Asked by: Tim Farron (Liberal Democrat - Westmorland and Lonsdale)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent discussions she has had with international counterparts on the protection of Christian women in Chibok, Nigeria.
Answered by Chris Elmore - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK condemns violence against civilians of all religions in Nigeria and regularly raises freedom of religion or belief (FoRB) with the Nigerian government. For example, on 11 November, the Minister for International Development and Africa discussed the importance of FoRB and the causes of intercommunal violence during a meeting with Nigerian Foreign Minister Yusuf Tuggar. The UK remains committed to defending FoRB globally, with Nigeria a focus country under the new FoRB strategy.
Asked by: Tim Farron (Liberal Democrat - Westmorland and Lonsdale)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment she has made of the potential implications for her policies of reports of Islamist attacks on Christian communities in Nigeria’s Middle Belt on 31 October 2025.
Answered by Chris Elmore - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
I refer the Hon Member to the answer provided on 3 November to Question 85661.
Asked by: Tim Farron (Liberal Democrat - Westmorland and Lonsdale)
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 to ensure aid supplies are able to enter Gaza.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK remains in close and regular contact with international counterparts to press for increased humanitarian access into Gaza. On 19 May, the UK, Canada, and France issued a joint statement calling on Israel to cease its renewed military offensive and lift restrictions on humanitarian assistance. In parallel, on 20 May, I summoned the Israeli ambassador to demand the immediate, full, and unhindered flow of aid, making the UK's position unequivocally clear. Alongside international partners, we continue to call for Israel to allow a full resumption of aid into Gaza.
Asked by: Tim Farron (Liberal Democrat - Westmorland and Lonsdale)
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 UN officials to ensure aid supplies are able to enter Gaza.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK has held regular discussions with UN agencies, including the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) and the World Food Programme (WFP), to support aid delivery and address access challenges in Gaza. On 19 May, the UK issued a joint statement calling for full aid resumption and for Israel to allow UN and non-governmental organisation (NGO) partners to operate independently. We will continue to convene international partners to increase pressure and take further steps to address the catastrophic situation on the ground. We have committed £101 million this financial year in humanitarian support to trusted partners including UN agencies and NGOs.
Asked by: Tim Farron (Liberal Democrat - Westmorland and Lonsdale)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, if he will bring forward legislative proposals to amend the International Development (Official Development Assistance Target) Act 2015 to change the target for official development assistance to 0.5 percent of gross national income.
Answered by Stephen Doughty - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
There are no plans to amend the International Development (Official Development Assistance Target) Act 2015 to change the target for Official Development Assistance (ODA) to 0.5 per cent of Gross National Income (GNI).
The Government is committed to returning to spending 0.7 per cent of GNI on ODA as soon as fiscal circumstances allow.
Asked by: Tim Farron (Liberal Democrat - Westmorland and Lonsdale)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether he has had discussions with his Iranian counterpart on (a) the arrest of Mojdeh Farah on September 9 and (b) the imprisonment of other Christian converts in that country.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
We are aware of Ms Farah's case. We condemn Iran's restrictions against Freedom of Religion or Belief. Christians, particularly converts from Islam and other minority religions, continue to face severe repression in Iran. We are committed to holding Iran to account for its attacks against religious minorities, including at the UN Third Committee this month.
Asked by: Tim Farron (Liberal Democrat - Westmorland and Lonsdale)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps he is taking with (a) members of the United Nations Security Council and (b) other international partners to help support Rohingya people in Myanmar.
Answered by Catherine West
Since 2017, the UK has provided over £48 million in aid including cash assistance and water, sanitation and hygiene services to the Rohingya and other Muslim minorities in Rakhine state. We continue to work with members of the United Nations Security Council and international partners in calling for the protection of civilians and the need for unhindered humanitarian access to ensure support can reach the most vulnerable. In May 2024, the UK, along with international partners, released a statement calling on all armed actors to ensure the protection of civilians in Rakhine state. We will continue to work with international partners to ensure there is accountability for acts committed against the Rohingya, including through the International Court of Justice (ICJ).
Asked by: Tim Farron (Liberal Democrat - Westmorland and Lonsdale)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what support he is providing to help coffee farmers in the Global South shift to methods of production which are sustainable and resilient to climate-induced shocks.
Answered by Anne-Marie Trevelyan
The UK is delivering programmes to help farmers in the most climate vulnerable countries adapt and build resilience to climate change. For example, the UK-funded Partnerships for Forests programme supports coffee farmers in East Africa to adopt sustainable, climate-resilient practices beneficial for people, climate and nature. The Commercial Agriculture for Smallholder and Agribusiness (CASA) programme enables some 15,000 smallholder farmers in Tanzania to access markets for sustainably grown coffee. With UK support, the global agriculture research organisation CGIAR (Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research) is developing technologies and tools to help farmers deal with climate change impacts on coffee. The UK's Just Rural Transition programme helps developing countries to take policy measures designed to enable farmers and rural communities to adopt sustainable agricultural practices.
Asked by: Tim Farron (Liberal Democrat - Westmorland and Lonsdale)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps he will take to ensure that funding provided to the Loss and Damage Finance Facility is additional to existing climate finance commitments.
Answered by Anne-Marie Trevelyan
At COP27, the UK and all parties agreed to establish new funding arrangements for loss and damage, including the setup of a dedicated fund, to assist developing countries that are particularly vulnerable to the adverse effects of climate change. It was agreed to establish a Transitional Committee (TC) under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) to develop the fund and funding arrangements by COP28. The UK is one of the twenty-four members of the TC and has actively engaged with its work, attending the first formal meeting in Egypt in March and associated workshops. We are committed to making a positive contribution to the aims and objectives of the Committee in the run up to COP28.