Asked by: Ross Thomson (Conservative - Aberdeen South)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
What recent assessment she has made of the benefits to Northern Ireland of being part of the UK.
Answered by Karen Bradley
This Government has made clear on many occasions that we will never be neutral in expressing our support for the Union.
Northern Ireland benefits hugely from the Union and my steadfast belief is that Northern Ireland’s future is best served within a stronger United Kingdom.
Asked by: Ross Thomson (Conservative - Aberdeen South)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether his Department plans to provide companion dogs with the same protections as assistance dogs under the Dangerous Dogs Act 1991.
Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The offence of allowing a dog to be dangerously out of control (section 3 of the Dangerous Dogs Act 1991) applies to attacks on other dogs, livestock and any other animals including companion dogs, as it does to attacks on people and assistance dogs.
This is based on the judgement in the Court of Appeal in R v Gedminintaite [2008] EWCA Crim 814. This case has shown that consideration of a dog being dangerously out of control is not restricted to situations where a person is present.
Asked by: Ross Thomson (Conservative - Aberdeen South)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, if he will co-ordinate an international effort to encourage Christians and other religious minorities who have left Iraq and Syria to return to those countries to rebuild their lives.
Answered by Alistair Burt
The UK supports the right of all Iraqi and Syrian refugees, regardless of religion, to return to their homes safely, voluntarily and in dignity, when conditions allow.
Syria is not currently an environment for safe, voluntary and dignified refugee return. We are calling for a negotiated political settlement to end the conflict and create the conditions for refugees to return.
During my visit to Iraq in January I raised the importance of voluntary returns of refugees and internationally displaced persons with representatives from the Government of Iraq and the Kurdistan Regional Government. To help enable these returns, the UK has committed over £47 million to directly improve conditions in areas liberated from Daesh in Iraq, including an additional £6.9 million which I announced during my visit.
Asked by: Ross Thomson (Conservative - Aberdeen South)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what support his Department is providing to Christians on death row on charges of blasphemy in Pakistan .
Answered by Mark Field
It is the British Government's longstanding policy to oppose the death penalty in all circumstances and in all countries. We remain deeply concerned by the misuse of the blasphemy laws and the treatment of minority religious communities, including Christians, in Pakistan.
We regularly raise our human rights concerns with the Government of Pakistan at a senior level. Most recently my colleague Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon, the Prime Minister's Special Envoy for Freedom of Religion or Belief, discussed the treatment of minority communities with Pakistan's Federal Minister for Human Rights, Dr Shireen Mazari, during his visit to Pakistan on 18 and 19 February. At the UN Universal Periodic Review of Pakistan in November 2017, the UK pressed Pakistan to strengthen the protection of minorities and to explain the steps being taken to tackle the abuse of the blasphemy laws.
To ensure the United Kingdom is supporting Christians in the best possible way, the Foreign Secretary has commissioned an independent, global review of the support provided to Christians overseas. The Review will consider what additional practical steps the Foreign and Commonwealth Office can take to support persecuted Christians. It will be led by the Bishop of Truro, Rt Revd. Philip Mounstephen, and will make an initial report around Easter.
Asked by: Ross Thomson (Conservative - Aberdeen South)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps he is taking to promote religious tolerance and justice for Coptic Christians in Egypt.
Answered by Alistair Burt
We condemn the terrorist attacks targeting the Coptic community and continue to stand with Egypt against terrorism. We regularly raise our concerns over issues affecting Christians with the Egyptian Government and welcome President Sisi's consistent calls for peaceful coexistence. The Prime Minister's Special Envoy for Freedom of Religion or Belief, Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon, visited Cairo in November, where he reaffirmed our mutual commitment to freedom of religion or belief and held a roundtable with religious leaders at the Anglican Cathedral.
Asked by: Ross Thomson (Conservative - Aberdeen South)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to help protect the rights of Christian workers in the Middle East.
