Speech in Commons Chamber - Tue 27 Nov 2018
Ukraine-Russia Relations
"rose—..."Robert Courts - View Speech
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Speech in Commons Chamber - Tue 27 Nov 2018
Ukraine-Russia Relations
"Persistent attempts to destabilise Ukraine’s economy are clearly unacceptable. What further practical assistance can we offer Ukraine?..."Robert Courts - View Speech
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Written Question
Tuesday 23rd January 2018
Asked by:
Robert Courts (Conservative - Witney)
Question
to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent assessment he has made of the level of religious freedom in Turkey; and what steps the Government is taking to promote and protect the right to freedom of religion or belief in that country.
Answered by Alan Duncan
The UK has some concerns over freedom of religious belief in Turkey and the issue continues to be a priority area for our bilateral projects in Turkey. We have raised our concerns with Turkish interlocutors up to and including at Prime Ministerial level. We will continue to encourage Turkey to work towards the full protection of fundamental rights, especially in the areas of minority rights, freedom of religion and freedom of expression.
Written Question
Thursday 21st December 2017
Asked by:
Robert Courts (Conservative - Witney)
Question
to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what his policy is on the UK's role in global ocean conservation.
Answered by Alan Duncan
The oceans are vital to support life on earth, and are critical to the United Kingdom. The UK and its Overseas Territories are custodians to the fifth-largest marine estate in the world. The Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) therefore has an important role in promoting security at sea and improving the conservation and sustainable use of our oceans, and we are looking at how the UK can take this yet further. We already take a leading role on maritime protection and are on track to deliver marine protected areas across nearly 4 million square kilometres of the planet's oceans and seas through our Blue Belt programme by 2020.
The FCO works closely with the Department for Environment Food & Rural Affairs (DEFRA) and others including agencies such as the UK Hydrographic Office, the Centre for Environment Fisheries and Aquaculture Science and the Maritime and Coastguard Agency to promote global marine conservation. The FCO and DEFRA in particular have also been closely involved in the negotiations of the Preparatory Committee (PrepCom) to develop an international legally binding instrument under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea on the conservation and sustainable use of marine biological diversity of areas beyond national jurisdiction.
I am committed to combatting the menace of marine plastic pollution. This Government introduced a charge on plastic carrier bags, cutting their use in the UK by 80 per cent, and avoiding the disposal of 9 billion carrier bags, many of which might otherwise have ended up in the oceans. And from 1 January 2018, we will ban the production of plastic microbeads, the strongest legal measure of its kind anywhere in the world.
Speech in Commons Chamber - Mon 27 Nov 2017
Budget Resolutions
"It is a great pleasure to follow so many hon. Members. They have spoken on a range of topics, one or two of which I will pick out.
Contrary to what we keep hearing from the Opposition, the economic picture is very rosy. We have a growing economy and record …..."Robert Courts - View Speech
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Speech in Commons Chamber - Mon 20 Nov 2017
Yemen
"What are the Government doing to bring all parties together, so that we can find an overall, collective solution to this tragedy?..."Robert Courts - View Speech
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Speech in Commons Chamber - Wed 15 Nov 2017
Zimbabwe
"Zimbabwe a National Emergency—ZANE—is a wonderful charity based in Witney that provides much needed care to the people of Zimbabwe. Will my right hon. Friend please confirm that he will have any discussions necessary with the charitable sector to ensure that, during this period of political instability, much needed aid …..."Robert Courts - View Speech
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Speech in Commons Chamber - Wed 15 Nov 2017
Zimbabwe
"And a former Member of Parliament...."Robert Courts - View Speech
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Speech in Westminster Hall - Thu 26 Oct 2017
International Freedom of Religion or Belief Day
"It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Mr Gray. May I join the chorus of congratulations for the hon. Member for Strangford (Jim Shannon) on securing the debate and making such a passionate speech about his cause? He is a tireless campaigner on this issue and many others, …..."Robert Courts - View Speech
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Speech in Westminster Hall - Thu 26 Oct 2017
International Freedom of Religion or Belief Day
"I am very grateful to my right hon. Friend for that excellent intervention and I entirely agree. There is a real job that we can do in keeping up the pressure. It just shows that when we do that, results can be achieved.
Another country about which there is much …..."Robert Courts - View Speech
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