Mentions:
1: Saqib Bhatti (Con - Meriden) third most valuable economy in the world, worth over $1 trillion; we have more unicorns than France, Germany - Speech Link
Mentions:
1: None Those kinds of societies exist across this continent: 15 countries, including France and Germany, are - Speech Link
2: None It matters, because after Germany reunified, the UK had the biggest geographical inequalities in all - Speech Link
Mentions:
1: None importantly and most obviously those that are proximate to Ukraine, but also in the major capitals of France, Germany - Speech Link
2: Brown, Keith (SNP - Clackmannanshire and Dunblane) thoughts as to what Scotland could do, that would be interesting.In relation to the examples of Canada and Germany - Speech Link
Asked by: Marquess of Lothian (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what estimate they have made of the amount of cocaine that arrived in the UK in (1) 2023, and (2) 2024 to date, as a result of Balkan drug gangs and their criminal networks; and what steps they are taking, together with European partners, to (a) end the illegal activities associated with Balkan drug dealers, and (b) disrupt the supply of cocaine across Europe.
Answered by Lord Sharpe of Epsom - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)
Illegal drugs devastate lives, ruin families and damage communities. The Government is committed to tackling these harms, including drug-related gang activity.
a) Reducing the threat posed by transnational Western Balkans organised crime groups (WBOCGs) is a government priority. We intensified the cooperation with our international partners to maximise the impact of our interventions WBOCGs wherever they are. Our engagements have already resulted in strategic partnerships with countries such as France, Germany, Italy, and Albania. In addition, the National Crime Agency (NCA) has well established relationships with law enforcement partners across Europe, as well as with Europol and Interpol, which include regular exchanges on organised crime with links to the Western Balkans. We are also seeking to improve criminal records sharing arrangements and law enforcement cooperation between the UK and the Western Balkan countries.
b) Our ten-year Drug Strategy, From Harm to Hope, sets out a whole system approach to combat illicit drugs. As part of this the Home Office has committed £300m of dedicated investment over three years (April 2022 – March 2025) to tackle every phase of the drug supply chain and make it considerably harder for criminal gangs to operate. With this funding we are supporting intelligence-led approaches to interdict and seize drugs as they cross the UK border and prevent criminal groups from bringing drugs to our streets. Across the whole of the UK, the NCA, Border Force, and local police are working in partnership, using intelligence and technology to secure our borders against drug trafficking. We are also funding upstream activity to tackle overseas drug supply, which is aimed at disrupting the criminal networks seeking to traffic illegal drugs to the UK. This includes building close enforcement partnerships with law enforcement agencies in mainland Europe.
The NCA has estimated that the UK consumes 117 tonnes of cocaine each year. We do not hold data on the amount of cocaine arriving in the UK as a result of Balkan OCGs. In the financial year ending 2023, police and Border Force seized 18.58 tonnes of powder cocaine, the second largest quantity of the substance since records began.
Written Evidence May. 22 2024
Inquiry: Food, Diet and ObesityFound: Results of a population survey from Germany.
Written Evidence May. 22 2024
Inquiry: Food, Diet and ObesityFound: In Germany, prices have equalized (Vegconomist, 2023a).
Written Evidence May. 22 2024
Inquiry: Food, Diet and ObesityFound: macronutrient profiles of processed meat and plant-based meat in Spain, the Netherlands, Sweden, the UK and Germany
Written Evidence May. 22 2024
Inquiry: Food, Diet and ObesityFound: in food science and nutrition in countries including the UK, the USA, France, the Netherlands, Germany
May. 22 2024
Source Page: Immigration Rules archive: 11 April 2024 to 15 May 2024Found: Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Republic of Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany
Oral Evidence May. 22 2024
Inquiry: Energy bills for domestic customersFound: Coffey: Interconnectors ultimately make money on congestion revenues, so do they keep their energy in Germany