Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps (a) he and (b) his Department is taking to help support and protect from harm human rights defenders working on (i) climate change and environmental rights and (ii) land rights and forced displacement to protect (A) indigenous peoples, (B) LGBT communities and (C) other marginalised groups and (iii) investigating corruption and the misuse of public funds.

The UK Government strongly supports Human Rights Defenders worldwide to enable them to carry out their work safely and without fear. In 2019, the Minister of State responsible for Human Rights, Lord (Tariq) Ahmad of Wimbledon, launched the document 'UK support for Human Rights Defenders' which was drawn up with significant and important input from relevant stakeholders, including Amnesty International, and which sets out how the UK Government engages with Human Rights Defenders to advance the human rights agenda globally.

Following the FCDO's reorganisation and publication of the Integrated Review, the UK remains strongly committed to this agenda and will continue to support and work in partnership with Human Rights Defenders to promote open societies and the UK's force for good agenda. We will reflect these commitments in the various strands of strategic planning which will flow from the Integrated Review.

The FCDO also monitors repression of HRDs in its annual Human Rights and Democracy Report, the most recent of which was published earlier this month. That report paid tribute to the courageous work of HRDs and listed support for them as a UK international policy priority.

The UK also recognises the serious and unequivocal threat that climate change poses to our planet, and that it can undermine the enjoyment of Human Rights. It is important that States comply with their human rights obligation when taking any action to respond to climate change. The UK, therefore, calls on States to address the human rights implications of climate change and ensure that any action taken to respond to climate change complies with their human rights obligations.