Asked by: Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi (Labour - Slough)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of reports of alleged assassinations of Sikh activists in the US and Canada on British Sikhs living abroad.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
British Sikhs are an important part of our society and continue to make a hugely valuable contribution to British life. We are committed to promoting and protecting the right to freedom of religion or belief for all. Where required, we offer consular support and assistance to British nationals worldwide. Any individual in need of consular assistance can contact the nearest British High Commission or Consulate. Our consular contact numbers are available 24/7. We constantly review our travel advice for each country or territory to ensure it includes up-to-date information, including advice for British nationals on safety and security, and update travel advice as quickly as possible if we are aware of an incident that might significantly affect British people travelling or living in the area.
Mentions:
1: Lord Cameron of Chipping Norton (Con - Life peer) It is home to 966 million Hindus, 172 million Muslims, 28 million Christians, 20 million Sikhs, 8 million - Speech Link
2: Lord Singh of Wimbledon (XB - Life peer) years since the Minister stated, in the other place, that the mass killing of tens of thousands of Sikhs - Speech Link
3: Lord Cameron of Chipping Norton (Con - Life peer) That is not the British way—insisting that all media have to be domestically owned—although I know that - Speech Link
Asked by: Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi (Labour - Slough)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps he is taking to help ensure the safety of British citizens involved in international political movements.
Answered by Tom Tugendhat - Minister of State (Home Office) (Security)
The UK is proud of its diverse communities, and British Sikhs contribute immensely to the strength of our society.
We continually assess potential threats in the UK, and take the protection of individuals’ rights, freedoms, and safety in the UK seriously.
Asked by: Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi (Labour - Slough)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether he has made an assessment of the potential risks to British Sikh activists of international incidents involving members of the Sikh community.
Answered by Tom Tugendhat - Minister of State (Home Office) (Security)
The UK is proud of its diverse communities, and British Sikhs contribute immensely to the strength of our society.
We continually assess potential threats in the UK, and take the protection of individuals’ rights, freedoms, and safety in the UK seriously.
Asked by: Nadia Whittome (Labour - Nottingham East)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps her Department is taking to help provide reassurances to Sikhs on their (a) safety and (b) security in the context of recent steps taken by the Indian Government.
Answered by Chris Philp - Minister of State (Home Office)
Hatred towards Sikhs is completely abhorrent and has no place in our society. No one should ever be a victim of hatred because of their race or religion and the Government continues to work with police and community partners to monitor and combat it.
More broadly, we continue to look at tackling all forms of religious hatred. The department is currently seeking the views and perspectives of domestic and international experts in this field to explore how religious hatred is experienced by British communities today. This work will include anti-Sikh hatred
In 2023/24, the Home Office is providing up to £50.9 million to protect faith communities. This includes £18 million through the Jewish Community Protective Security Grant, £29.4 million through the new Protective Security for Mosques scheme and a scheme for Muslim faith schools, and £3.5 million for the places of worship of other (non-Muslim and non-Jewish) faiths.
The Places of Worship Protective Security Funding (PoW) Scheme provides physical protective security measures, such as CCTV, intruder alarms and secure perimeter fencing to places of worship and associated faith community centres of all other (non-Muslim and non-Jewish) faiths that are particularly vulnerable to religiously or racially motivated hate crime in England and Wales.
Asked by: Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi (Labour - Slough)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what recent assessment the Government has made of potential impact of the security situation for the Sikh community in North America on the safety of the Sikh community in the UK.
Answered by Tom Tugendhat - Minister of State (Home Office) (Security)
The UK Government holds the British Sikh community in the highest esteem. British Sikhs are an important and vibrant part of our society and make an enormous contribution to British life. We are firmly committed to promoting and protecting the right to freedom of religion or belief and being a strong voice internationally in defence of this fundamental right.
We are in close touch with our US and Canadian partners about the allegations they have raised. It is vital that we allow independent investigations to run their course. It would be inappropriate to comment on, or pre-determine, their conclusions at this time.
The Government continually assesses potential threats to individuals’ rights, freedoms, and safety. Wherever we identify such threats, we will use all measures, including through our world leading police and intelligence services, to mitigate risk to individuals.
Asked by: Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi (Labour - Slough)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps he is taking to liaise with the Sikh community over safety concerns.
Answered by Tom Tugendhat - Minister of State (Home Office) (Security)
The UK is proud of its diverse communities, and British Sikhs contribute immensely to the strength of our society.
We continually assess potential threats in the UK, and take the protection of individuals’ rights, freedoms, and safety in the UK seriously.
Create a Sikh regiment in the British army
- 112 Signatures
(Estimated Final Signatures: 118 - 1 added in the past 24hrs)
Thousands of Sikhs fought for Britain in the world wars, with many men being awarded the Victoria cross for their bravery. The British army quite rightly recognizes Nepalese (Gurkhas) soldiers and we believe it is only right the sacrifice of the Sikhs is honoured by forming a Sikh regiment.
Found: Create a Sikh regiment in the British army
Asked by: Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi (Labour - Slough)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps he is taking to (a) assess and (b) ensure the safety of members of the Sikh community issued with Osman notices.
Answered by Tom Tugendhat - Minister of State (Home Office) (Security)
The UK is proud of its diverse communities, and British Sikhs contribute immensely to the strength of our society.
We continually assess potential threats in the UK, and take the protection of individuals’ rights, freedoms, and safety in the UK seriously.
Asked by: Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi (Labour - Slough)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if he will review the (a) support and (b) protection measures available to (i) individuals and (ii) families who have received Osman warnings.
Answered by Tom Tugendhat - Minister of State (Home Office) (Security)
The UK is proud of its diverse communities, and British Sikhs contribute immensely to the strength of our society.
We continually assess potential threats in the UK, and take the protection of individuals’ rights, freedoms, and safety in the UK seriously.