Asked by: Virendra Sharma (Labour - Ealing, Southall)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Deputy Foreign Secretary, if he will publish details of his Department's bilateral expenditure that has directly targeted tackling HIV and AIDS in (a) 2021, (b) 2022 and (c) 2023.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
The UK remains a significant funder in the HIV response. In (i) 2021 and (ii) 2022 total bilateral expenditure for HIV and AIDS was (i) £5,831,984 and (ii) £10,035,256 respectively. Of this total Foreign Commonwealth and Development Office bilateral spend was (i) £4,548,553 and (ii) £9,916,750 for 2021 and 2022 respectively. This includes our funding to the Clinton Health Access Initiative to further improve access to essential HIV medicines and our funding to the Robert Carr Fund to support initiatives with grassroots organisations, including key populations, as part of the global HIV response.
Figures for 2023 are not yet available. They will be published in Autumn 2024.
Asked by: Marquess of Lothian (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they have had discussions with international partners on implementing the recommendations for a common approach among relevant political, humanitarian and development actors, contained in the UN Special Coordinator Feridun Sinirlioğlu’s independent assessment on Afghanistan, dated 8 November 2023.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The Government is supportive of the recommendations within the UN Special Coordinator's Independent Assessment, viewing them as the best path for an Afghanistan at peace with itself and the international community. We engage regularly with international partners on this issue, including hosting a meeting in London of G7+ Special Representatives for Afghanistan in January to discuss the report in detail. Senior officials also attend the UN-convened meetings in Doha for Special Representatives as part of this process. Ministers and officials regularly discuss the report's recommendations with international partners, including during the Foreign Secretary's recent trip to Central Asia.
Asked by: Andrew Western (Labour - Stretford and Urmston)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Deputy Foreign Secretary, whether UK consular officials (a) have been granted consular access to Jimmy Lai and (b) are able to visit him in prison.
Answered by Anne-Marie Trevelyan - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Ministers and officials continue to raise Jimmy Lai's case at the highest levels with the Chinese and Hong Kong authorities and have been clear in our calls for his release, while continuing to press for consular access. Our repeated requests for consular access have been declined by the local authorities on the grounds the Chinese government does not recognise dual nationality and therefore considers Jimmy Lai to be exclusively Chinese. Consular access to dual nationals relies upon the agreement of the detaining state and is not covered in the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations.
Asked by: Mark Francois (Conservative - Rayleigh and Wickford)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the cost is of the AH-64E Apache programme.
Answered by James Cartlidge - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
The initial procurement of the UK Apache 64E utilised US Government Foreign Military Sales and is currently forecast to cost is £1.793 billion against an approval of £1.999 billion. The long term training and support for Apache 64E is supplied by Boeing Defence UK and the current five year Long Term Training and Support Contract has a value of £341,199,072.50. This does not include operating costs of the Apache 64E which are accounted for separately.
Asked by: Lord Jackson of Peterborough (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government how much funding has been disbursed to the Ozanne Foundation via the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office or predecessor departments since 2019; on what evidential basis was that funding released; and what conditions, if any, were attached to that funding.
Answered by Lord Benyon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
LGBT rights are human rights and the UK is committed to championing these rights internationally, supporting those who defend them. The Ozanne Foundation works with religious organisations around the world to eliminate discrimination based on sexuality or gender to embrace and celebrate the equality and diversity of all. Since 2019, the FCDO and predecessor departments have provided the Ozanne Foundation with £207,500, this includes £20,000 for 2023-24. The funding, which was allocated to address the issue of violence and discrimination of LGBT people, has primarily been used for the Global Interfaith Commission on LGBT lives which calls for an end to violence and criminalisation against LGBT people. It was announced by the Cabinet Office Minister on 13 May that all future contracts for external diversity spending will be signed off by ministers.
Asked by: Lord Jackson of Peterborough (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to fund the Ozanne Foundation via the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office in 2024–28, and for what purpose.
Answered by Lord Benyon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The LGBT rights programme was publicly announced in November 2023. This programme has been set up to fund a range of partner organisations and is designed to improve the lives of millions of LGBT people around the world by reducing violence and discrimination, improving economic and social inclusion and legislative reform. The Ozanne Foundation works with religious organisations around the world to eliminate discrimination based on sexuality or gender to embrace and celebrate the equality and diversity of all. The Ozanne Foundation submitted a proposal to develop a residential course for senior religious leaders from around the world. The proposal was successful and due diligence of the lead programme partner, Regent's Park College, University of Oxford, is currently ongoing. It was announced by the Cabinet Office Minister on 13 May that all future contracts for external diversity spending will be signed off by ministers.
Asked by: Lord Jackson of Peterborough (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what (1) due diligence, and (2) procurement, processes were undertaken by the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office prior to awarding the Ozanne Foundation £805,000 of project funding for the period 2024–28.
Answered by Lord Benyon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The FCDO's LGBT rights programme aims to transform the lives of millions of LGBT people around the world by reducing violence and discrimination, improving economic and social inclusion and legislative reform. Procurement for the first round of funding took place through a call for proposals which went out in June 2023. Following a due diligence process the Ozanne Foundation received £20,000 in 2023/24 to initiate a project to develop a residential course for senior religious leaders from around the world. The final workplan and budget for April 2024 onwards will be agreed after a satisfactory due diligence assessment of the lead programme partner, Regent's Park College, University of Oxford. It was announced by the Cabinet Office Minister on 13 May that all future contracts for external diversity spending will be signed off by ministers.
Asked by: Damien Moore (Conservative - Southport)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether he has made an assessment of the potential merits of updating the Integrated Defence Review in 2024.
Answered by Leo Docherty - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for the Armed Forces)
The Integrated Review Refresh published in March 2023 updated the 2021 Integrated Review of Security, Defence, Development and Foreign Policy which anticipated some but not all the global turbulence of the previous two years including Russia's invasion of Ukraine. The refreshed Integrated Review published in March 2023 set out our new approach through an updated strategic framework delivered through four pillars. The department continues to work to implement and deliver its ambition. A decision to refresh the Integrated Review is for the Prime Minister and currently no such decision has been made.
Asked by: Fiona Bruce (Conservative - Congleton)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Deputy Foreign Secretary, if he will hold discussions with his Nigerian counterpart on the effectiveness of the Safe Schools Initiative for supporting the education of (a) girls, (b) religious minorities and (c) other children in conflict-affected areas of northern Nigeria.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
Special Envoy for Girls Education, Helen Grant MP, will meet the Nigerian Education Minister on May 20 to discuss Nigeria's upcoming programme of education reform. The UK and Nigeria are signatories of the Safe School Declaration which commits governments to protect education from violence. The UK supports the implementation of the Safe Schools Initiative in Nigeria through its Education in Emergencies and Protracted Crises (EiEPC) programme. This provides assistance to children affected by conflict in Borno and Yobe states, allowing them to learn foundational skills, increase their resilience and strengthen systems which support formal and non-formal education during emergencies.
Asked by: Anna McMorrin (Labour - Cardiff North)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Deputy Foreign Secretary, whether he has had recent discussions with the Governor of the United States Virgin Islands on the disappearance of Sarm Heslop.
Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
His Majesty's Consul General Miami has raised the disappearance of British woman, Sarm Heslop with the Governor of the United States Virgin Islands. The Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Americas, Caribbean and Overseas Territories) was due to speak to the Governor earlier this month and is seeking a call with the Governor at the earliest opportunity.