Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Robert Buckland and Lord Hague of Richmond

Tuesday 8th April 2014 Commons Chamber

[Mr Hague]

Very little progress has been made, despite the successful passing of UN Security Council resolution 2139, which included the authorisation of cross-border access. The Security Council is due to review the position every 30 days, and at the coming review we will press strongly for full use to be made of what is authorised in that resolution.

[Mr Robert Buckland (South Swindon) (Con)]

T2. If he will make a statement on his departmental responsibilities.

[The Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs (Mr William Hague)]

Yesterday I attended the commemoration in Rwanda on the 20th anniversary of the genocide, and today I will join in welcoming the President of the Irish Republic on his historic state visit.

[Mr Buckland]

Does my right hon. Friend welcome robust political engagement with European politicians such as Martin Schulz, the socialist President of the European Parliament, or will he be on his knees begging him not to come to the UK during the European parliamentary campaign, like the Labour party?

[Mr Hague]

Robust political engagement is definitely the option to take, but there is nothing robust about being in alliance with other parties when you are ashamed to see their leader and candidate come to this country.

Ukraine

Debate between Robert Buckland and Lord Hague of Richmond

Tuesday 4th March 2014 Commons Chamber

[Mr Hague]

My hon. Friend makes a crucial point; despite having one of the last questions he has managed to make a new and pertinent point. There are reasons why soldiers should wear the insignia of their country, and the most terrible misunderstandings can occur without that. So he is right about that. On the subject of a debate, the Leader of the House is not in his place but I am sure that he is always aware of such requests and he will have heard that particular one.

[Mr Robert Buckland (South Swindon) (Con)]

Does my right hon. Friend agree that Russia’s provocative warmongering exposes its long-term weakness and will serve to drive more and more Ukrainians to the ineluctable conclusion that their future lies with the west? Rather than being frightened of that, should we not warmly welcome Ukraine as a potential ally within the institutions of Europe?

[Mr Hague]

So far as I could see yesterday, the effect of the Russian intervention has been to solidify the determination among Ukrainians about their own independence, including among leading figures in the Party of Regions, which usually represents the east and south of Ukraine. My hon. Friend is also right to say that this action is born of weakness rather than strength. As I was arguing a few minutes ago, it is a response to a major reverse and an effort to alleviate that. The people of Ukraine will be all the more determined to pursue their own sovereign rights, including closer association with the European Union.

Sri Harmandir Sahib

Debate between Robert Buckland and Lord Hague of Richmond

Tuesday 4th February 2014 Commons Chamber

[Mr Hague]

The Cabinet Secretary decided what to disclose in his report, and that included additional documents that would not normally be disclosed and which gave additional details confirming the picture set out in his report and my statement. While preparing the report, he and his officials had discussions with officials and senior Ministers, and it was for him to set out to the Prime Minister, as he did in his report, what he recommended for publication. I think that that provides a full, transparent picture, and that he made the right judgment in what he said.

[Mr Robert Buckland (South Swindon) (Con)]

I welcome my right hon. Friend’s statement. Sikhs in the community I have the honour to represent still feel that the scars and wounds left by the events of 1984 run deep and remain open, so the need for transparency is patently clear. On the nature of the advice given, was this a unique set of circumstances with regard to India, or are there examples of other countries seeking military advice of the type sought in this case?

[Mr Hague]

It seems to have been unique in the context of operations in the Punjab—this is the only such occurrence the Cabinet Secretary has discovered—but globally there will, of course, have been many other occasions in the 1980s when Governments of other countries asked the United Kingdom for military advice, and occasionally Ministers have to deal with that today, so it is not unusual for a foreign country with friendly relations with the UK to ask for military advice.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Robert Buckland and Lord Hague of Richmond

Tuesday 23rd April 2013 Commons Chamber

[Mr Hague]

It is important for us to keep up the work and the pressure on those subjects, which I discussed last week with one of the President of Burma’s most senior Ministers and advisers—a Minister of the President’s Office. In particular, we discussed addressing the stateless position of the Rohingya people. The UK and other EU countries have a role to play in offering police training in dealing with ethnic violence. Keeping up the pressure on human rights issues will be part of the EU’s continuing approach.

[Mr Robert Buckland (South Swindon) (Con)]

T1. If he will make a statement on his departmental responsibilities.

[The Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs (Mr William Hague)]

On Saturday, I met Friends of Syria ministers in Istanbul, where the Syrian National Coalition issued its clearest statement yet of its support for a political solution to the conflict, its commitment to a future for all Syrians, its rejection of all forms of terrorism and extremism, and its responsible approach on chemical and biological weapons. In return, the nations present undertook to strengthen their support for the Syrian opposition.

