Asked by: Patrick Grady (Scottish National Party - Glasgow North)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether he plans to make representations on the human rights situation in Saudi Arabia with the Crown Prince of that country during his visit.
Answered by David Rutley
Saudi Arabia remains an FCDO Human Rights Priority Country. Our latest published assessment of human rights in Saudi Arabia can be found in the 2022 FCDO Human Rights and Democracy Report. Our relationship with Saudi Arabia enables us to engage candidly on human rights. The Minister for the Middle East, Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon, regularly discusses human rights with the Saudi authorities, including the Saudi Vice Foreign Minister and Saudi Ambassador in London. Lord Ahmad, senior HMG officials, and non-governmental figures and organisations engaged in constructive dialogue with the Saudi Human Rights Commission during their first official visit to the UK on 26-29 September. We will continue to discuss human rights with the Saudi authorities through a range of Ministerial and official channels.
Asked by: Patrick Grady (Scottish National Party - Glasgow North)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, with reference to the Government's pledge to spend £11.6 billion on international climate finance between 2021 and 2026, what steps his Department plans to take to support the delivery of that pledge.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell
We are delivering on our commitment to spend £11.6 billion International Climate Finance (ICF). The Written Ministerial Statement on International Climate Finance published on 17 October showed that we spent over £3.2 billion ICF in 2021/22 and 2022/23. It also sets out the trajectory of spend for the remaining three years of the pledge, providing all-important certainty and predictability for our developing country partners.
Asked by: Patrick Grady (Scottish National Party - Glasgow North)
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 impact of coca substitution programmes in Colombia on levels of (a) coca production and (b) alternative economic opportunities for local coca growers in that country.
Answered by David Rutley
Colombia remains one of the largest producers of coca, which continues to fuel violence in some areas of the country as illegal armed groups fight for control of territory. We commend the Colombian Government's commitment to tackling the root causes of insecurity and to developing sustainable livelihoods for those living in conflict-affected areas. We remain committed to working with Colombia and international partners, including through our contribution to a multi-donor $2 million project for crop substitution and food security.
Asked by: Patrick Grady (Scottish National Party - Glasgow North)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether his Department (a) is providing and (b) plans to provide support to Colombia to help enable (i) structural reform of the National Police, (ii) a review of the protocols for the use of force and weapons and (iii) greater protection for the right to peaceful assembly.
Answered by David Rutley
Whilst structural reform and internal reviews are a matter for the Colombian Government, we are clear that we support the right of all Colombians to protest peacefully, and that the right to peaceful assembly and association must be guaranteed. Through the Conflict, Security, and Stabilisation Fund (CSSF) in Colombia, the UK launched a three year, £2.1 million Police Innovations for Stabilisation in Colombia Programme (SCIP) in 2020, which is helping the transformation of the Colombian National Police. The SCIP aims to contribute to the modernisation of the police service by scaling up and improving police practices with a preventive approach, focusing on i) building links and trust with communities to improve relations and reduce conflict; ii) putting human rights first when managing social tensions and preventing violence; iii) developing and implementing strategies for tackling and preventing gender-based violence.
Asked by: Patrick Grady (Scottish National Party - Glasgow North)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether officials in his Department have had discussions with their counterparts in Colombia on the adoption of collective and comprehensive protection measures for communities experiencing violence by armed groups in that country.
Answered by David Rutley
During his visit to Colombia last May, the Foreign Secretary met with the Colombian Foreign Minister to discuss our ongoing support to peace and security in Colombia. Through the Conflict, Stability and Security Fund (CSSF), which has committed £79 million since 2015, the UK is helping the Colombian Government to strengthen the institutional capacity of the National Protection Unit and civil society organisations involved in the security and participation of communities in conflict-affected areas.
Asked by: Patrick Grady (Scottish National Party - Glasgow North)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether his Department has provided (a) financial and (b) technical assistance to the (i) police and (ii) military in Colombia in the last 12 months.
Answered by David Rutley
Since 2015, the UK has committed £79 million through the Conflict, Stability and Security Fund (CSSF) to support the peace process and improve stability and security in Colombia. As part of the CSSF funding in Colombia, the UK launched a three year, £2.1 million Police Innovations for Stabilisation in Colombia Programme (SCIP) in 2020, which is helping the transformation of the Colombian National Police.
Asked by: Patrick Grady (Scottish National Party - Glasgow North)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether his Department has taken recent steps with international counterparts to help tackle gender-based violence in Colombia.
Answered by David Rutley
The UK is committed to supporting the Women, Peace, and Security (WPS) agenda in Colombia. The UK has provided support to the development of Colombia's first WPS National Action Plan through co-funding consultation workshops with women's rights organisations across the country. We will continue to collaborate with the Colombian government to support implementation.
Colombia is also a FCDO Human Rights Priority country and focus country for the Preventing Sexual Violence in Conflict Initiative (PSVI) Strategy. The Colombian Government is a vice-chair of the UK-founded International Alliance on Preventing Sexual Violence in Conflict. At the UN Security Council, we consistently highlight gender issues related to the implementation of the 2016 Peace Agreement.
Asked by: Patrick Grady (Scottish National Party - Glasgow North)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether his Department is providing support to Colombia's recently established Ministry of Equality and Equity.
Answered by David Rutley
We welcome the creation of the Ministry for Equality and stand ready to further support the Vice President, in her capacity of Minister for Equality, and her Vice Ministers, as the new Ministry takes shape. During her visit to Colombia in April, the UK's Global Ambassador for Human Rights, Rita French, met with Colombia's Presidential Counsellor for Women's Equality to discuss advancing the rights of women and girls. Since 2015, the UK has committed £79 million through the Conflict, Stability and Security Fund (CSSF) to support the peace process and improve stability and security in Colombia.
Asked by: Patrick Grady (Scottish National Party - Glasgow North)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether his Department is taking steps to support the adoption of a national action plan for the implementation of United Nations Security Council Resolution 1325 in Colombia.
Answered by David Rutley
The UK is committed to supporting the Women, Peace, and Security (WPS) agenda in Colombia. The UK has provided support to the development of Colombia's first WPS National Action Plan through co-funding consultation workshops with women's rights organisations across the country. We will continue to collaborate with the Colombian government to support implementation.
Colombia is also a FCDO Human Rights Priority country and focus country for the Preventing Sexual Violence in Conflict Initiative (PSVI) Strategy. The Colombian Government is a vice-chair of the UK-founded International Alliance on Preventing Sexual Violence in Conflict. At the UN Security Council, we consistently highlight gender issues related to the implementation of the 2016 Peace Agreement.
Asked by: Patrick Grady (Scottish National Party - Glasgow North)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what discussions he has had with his international counterparts on older people’s health care ahead of the United Nations High Level Meeting on Universal Health Coverage in September 2023.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell
The UK is committed to championing universal health coverage (UHC). In the 2019 Political Declaration on UHC, United Nations Member States committed to promote healthy and active ageing and to respond to the needs of ageing populations. We have been with other Member States to retain and build on that commitment at the 2023 UN High-Level Meeting. We continue to work with country partners, civil society and global organisations such as the World Health Organization on integrated and equitable approaches to strengthening health systems and achieving universal health coverage that meet the needs of people of all ages.