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Written Question
Diplomatic Service
Friday 19th April 2024

Asked by: Julian Knight (Independent - Solihull)

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, how many requests for consular support were made to each British Embassy or Consulate in 2023; and how many of those were responded to by officials within a period of 24 hours.

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

Our consular staff endeavour to give appropriate and tailored assistance 24 hours a day, seven days a week and 365 days a year, to British nationals overseas and their families in the UK who need support. In 2023, in addition to long running cases, we provided support to around 22,000 British nationals, see breakdown by Post in the table below. The FCDO reports publicly on consular delivery through the FCDO Outcome Delivery Plan [https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/foreign-commonwealth-development-office-outcome-delivery-plan]. Publishing our transparency data is currently on hold while we embed a new Case Management system.

COUNTRY

2023

Afghanistan

22

Albania

63

Algeria

23

Angola

Argentina

34

Armenia

8

Australia

414

Austria

92

Azerbaijan

12

Bahrain

48

Barbados

113

Belarus

6

Belgium

152

Bolivia

12

Bosnia and Herzegovina

12

Botswana

15

Brazil

88

Bulgaria

166

Cambodia

112

Cameroon

30

Canada

181

Chile

21

China

143

Colombia

73

Congo (Democratic Republic)

22

Costa Rica

39

Croatia

114

Cuba

29

Cyprus

441

Czechia

141

Denmark

88

Dominican Republic

67

Ecuador

13

Egypt

383

Estonia

19

Ethiopia

104

Fiji

21

Finland

49

France

1027

Georgia

27

Germany

662

Ghana

85

Greece

936

Guatemala

43

Guinea

Guyana

17

Hong Kong SAR

110

Hungary

131

Iceland

17

India

360

Indonesia

196

Iraq

46

Ireland

104

Israel

39

Italy

411

Ivory Coast

Jamaica

179

Japan

167

Jerusalem

61

Jordan

71

Kazakhstan

14

Kenya

146

Kuwait

30

Kyrgyzstan

Laos

29

Latvia

20

Lebanon

34

Liberia

Lithuania

23

Luxembourg

10

Madagascar

Malawi

Malaysia

138

Malta

106

Mauritius

14

Mexico

207

Moldova

13

Mongolia

6

Montenegro

33

Morocco

222

Myanmar (Burma)

8

Namibia

9

Nepal

21

Netherlands

287

New Zealand

127

Nigeria

74

Norway

149

Oman

50

Pakistan

376

Panama

17

Paraguay

Peru

58

Philippines

283

Poland

242

Portugal

524

Qatar

96

Romania

89

Russia

28

Rwanda

7

Saudi Arabia

166

Senegal

21

Serbia

29

Seychelles

11

Sierra Leone

15

Singapore

105

Slovakia

38

Slovenia

17

South Africa

195

South Korea

40

Spain

4143

Sri Lanka

86

St Lucia

21

Sudan

34

Sweden

110

Switzerland

157

Taiwan

22

Tajikistan

6

Tanzania

36

Thailand

1383

The Gambia

48

Trinidad and Tobago

40

Tunisia

75

Turkey

947

Uganda

52

Ukraine

56

United Arab Emirates

658

United States

1649

Uruguay

10

Uzbekistan

8

Venezuela

Vietnam

188

Zambia

22

Zimbabwe

26

NB We do not publish data where figures are 5 or below to comply with GDPR


Written Question
Russia: Sanctions
Thursday 28th March 2024

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, if he will hold discussions with international partners on strengthening multilateral approaches to prevent the circumvention of sanctions against Russia through third countries.

Answered by Anne-Marie Trevelyan - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)

The UK coordinates closely with the EU, US, G7 and other international partners to tackle circumvention via multilateral fora and strategic consultations. Senior officials attend the Sanctions Coordinators Forum in Brussels, most recently in February 2024 focusing on strengthening enforcement of Russia sanctions. With the EU, US and Japan we have agreed a list of 50 Common High Priority items; battlefield-critical components we are targeting through joint diplomatic engagement with third countries. With the US and EU we have jointly engaged with the UAE, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Georgia, Armenia, Turkey, Kyrgyzstan, and Serbia, to highlight circumvention risks and offer technical support.


