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Written Question
Gulf of Mexico
Friday 7th March 2025

Asked by: Lord Balfe (Conservative - Life peer)

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask His Majesty's Government whether they will be renaming the Gulf of Mexico; and, if so, what to.

Answered by Baroness Chapman of Darlington - Minister of State (Development)

We have long-standing processes on establishing geographical feature names for UK use, which will continue to govern future labelling.


Written Question
Gold: Mexico
Thursday 27th February 2025

Asked by: Fabian Hamilton (Labour - Leeds North East)

Question to the Department for Business and Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, if he will make an assessment of the potential implications for his policies of the ruling by the Unitary Agrarian Court Number 28 in Mexico that the company Fresnillo PLC must pay damages to farmers in El Bajío for illegal extraction of gold on the community's land from 2005 to 2013.

Answered by Douglas Alexander - Secretary of State for Scotland

The Department for Business and Trade is aware of the case between the Unitary Agrarian Court and Fresnillo PLC. This is a domestic legal matter for Mexico.


Written Question
Chevening Scholarships Programme
Monday 10th February 2025

Asked by: Rupert Lowe (Independent - Great Yarmouth)

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, if he will publish a breakdown of the (a) cost to the public purse and (b) recipients by nationality of the Chevening Scholarship in each of the last five years.

Answered by Anneliese Dodds

Chevening Scholarships provide fully-funded postgraduate masters awards at UK universities for future global leaders from approximately 140 eligible countries and territories.

Chevening Programme Expenditure

Financial year

Total programme expenditure

2019 - 2020

£57,744,779.51

2020 - 2021

£50,397,000.00

2021 - 2022

£59,233,000.00

2022 - 2023

£58,994,000.00

2023 - 2024

£59,330,000.00

Annual costs for Chevening Scholarships can be found in the FCDO Annual Reports and Accounts on GOV.UK. The cost for each Chevening scholar varies between individuals, depending on factors including the cost of tuition fees, accommodation and flights.

Breakdown of recipients by nationality of the Chevening Scholarship for the last 5 years:

Country/Territory

Awards made in 2019 (incl. full/part partner funded awards)

Awards made in 2020 (incl. full/part partner funded awards)

Awards made in 2021 (incl. full/part partner funded awards)

Awards made in 2022 (incl. full/part partner funded awards)

Awards made in 2023 (incl. full/part partner funded awards)

Awards made in 2024 (incl. full/part partner funded awards)