Answered by Alistair Burt
The Foreign Secretary and the Minister for the Commonwealth and the UN have had a number of recent engagements with religious leaders, interested organisations, partner governments and parliamentarians on the issue of Freedom of Religion or Belief and the protection of human rights of Christians and all religious minorities around the world, including in the Middle East. We are also engaged on issues which impact on the situation of Christians working in the Middle East, including the rights of migrant workers and refugees and the ability of members of religious minorities to access labour markets in relevant countries in the region.
Asked by: Ross Thomson (Conservative - Aberdeen South)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps her Department is taking to support self-employed people who need to claim employment support allowance.
Answered by Alok Sharma - COP26 President (Cabinet Office)
We have successfully rolled out Universal Credit in all job centres nationally. Consequently, self-employed people, who have a health condition, can now claim either Universal Credit and/or New Style Employment and Support Allowance.
Claimants who are eligible to claim New Style Employment and Support Allowance can do so by calling the Universal Credit helpline to request a claim form or by downloading and printing the form available on Gov.uk. Full details about how to apply (including information requesting forms in alternative formats such as braille) can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/how-to-claim-new-style-esa
Claimants who are not eligible to claim New Style Employment and Support Allowance can claim Universal Credit online. For those unable to access or use digital services, assistance to make and maintain their claim is available via the Freephone Universal Credit helplines. The Universal Credit Service Centre will establish the best means of support available.
A home visit can be arranged to support a claimant in making their initial claim and completing any other administrative tasks required to ensure their application is completed.
Additionally, to help claimants who may struggle making a claim, Universal Support is available, which is advice, assistance or support to help Universal Credit and New Style Employment and Support Allowance claimants with managing their claim or award.
From 1 April 2019 Citizens Advice (England and Wales) and Citizens Advice Scotland will deliver a new “Help to Claim” service to support vulnerable claimants through the process of making a claim.
Asked by: Ross Thomson (Conservative - Aberdeen South)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, if he will convene an emergency international summit, hosted in London, to co-ordinate a response to the attacks on Christians around the world.
Answered by Mark Field
We British Government Ministers regularly raise our concerns about the persecution of religious minorities, including Christians, where this occurs. The Government works with a large number of NGOs, to help promote and protect freedom of religion or belief. We use information from a wide range of sources to inform our work. The Foreign Secretary has asked the Bishop of Truro to conduct an independent review of the persecution of Christians around the world to help inform this important area of our work to ensure it is targeted and effective. There are no plans to host an emergency international summit on this matter.
Asked by: Ross Thomson (Conservative - Aberdeen South)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, if he will hold discussions with his Nigerian counterpart on (a) the rescue of Leah Sharibu and other people kidnapped by Boko Haram and (b) ending the violence against Christians in Nigeria’s middle belt.
Answered by Harriett Baldwin
The UK repeatedly calls for the release of all those abducted by Boko Haram and Islamic State West Africa (ISWA) including Leah Sharibu. We will continue to use our public messaging and extensive engagement with the Government of Nigeria to secure their release. The Government of Nigeria has given assurances that they are making all efforts to secure Leah's release.
We regularly raise our concerns about intercommunal violence with the Nigerian Government at the highest levels. Our assessment is that religious identity is a factor but the root causes are highly complex, including disputes over land, farming rights, the impact of climate change, grazing routes and access to water. Our High Commission in Abuja is engaging closely with international partners, the Nigerian government, state governments and the National Economic Council to develop measures which address the underlying causes of the conflict, including the recently-announced bi-partisan National Livestock Transformation Plan.
Asked by: Ross Thomson (Conservative - Aberdeen South)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps he is taking to support the rights of Christian minorities in Burma.
Answered by Mark Field
The British Government continues to express out concern at restrictions on freedom of religion and belief in Burma. The Minister for the Commonwealth and the United Nations raised the UK's concerns about persecution faced by Christian and other minorities in Burma in his speech to the Human Rights Council in February 2018. The UK, working with the EU and the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation, secured a UN Human Rights Council Resolution on 27 September 2018 that called for the amending or repealing of discriminatory provisions of the "protection of race and religion laws" in Burma covering religious conversion, interfaith marriage, monogamy and population control. The British Ambassador met the Burmese Minister for Religious Affairs on 9 August 2018, and underlined the importance of interfaith dialogue.