Written Question
Military Attachés
Thursday 14th March 2024

Asked by: Maria Eagle (Labour - Garston and Halewood)

Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the Answer of 17 November 2023 to Question 1027 on Military Attachés, if he will publish an updated list of countries without a resident UK Defence Attache.

Answered by James Heappey

The Global Defence Network (GDN) utilises Resident and Non-Resident Defence Attachés (DA), who engage in Defence diplomacy in over three-quarters of the world’s nations. The table below has a list of countries covered on a Non-Residential Accreditations (NRA) basis, where a UK DA is not resident in country, but a DA elsewhere has the responsibility.

Country (NRA)

Location of DA

Angola

Mozambique - Maputo

Anguilla (British overseas territory)

Jamaica - Kingston

Antigua & Barbuda

Jamaica - Kingston

Armenia

Georgia – Tbilisi

Azerbaijan

Georgia – Tbilisi

Bahamas

Jamaica - Kingston

Barbados

Jamaica - Kingston

Belarus

Ukraine – Kyiv

Belize

Jamaica - Kingston

Benin

Accra - Ghana

Bermuda (British overseas territory)

USA – Washington DC

Botswana

Harare - Zimbabwe

British Virgin Islands (British overseas territory)

Jamaica - Kingston

Burkina Faso

Ghana - Accra

Burundi

Uganda – Kampala

Cambodia

(In process of transferring to) Vietnam - Hanoi

Cayman Islands (British overseas territory)

Jamaica – Kingston

Chad

Cameroon - Yaoundé

Cuba

Mexico – Mexico City

Djibouti

Ethiopia – Addis Ababa

Dominica

Jamaica - Kingston

Dominican Republic

Jamaica - Kingston

Democratic Republic of the Congo

Kampala - Uganda

Eritrea

Sana’a - Yemen (temporarily relocated to Riyadh)

Ecuador

Bogota - Colombia

Grenada

Jamaica - Kingston

Guinea

Sierra Leone – Freetown

Guyana

Jamaica - Kingston

Guatemala

Mexico – Mexico City

Guinea-Bissau

Senegal - Dakar

Haiti

Jamaica - Kingston

Hungary

Croatia - Zagreb

Iceland

Norway - Oslo

Ivory Coast

Ghana – Accra

Khartoum

Egypt - Cairo

Kosovo

Macedonia - Skopje

Kyrgyzstan

Kazakhstan – Astana

Laos

(in process of transferring to) Vietnam - Hanoi

Lesotho

South Africa - Pretoria

Liberia

Sierra Leone - Freetown

Luxembourg

Belgium - Brussels

Malawi

Zimbabwe – Harare

Mali

Senegal - Dakar

Malta

Rome - Italy

Mauritania

Morocco – Rabat

Monaco

France – Paris

Mongolia

Japan – Tokyo

Myanmar

Thailand - Bangkok

Montserrat (British overseas territory)

Jamaica - Kingston

Namibia

South Africa – Pretoria

Niger

Cameroon – Yaoundé

Papua New Guinea

Australia – Canberra

Paraguay

Argentina – Buenos Aires

Peru

Colombia - Bogota

Rwanda

Uganda – Kampala

Seychelles

Kenya - Nairobi

St Kitts & Nevis

Jamaica - Kingston

St Lucia

Jamaica - Kingston

St Vincent

Jamaica - Kingston

Slovakia

Czech Rep - Prague

Slovenia

Austria – Vienna

South Sudan

Addis Ababa – Ethiopia

Switzerland

Vienna - Austria

Syria

Lebanon - Beirut

Tajikistan

Kazakhstan – Astana

Tanzania

Kenya – Nairobi

The Gambia

Senegal - Dakar

Timor-Leste (East Timor)

Indonesia - Jakarta

Togo

Ghana – Accra

Tonga

Fiji – Suva

Trinidad & Tobago

Jamaica - Kingston

Turkmenistan

Uzbekistan - Tashkent

Turks & Caicos Islands (British overseas territory)

Jamaica - Kingston

Uruguay

Argentina - Buenos Aires

Vanuatu

Fiji – Suva

Venezuela

Bogota - Colombia

Zambia

Zimbabwe - Harare

Supported by MOD from in the UK

Cape Verdi Islands

Congo

Gabon

Panama

Puerto Rica


Written Question
Russia: Exports
Wednesday 13th March 2024

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 diplomatic steps he is taking to prevent businesses from evading sanctions by exporting goods to Russia via third countries.