Afghanistan

15

23

29

18

21

13

Albania

16

6

14

11

11

10

Algeria

8

9

9

8

7

7

Angola

9

4

7

8

8

7

Anguilla

2

2

3

5

6

5

Antigua and Barbuda

2

3

3

0

1

2

Argentina

25

19

24

21

15

30

Armenia

9

3

9

7

4

4

Australia

3

3

0

2

3

4

Azerbaijan

9

8

11

9

6

5

Bahamas

2

1

1

1

4

5

Bangladesh

13

14

20

15

21

22

Barbados

3

2

2

1

2

1

Belize

5

3

4

5

5

5

Benin

1

1

1

1

0

0

Bermuda

0

1

0

0

0

0

Bhutan

3

4

5

5

5

6

Bolivia

7

5

9

8

4

6

Bosnia and Herzegovina

13

5

9

8

4

5

Botswana

9

5

7

4

4

6

Brazil

57

46

53

47

46

36

Brunei Darussalam

1

1

0

1

1

3

Burkina Faso

2

Burundi

5

5

5

4

4

5

Cambodia

17

9

13

11

12

9

Cameroon

15

12

10

5

8

8

Canada

2

1

4

1

2

3

Cape Verde

0

4

0

1

0

1

Cayman Islands

1

0

0

0

0

0

Chad

0

2

1

1

0

1

Chile

7

2

5

4

4

4

China

60

37

41

33

30

17

Colombia

25

14

16

14

14

14

Congo, Republic of

0

0

1

1

0

0

Congo, The Democratic Republic Of The

7

8

9

2

4

8

Costa Rica

5

3

9

4

5

6

Côte d’Ivoire

6

7

6

8

4

8

Cuba

12

11

11

6

8

8

Djibouti

3

2

2

4

0

1

Dominica

0

1

1

2

1

3

Dominican Republic

11

10

14

11

10

8

Ecuador

9

4

5

6

4

6

Egypt

45

33

39

32

31

29

El Salvador

6

2

3

2

2

3

Equatorial Guinea

0

0

1

1

0

0

Eritrea

1

1

0

0

0

2

Ethiopia

16

24

21

13

18

17

Falkland Islands

0

0

1

0

0

0

Fiji

2

4

5

6

6

7

Gabon

0

0

0

0

0

0

Georgia

13

9

15

15

13

10

Ghana

22

21

19

16

17

14

Greece

2

1

1

0

0

0

Grenada

0

1

1

2

4

3

Guatemala

4

3

5

3

4

1

Guinea

1

6

6

1

4

4

Guyana

10

6

5

5

4

4

Haiti

4

2

1

2

1

4

Honduras

3

3

3

3

2

2

Hong Kong

2

2

2

1

2

2

Iceland

2

1

1

0

1

0

India

47

38

41

46

38

36

Indonesia

60

50

58

45

42

39

Iraq

22

21

26

22

19

18

Israel

2

1

2

1

1

0

Jamaica

18

14

17

16

14

13

Japan

1

1

0

1

2

3

Jordan

15

12

16

11

7

10

Kazakhstan

8

8

8

6

9

12

Kenya

33

39

38

37

36

30

Kingdom of Eswatini

9

6

4

3

3

4

Kiribati

1

0

0

0

0

1

Kosovo

5

11

10

9

5

6

Kyrgyzstan

6

4

5

2

4

6

Lao People's Democratic Republic

8

7

9

8

8

8

Lebanon

9

6

11

9

10

10

Lesotho

5

3

5

3

6

6

Liberia

6

3

3

1

4

6

Libya

18

15

17

18

12

11

Madagascar

11

8

3

9

5

6

Malawi

13

8

9

8

6

7

Malaysia

38

37

40

38

34

31

Maldives

4

5

6

6

7

8

Mali

0

2

0

1

2

4

Mauritania

1

3

4

4

4

5

Mauritius

9

8

7

6

6

5

Mexico

53

39

40

39

37

33

Moldova, Republic Of

7

6

5

7

6

5

Mongolia

7

12

8

11

13

16

Montenegro

9

6

8

7

4

5

Montserrat

4

1

2

1

1

3

Morocco

11

11

13

9

10

10

Mozambique

8

8

11

11

9

9

Myanmar

12

9

16

8

10

10

Namibia

9

14

15

11

13

11

Nauru

0

0

0

1

0

1

Nepal

11

12

17

10

12

13

New Zealand

3

1

1

1

2

3

Nicaragua

4

3

5

4

2

1

Niger

0

2

0

0

2

4

Nigeria

56

46

46

44

44

30

North Macedonia

7

7

7

7

6

6

Oman

1

1

1

0

0

0

Pakistan

49

34

51

47

46

43

Palestinian Territory, Occupied

26

20

23

14

13

10

Panama

7

4

11

5

5

5

Papua New Guinea

3

2

3

5

8

3

Paraguay

15

13

13

14

16

16

Peru

18

7

15

12

9

10

Philippines

28

16

34

23

22

21

Republic of Korea

24

21

13

12

18

12

Rwanda

19

10

9

8

5

5

Saint Helena

0

1

0

0

0

1

Saint Kitts and Nevis

0

0

1

1

0

0

Saint Lucia

3

1

5

4

4

3

Saint Vincent and The Grenadines

2

1

2

4

3

3

Samoa

2

2

1

3

3

4

Sao Tome And Principe

0

0

0

0

2

0

Senegal

8

5

6

5

4

6

Serbia

15

10

10

6

7

10

Seychelles

3

2

3

2

2

3

Sierra Leone

6

5

4

6

5

6

Singapore

4

2

4

3

5

3

Solomon Islands

4

0

3

6

3

7

Somalia

11

10

11

11

14

16

South Africa

44

33

46

35

42

28

South Caucasus

3

2

4

3

0

2

South Sudan

6

5

5

6

5

6

Sri Lanka

6

7

13

8

9

10

Sudan

16

17

18

17

17

16

Suriname

2

1

0

0

0

2

Syrian Arab Republic

22

21

24

22

20

19

Taiwan (Republic of China)

4

6

3

4

5

5

Tajikistan

4

3

3

4

3

5

Tanzania

18

15

15

16

17

9

Thailand

24

15

22

17

22

21

The Gambia

10

9

8

5

5

6

Timor-Leste

4

2

0

2

2

2

Tonga

2

0

1

2

3

4

Trinidad and Tobago

3

1

2

2

2

2

Tunisia

14

11

11

8

6

7

Turkey

24

21

23

18

22

23

Turkmenistan

4

1

0

6

2

1

Turks and Caicos Islands

1

0

3

1

2

4

Tuvalu

1

0

1

0

1

0

Uganda

16

16

24

18

24

17

Ukraine

21

20

19

42

26

23

Uruguay

9

7

9

8

10

9

Uzbekistan

9

8

8

5

6

15

Vanuatu

0

0

0

3

1

2

Venezuela

10

7

9

7

7

6

Vietnam

24

19

25

19

23

22

Virgin Islands (British)

0

1

0

2

2

0

Yemen

9

6

14

8

5

9

Zambia

23

14

14

12

13

12

Zimbabwe

30

10

12

7

6

8

We are withholding some country specific information under Section 38 (Health and Safety) exemption (1) (a) and (b) of the Freedom of Information Act, which provides that information is exempt if disclosure would or would be likely to endanger the physical or mental health of any individual or endanger the safety of any individual.


