwark)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, what his Department's policy is on whether Hong Kong should be represented at international economic organisations in the context of its changed status within China.
Answered by Anne-Marie Trevelyan
As noted by the former Foreign Secretary in the latest Six-Monthly Report Hong Kong, Hong Kong's economic, monetary and financial systems remain distinct and robust from the mainland. The Sino-British Joint Declaration states that Hong Kong "may participate in relevant international organisations and international trade agreements… such as the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade". However, Hong Kong is a Special Administrative Region (SAR) of China and the Chinese government is responsible for its decisions on representation at state level to international organisations.
Asked by: Neil Coyle (Labour - Bermondsey and Old Southwark)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, what recent assessment he has made of the stability of democracy in Sierra Leone; and whether his Department is taking diplomatic steps to help (a) stabilise democracy and (b) ensure legitimate institutions are restored in that country.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell
The UK has strongly condemned the unjustifiable violence which took place on Sunday 26 November. We have welcomed President Bio's call for unity and commitment to hold those responsible to account and the statements from all political parties calling out the violence. We continue to follow the situation closely and are engaged with Government, political parties and other stakeholders. The UK remains committed to supporting a democratic, peaceful and prosperous Sierra Leone and the aspirations of its people.
Asked by: Neil Coyle (Labour - Bermondsey and Old Southwark)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that people distributing (a) UK aid and (b) other public funding overseas with (i) British and (ii) duel British nationality are not aiding or supporting proscribed terrorist organisations.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell
The FCDO has controls in place to ensure that UK aid - and other funds used overseas - goes direct to intended beneficiaries, and for its intended purposes. The FCDO carries out due diligence assessments of UK aid partners to ensure they have procedures in place to manage the risk of aid diversion, including the risk of support to proscribed terrorist groups, as appropriate. All UK aid fund disbursements are overseen by a Senior Responsible Owner who is accountable for ensuring procedures are followed. The FCDO Programme Operating Framework, which sets out the mandatory rules for FCDO programming, was reviewed by the Independent Commission for Aid Impact (ICAI) in 2023. The review, published in April, said that this was the right approach for the FCDO - calling it a credible and appropriate framework. To date, no individual from an International NGO or body corporate has been prosecuted in the UK for terrorism offences relating to humanitarian, development or peacebuilding work.
Asked by: Neil Coyle (Labour - Bermondsey and Old Southwark)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, whether his Department is taking steps to help ensure that people working for international aid organisations overseas with (a) British and (b) duel British nationality are not aiding or supporting proscribed terrorist organisations.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell
The FCDO has controls in place to ensure that UK aid - and other funds used overseas - goes direct to intended beneficiaries, and for its intended purposes. The FCDO carries out due diligence assessments of UK aid partners to ensure they have procedures in place to manage the risk of aid diversion, including the risk of support to proscribed terrorist groups, as appropriate. All UK aid fund disbursements are overseen by a Senior Responsible Owner who is accountable for ensuring procedures are followed. The FCDO Programme Operating Framework, which sets out the mandatory rules for FCDO programming, was reviewed by the Independent Commission for Aid Impact (ICAI) in 2023. The review, published in April, said that this was the right approach for the FCDO - calling it a credible and appropriate framework. To date, no individual from an International NGO or body corporate has been prosecuted in the UK for terrorism offences relating to humanitarian, development or peacebuilding work.
Asked by: Neil Coyle (Labour - Bermondsey and Old Southwark)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of creating a Minister for hostage affairs to help support families of (a) British and (b) dual nationals.
Answered by David Rutley
As Minister for consular policy I review all complex cases, including hostage and arbitrary detention for diplomatic leverage cases, with consular officials on a regular basis. When necessary, decisions on individual cases are made by the relevant geographical Minister who understands the region and has a relationship with their counterpart. They are supported in this by our Ambassadors and senior officials who hold the necessary geographic and thematic expertise alongside our consular team. At all times the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs holds ultimate responsibility. We also work closely with other Departments and agencies who also have relevant expertise.
Asked by: Neil Coyle (Labour - Bermondsey and Old Southwark)
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 implications for his policies of the increase in exports to Russia from (a) the People’s Republic of China and (b) some other countries since the invasion of Ukraine in 2022; and what steps he is taking to help tackle attempts to undermine sanctions against Russia.
Answered by Anne-Marie Trevelyan
China's continued failure to condemn the invasion is deeply disappointing and harmful to China's interests and reputation in Europe. We have pressed upon China at all levels not to offer support for Russia's actions. The Foreign Secretary spoke to his Chinese counterpart in August to stress that message. Internationally, we are working closely with the EU and US to engage third countries where we have seen a spike in trade in sanctioned goods with Russia. This joint diplomatic engagement is producing results, with a number of third countries agreeing to control exports of goods that are critical to Russia's war effort.
Asked by: Neil Coyle (Labour - Bermondsey and Old Southwark)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what representations he has made to his Pakistani counterpart to help ensure that no Afghans in refugee camps in that country eligible for (a) the Afghan Relocations and Assistance Policy, (b) the Afghan Citizen Resettlement Scheme and (c) other UK schemes, are deported back to Afghanistan.
Answered by Leo Docherty
We are not aware of any eligible individuals under either the ARAP (Afghan Relocations and Assistance Policy) or ACRS (Afghan Citizen Resettlement Scheme) Pathway 3 schemes in refugee camps in Pakistan. Other schemes are for the Home Office to answer. We are monitoring the situation closely and the British High Commission is in frequent contact with the Pakistani authorities to try and ensure that no ARAP or ACRS Pathway 3 eligible individuals are deported while they await relocation to the UK and are seeking assurances to this effect.
Asked by: Neil Coyle (Labour - Bermondsey and Old Southwark)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps his Department plans to take to help ensure the safety of Afghan Chevening scholars after the conclusion of their studies in the UK.
Answered by Leo Docherty
Our Chevening scheme for Afghanistan requires that applicants have resident status in a third country and that they are able to leave the UK at the end of their studies.
The FCDO can provide letters of consent to scholars in the UK who have completed their studies and whose visas in other countries have expired, allowing them to apply for another UK visa, exempting them from the normal requirement to leave the UK on completion of study, given the situation in Afghanistan.