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Written Question
Iraq: Kurds
Tuesday 17th October 2023

Asked by: Wayne David (Labour - Caerphilly)

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether his Department has taken steps to provide economic support to the Kurdistan Regional Government in the last 12 months.

Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)

The UK supports a secure, stable and thriving Kurdistan Region in Iraq (KRI) within a peaceful and prosperous Iraq. Through our diplomatic engagements, we continue to encourage all parties to work together to resolve outstanding regional issues. The importance of our strong and strategic partnership with the KRI was further reinforced during visits by the Minister of State for the Middle East, Lord (Tariq) Ahmad of Wimbledon in March, and Security Minister Tom Tughendhat in August this year. Through various funding mechanisms, including Official Development Assistance, and the Conflict, Stability and Security Fund, the UK continues to support efforts to tackle underlying drivers of instability across Iraq and KRI.


Written Question
Iraq: Kurds
Monday 16th October 2023

Asked by: Wayne David (Labour - Caerphilly)

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent discussions his Department has had with the (a) Federal Government of Iraq and (b) Kurdistan Regional Government on the implementation in (i) Kirkuk and (ii) other disputed territories of Article 140 of the 2005 Iraqi constitution.

Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)

The UK regularly engages with leaders of Federal Iraq and the Kurdistan Region of Iraq (KRI), including during the recent visit of the Security Minister, Tom Tughendhat, in August. Following the incident in Kirkuk the British Embassy in Iraq met a range of Iraqi counterparts and continues to encourage cooperation between Baghdad and Erbil to resolve outstanding issues. The UK supports all efforts to ensure a secure, stable and thriving KRI exists within a peaceful and prosperous Iraq. The British Consulate General Erbil regularly meets with stakeholders from the disputed territories to understand the situation on the ground and how the disputed nature of these areas is causing challenges for Iraqi citizens. The UK hopes to see provincial council elections go ahead peacefully on 18 December, following the unrest in early September.


Written Question
Iraq: Kurds
Monday 16th October 2023

Asked by: Wayne David (Labour - Caerphilly)

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent discussions his Department has had with the (a) Federal Government of Iraq and (b) Kurdistan Regional Government on the operation of the 2005 Iraqi constitution.

Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)

The UK regularly engages with leaders of Federal Iraq and the Kurdistan Region of Iraq (KRI), including during the recent visit of the Security Minister, Tom Tughendhat, in August. Following the incident in Kirkuk the British Embassy in Iraq met a range of Iraqi counterparts and continues to encourage cooperation between Baghdad and Erbil to resolve outstanding issues. The UK supports all efforts to ensure a secure, stable and thriving KRI exists within a peaceful and prosperous Iraq. The British Consulate General Erbil regularly meets with stakeholders from the disputed territories to understand the situation on the ground and how the disputed nature of these areas is causing challenges for Iraqi citizens. The UK hopes to see provincial council elections go ahead peacefully on 18 December, following the unrest in early September.


Written Question
Iraq: Kurds
Monday 16th October 2023

Asked by: Wayne David (Labour - Caerphilly)

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 31 January 2023 to Question 130041 on Iraq: Kurds, what steps his Department is taking to help ensure there is a strong and successful Kurdistan region within Iraq.

Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)

The UK supports a secure, stable and thriving Kurdistan Region in Iraq (KRI) within a peaceful and prosperous Iraq. Through our diplomatic engagements, we continue to encourage all parties to work together to resolve outstanding regional issues. The importance of our strong and strategic partnership with the KRI was further reinforced during visits by the Minister of State for the Middle East, Lord (Tariq) Ahmad of Wimbledon in March, and Security Minister Tom Tughendhat in August this year. Through various funding mechanisms, including Official Development Assistance, and the Conflict, Stability and Security Fund, the UK continues to support efforts to tackle underlying drivers of instability across Iraq and KRI.


Written Question
Iraq: Kurds
Monday 16th October 2023

Asked by: Wayne David (Labour - Caerphilly)

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent diplomatic steps his Department has taken to help encourage the resolution of disputes between the federal government in Iraq and the Kurdistan Regional Government.

Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)

The UK supports a secure, stable and thriving Kurdistan Region of Iraq (KRI) within a peaceful and prosperous Iraq. Ministers and senior UK officials have advocated repeatedly for unity and increased cooperation within the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG). We continue to encourage cooperation between Baghdad and Erbil to resolve outstanding issues where they exist, including around budget, salary payments, security cooperation and the oil and gas sector. The UK is supporting Iraq as it undertakes the bold long-term reforms needed to put Iraq's economy and society on a stable long-term footing.


Written Question
Iraq: Kurds
Monday 16th October 2023

Asked by: Jack Lopresti (Conservative - Filton and Bradley Stoke)

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what information his Department holds on the (a) political and (b) fiscal relationships between the regional and federal governments in the Kurdistan region and Iraq; and if he will make a statement.

Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)

The UK supports a secure, stable, and thriving Kurdistan Region of Iraq (KRI) within a peaceful and prosperous Iraq. Ministers and senior UK officials have advocated repeatedly for unity and increased cooperation within the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG). We continue to encourage cooperation between Baghdad and Erbil to resolve outstanding issues where they exist, including around budget, salary payments, security cooperation and the oil and gas sector. The UK is supporting Iraq as it undertakes the bold long-term reforms needed to put Iraq's economy and society on a stable long-term footing.


Written Question
Iraq: Kurds
Friday 22nd September 2023

Asked by: Jack Lopresti (Conservative - Filton and Bradley Stoke)

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what representations he has made to the Iraqi government on (a) the recent deaths of Kurds in Kirkuk and (b) potential mediation by the United Nations.

Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)

The UK regularly engages with leaders of Federal Iraq and the Kurdistan Region of Iraq (KRI), including during the recent visit of the Security Minister, Tom Tughendhat in August. Following the recent incident in Kirkuk the British Embassy in Iraq has met a range of Iraqi counterparts and continues to encourage cooperation between Baghdad and Erbil to resolve outstanding issues. The UK supports all efforts to ensure a secure, stable, and thriving KRI exists within a peaceful and prosperous Iraq.


Written Question
Iraq: Kurds
Monday 11th September 2023

Asked by: Dan Carden (Labour - Liverpool, Walton)

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent assessment he has made of the human rights situation in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq.

Answered by Leo Docherty - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for the Armed Forces)

We continue to monitor the human rights situation in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq. Journalists and political activists continue to face intimidation and indefinite detention, and conservative norms and discriminatory laws harm women and girls and the LGBT+ community.

The UK remains committed to pressing the case for improvements in the human rights situation in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq and raises these issues regularly with senior figures.


Written Question
Iraq: Kurds
Monday 19th June 2023

Asked by: Jack Lopresti (Conservative - Filton and Bradley Stoke)

Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many service personnel are deployed in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq; and on what duties.

Answered by James Heappey

As of 13 June 2023 there were 154 UK Service personnel deployed to the Kurdistan region of Iraq. Those personnel are deployed under Op SHADER and provide mobility support and force protection to the Counter-DAESH coalition activity under Operation Inherent Resolve.


Written Question
Asylum: Kurds
Tuesday 9th May 2023

Asked by: Hilary Benn (Labour - Leeds Central)

Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether she will include Kurds from Iraq and Iran in the streamlined asylum process.

Answered by Robert Jenrick

From 23 February, legacy claims from nationals of Afghanistan, Eritrea, Libya, Syria and Yemen will be considered through the Streamlined Asylum Process.

This is on the basis of their current high-grant rate of protection status (refugee status or humanitarian protection). All these nationalities have a grant rate of over 95% and over 100 grants of protection status in the year-ending September 2022. Please see Migration statistics - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk) for more information.

Upon arrival, all asylum seekers undergo a screening interview, as well as robust security checks in which they will provide biometric information.

Separate work is ongoing to more efficiently process all other asylum claims admitted to the UK asylum system awaiting consideration. To further accelerate decision making we will further drive productivity improvements by simplifying and modernising our system. This includes measures like shortening interviews, removing unnecessary interviews, making guidance simpler and more accessible, dealing with cases more swiftly where they can be certified as manifestly unfounded (e.g. Albania) and recruiting extra decision makers.