Asked by: Paula Barker (Labour - Liverpool Wavertree)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what support her Department is providing to the Bangladeshi Government in the context of the flooding affecting that country.
Answered by Vicky Ford
The UK provided £195,000 to the START Fund Bangladesh in May to help during the first wave of flooding. In response to the most recent wave of flooding, the UK has contributed a further £442,500 to the START Fund. This funding will support the provision of cash assistance, water, sanitation and hygiene facilities, search and rescue operations, shelter management and provisional education materials.
Asked by: Paula Barker (Labour - Liverpool Wavertree)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, if the Government will (a) support a peace dividend for Yemen, (b) allocate funding to that county to restore public infrastructure, including health, education, roads, water supplies and sewerage systems, and (c) encourage regional powers to take similar steps in the context of the recent truce.
Answered by Amanda Milling
The UK welcomes the extension on 2 June of the UN-brokered truce in Yemen. We urge the parties to continue dialogue towards a durable ceasefire and an inclusive political settlement under UN auspices. After over seven long years of conflict, a negotiated political settlement is the only way to bring long-term stability to Yemen, end humanitarian suffering and enable the conditions for the sustainable recovery of public services. We continue to use our diplomatic relations and role as penholder on Yemen in the UN Security Council to support efforts towards political dialogue and peace.
The UK supports health, water and sanitation institutions across Yemen as part of our £88 million aid commitment this financial year. The UK is active in engaging regional partners on UN-led peace efforts and humanitarian issues and welcomes the recent announcement by Saudi Arabia and the UAE of the $3 billion economic support package for Yemen. The UK will continue to work with regional partners to help address both the immediate and longer term needs of vulnerable Yemenis.
Asked by: Paula Barker (Labour - Liverpool Wavertree)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps the Government plans to take to hold the new Taliban Government in Afghanistan accountable to their promises of a peaceful Afghanistan; and what assessment his Department has made of the impact of economic sanctions on (a) the Afghan economy and (b) potential stability of the new Government.
Answered by Nigel Adams
As the Prime Minister has agreed with G7 partners, the international community needs to stand together in order to make clear to the Taliban our expectations, and achieve our counter-terrorism, humanitarian, regional stability and human rights objectives.Asked by: Paula Barker (Labour - Liverpool Wavertree)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment his Department has made of the (a) viability of supporting Afghan citizens through aid channelled through NGOs and (b) potential merits of increasing the funding allocated to those NGOs.
Answered by Nigel Adams
NGOs have been, and remain, vital partners for our work in Afghanistan. We are working closely with them to respond to the changing situation on the ground & consider how best we can respond collectively to the increasing humanitarian needs in the countryAsked by: Paula Barker (Labour - Liverpool Wavertree)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether he made a request to his US counterpart for an orderly and gradual US withdrawal from Afghanistan.
Answered by Nigel Adams
Following President Biden's 14 April announcement, and NATO's 15 April decision to withdraw troops, we worked intensively with the US, both on military and civilian channels to ensure an orderly and co-ordinated withdrawal of NATO troops from Afghanistan.
Asked by: Paula Barker (Labour - Liverpool Wavertree)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent assessment his Department has made of the potential number of people who will be (a) internally, (b) regionally and (c) nationally displaced following climate changes in the next (i) 10, (ii) 20, (iii) 30 and (iv) 40 years.
Answered by James Duddridge
Climate change is already negatively impacting people, economies and the environment. The poorest people are often the first and worst affected. The FCDO has begun looking at the studies and analysis available to better understand the links between migration and climate change, including current and future trends.
One of the key priorities for COP26 is to increase action to help communities adapt and build resilience to climate impacts. We will use our Presidency to encourage greater commitment to, and support for, practical adaptation and resilience action, helping those communities most at risk to deal with the impact of climate change.
Asked by: Paula Barker (Labour - Liverpool Wavertree)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what mechanisms are being put in place to ensure that British Arms exports are not being deployed by the Saudi Government in Yemen.
Answered by James Cleverly - Shadow Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government
To address the Court of Appeal's judgement, we have developed a revised methodology against which all existing and new applications for Saudi Arabia for possible use in the conflict in Yemen will be assessed to consider whether there is a clear risk the equipment might be used in the commission of a serious violation of International Humanitarian Law. If there is such a risk, we will not issue the export licence.