Written Question
Energy: Investment
Monday 10th February 2025

Asked by: Andrew Rosindell (Reform UK - Romford)

Question to the Department for Business and Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, pursuant of the Answer of 20 January 2025 to Question 23276 on Energy: Investment, what steps his Department is taking to help support British companies with investments in Mexico during the period of regulatory change.

Answered by Douglas Alexander - Secretary of State for Scotland

My Department is following this period of regulatory change in Mexico closely. We are utilising all tools available, through the British Embassy and through dialogue with our respective counterparts within the Mexican government, including encouraging engagement on the reforms with businesses.


Written Question
Trade Barriers: Mexico and USA
Thursday 6th February 2025

Asked by: Harriett Baldwin (Conservative - West Worcestershire)

Question to the Department for Business and Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, if he has made an assessment of the potential impact of additional trade barriers between the United States of America and Mexico on the UK economy.

Answered by Douglas Alexander - Secretary of State for Scotland

On 4 February, President Trump agreed to hold off imposing all tariffs on Canada and Mexico for 30 days, following calls with Prime Minister Trudeau and President Sheinbaum. We will continue to monitor any further developments, including through discussions with counterparts, and we will always do what is in the national interest for our economy, businesses and the British people.


Written Question
Trade Barriers: Canada and USA
Thursday 6th February 2025

Asked by: Harriett Baldwin (Conservative - West Worcestershire)

Question to the Department for Business and Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of additional trade barriers between the United States and Canada on the UK economy.

Answered by Douglas Alexander - Secretary of State for Scotland

On 4 February, President Trump agreed to hold off imposing all tariffs on Canada and Mexico for 30 days, following calls with Prime Minister Trudeau and President Sheinbaum. We will continue to monitor any further developments, including through discussions with counterparts, and we will always do what is in the national interest for our economy, businesses and the British people.


Written Question
Trade Barriers: Mexico and USA
Thursday 6th February 2025

Asked by: Harriett Baldwin (Conservative - West Worcestershire)

Question to the Department for Business and Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what discussions (a) he, (b) ministers in his Department and (c) officials in his Department have had with counterparts in Mexico regarding on the potential impact of additional US-Mexico trade barriers on UK trade.

Answered by Douglas Alexander - Secretary of State for Scotland

On 4 February, President Trump agreed to hold off imposing all tariffs on Canada and Mexico for 30 days, following calls with Prime Minister Trudeau and President Sheinbaum. We will continue to monitor any further developments, including through discussions with counterparts, and we will always do what is in the national interest for our economy, businesses and the British people.


Written Question
Trade Barriers: Canada and USA
Thursday 6th February 2025

Asked by: Harriett Baldwin (Conservative - West Worcestershire)

Question to the Department for Business and Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what discussions (a) he, (b) ministers in his Department and (c) officials in his Department have had with counterparts in Canada on the impact of additional US-Canada trade barriers on UK trade.

Answered by Douglas Alexander - Secretary of State for Scotland

On 4 February, President Trump agreed to hold off imposing all tariffs on Canada and Mexico for 30 days, following calls with Prime Minister Trudeau and President Sheinbaum. We will continue to monitor any further developments, including through discussions with counterparts, and we will always do what is in the national interest for our economy, businesses and the British people.


Written Question
Gulf of Mexico: Politics and Government
Tuesday 4th February 2025

Asked by: Alison Griffiths (Conservative - Bognor Regis and Littlehampton)

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether his Department plans to refer to the Gulf of Mexico as the Gulf of America in official documents.

Answered by Catherine West

We have long-standing processes on establishing geographical feature names for UK use, which will continue to govern future labelling.

It is a matter for the US how it labels geographical features around its own coastline.


Written Question
Energy: Investment
Monday 20th January 2025

Asked by: Andrew Rosindell (Reform UK - Romford)

Question to the Department for Business and Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, whether his Department has made an assessment of the potential impact of Mexico's recent constitutional reforms on UK investments in the regional energy sector.

Answered by Douglas Alexander - Secretary of State for Scotland

The UK Embassy in Mexico regularly engages with the Mexican Government to underline the importance of strong institutions, independent courts, and the rule of law.

My Department has been following the regulatory reforms closely. We are aware of market reactions and maintain a dialogue with the Mexican Government at the highest levels about how these reforms may affect UK business. Mexico is a long-standing and valued trade partner for the UK and we are working to grow our two-way trade and investment.