[Mr Buckland]

I thank my right hon. Friend for that reply. Britain’s relationship with Germany is one of the most important aspects of our influence within the EU. Will he outline how he and his Government have engaged with Germany, and how they will do so in future?

[Mr Hague]

My hon. Friend makes a good point. Compared with the last year of the previous Government, we have nearly quadrupled the number of ministerial and senior official bilateral visits to Germany each year. We have established joint meetings twice a year of the British-German ministerial committees on the EU. I have made many visits to Germany, and as my hon. Friend knows, the Prime Minister works extremely closely with Chancellor Merkel. I believe it is right to say that we now work more closely with Germany than any previous Government.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Robert Buckland and Lord Hague of Richmond

Tuesday 30th October 2012 Commons Chamber

[Mr Robert Buckland (South Swindon) (Con)]

Will my right hon. Friend update the House on developments in Somalia?

[Mr Hague]

Yes, absolutely. We welcome the election of a new President of Somalia, to whom I spoke directly after his election. The new Under-Secretary, my hon. Friend the Member for Boston and Skegness (Mark Simmonds), has already visited Somalia with the International Development Secretary. Important progress has been made since the London conference on Somalia, with a reduction in piracy, al-Shabaab in military retreat, and now a new and legitimate President. The United Kingdom will continue its strong support for these developments and the international leadership that we have given in relation to them. We will place just as much emphasis on Somalia in the coming year as we have in the past year.

Syria

Debate between Robert Buckland and Lord Hague of Richmond

Monday 11th June 2012 Commons Chamber

[Mr Hague]

I will certainly look at the point that the hon. Lady has raised and discuss it with my colleagues at the Ministry of Defence. I am not sure that we can do much in our relations with that company that would make a difference to this situation, but I will look at her point.

[Mr Robert Buckland (South Swindon) (Con)]

Does my right hon. Friend share my concern that the time that could be spent in negotiating the terms of reference for an international conference is time that the international community can ill afford to waste, bearing in mind the continuing loss of life? Does he agree that Russia would be better advised enthusiastically to support the enforcement of the objectives of the Annan plan?

[Mr Hague]

Yes, I very much agree with that. In the absence of the implementation of the Annan plan, the absence of a sufficiently strong insistence on its implementation and the absence of the implementation of all the UN resolutions that we have promoted, the virtue of a conference is that it could be the forum in which insistence on the Annan plan or something like it is made by Russia as well as by all the other countries that would be involved. Every day and every week that has gone by has contributed to the huge death toll of perhaps 15,000 people. Every day that goes by adds to that death toll. We are pursuing this option in the absence of the other options, which have so far not worked.

British Embassy (Tehran)

Debate between Robert Buckland and Lord Hague of Richmond

Wednesday 30th November 2011 Commons Chamber

[Mr Hague]

That is a fair question, but the hon. Gentleman will be aware that this has just happened and it is too early to set out such conditions. Clearly, any reopening of the embassies could take place only in a much improved situation in respect of relations with Iran. I would not want to set out those conditions prematurely; we will have to consider the matter over time.

[Mr Robert Buckland (South Swindon) (Con)]

Yesterday’s dreadful events have attracted a proportionate and measured response from the British Government. In respect of seeking to maintain a dialogue with the Iranians, does my right hon. Friend agree that that dialogue should extend to all arms of Government and all shades of opinion within the governmental structures of Iran?

[Mr Hague]

In common with several other right hon. and hon. Members, my hon. Friend is right to draw attention to the fact that there are different shades of opinion even within the regime in Iran—of course, there are many more outside the regime. I believe, for instance, that the motives and concerns of the Iranian Foreign Ministry may have been quite different, yesterday, from the motives of other parts of the regime. We have to be conscious of that and, in our contacts with Iran, bear in mind that wide diversity of opinion.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Robert Buckland and Lord Hague of Richmond

Tuesday 14th June 2011 Commons Chamber

[Mr Hague]

Actually, Germany has been supportive of what we have been doing. Although, as the hon. Gentleman points out, Germany abstained in the Security Council in March, it has since then been part of the contact group, and the German Foreign Minister, Guido Westerwelle, attended the London conference that I hosted at the end of March. Although Germany has not made a military contribution to the NATO effort, it has been helpful in many other ways and given political support to what we are doing. What the hon. Gentleman points out is further evidence of that consistent approach.

[Mr Robert Buckland (South Swindon) (Con)]

In far too many parts of the world, freedom of religion and belief either does not exist or is being severely undermined. Will my right hon. Friend establish a commission on freedom of religious belief to advise the Government on these important issues?