Answered by Anne-Marie Trevelyan - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)

Working closely with G7 partners, we have stepped up our engagement with third countries to support them to tackle circumvention of UK sanctions. We have sent joint delegations to UAE, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, Georgia, and Armenia, to highlight risks and offer technical support to government and business.

The UK Government supports businesses domestically to tackle sanctions evasion, including by publishing guidance for exporters and by publishing the "Common High Priority Items List" of goods critical to Russia's military. HMG is also standing up the Office of Trade Sanctions Implementation, which will boost the enforcement and implementation of UK trade sanctions.


Written Question
Central Asia and Russia: Defence Equipment
Wednesday 13th March 2024

Asked by: Baroness Hoey (Non-affiliated - Life peer)

Question to the Department for Business and Trade:

To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the amount of drone equipment and heavy machinery going from the UK to Armenia, Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan which is then sent on to Russia.

Answered by Lord Offord of Garvel - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)

HMG has sanctioned every item that Ukraine has found Russia using on the battlefield to date. This includes goods that could be used for drones and heavy machinery.

We maintain a Common High Priority List (CHPL) of items critical to the Russian military, to thwart attempts to circumvent sanctions through third countries.

We continue to engage with relevant countries and monitor our exports for signs of circumvention, to do everything we can to ensure that sanctioned UK technologies do not make it to Russia.


Written Question
Kyrgyzstan: Civil Society and Human Rights
Friday 16th February 2024

Asked by: Baroness Cox (Crossbench - Life peer)

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the Foreign Representatives Bill in Kyrgyzstan, with regards to (1) civic activism, and (2) human rights obligations, in that country.

Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)

The FCDO is following the progress of the Foreign Representatives Bill closely. We share the concerns previously raised by the United Nations that it could contravene Kyrgyzstan's international obligations in relation to rights and freedoms. We encourage Kyrgyzstan to protect these fundamental rights, particularly in the area of freedom of expression and assembly, which is essential to the long-term health of democracy.


Written Question
Kyrgyzstan: Civil Society
Friday 16th February 2024

Asked by: Baroness Cox (Crossbench - Life peer)

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask His Majesty's Government what representations they have made to the government of Kyrgyzstan regarding the protection of civic activism in that country.

Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)

The Foreign Secretary has raised his concerns over the Foreign Agents bill directly with the Kyrgyz government. His Majesty's Ambassador in Bishkek continues to raise these concerns with the government of Kyrgyzstan. We encourage Kyrgyzstan to protect fundamental rights, particularly in the area of freedom of expression and assembly, which is essential to the long-term health of democracy.


Written Question
Exports: Kyrgyzstan
Tuesday 5th December 2023

Asked by: Luke Pollard (Labour (Co-op) - Plymouth, Sutton and Devonport)

Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what the value of UK exports to Kyrgyzstan was in each of the last five years.

Answered by John Glen - Paymaster General and Minister for the Cabinet Office

The information requested falls under the remit of the UK Statistics Authority.

A response to the Hon gentleman’s Parliamentary Question of 27 November is attached.


Written Question
Military Attachés
Friday 17th November 2023

Asked by: John Healey (Labour - Wentworth and Dearne)

Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, which countries do not have a resident UK Defence Attache.

Answered by James Heappey

The table below has a list of countries covered on a Non-Residential Accreditations (NRA) basis, where a UK Defence Attaché (DA) is not resident in country, but a DA elsewhere has the responsibility. This ensures that we have coverage across the world’s regions.

Country (NRA)

Location of DA

Angola

Pretoria – South Africa

Anguilla

Jamaica - Kingston

Antigua & Barbua

Jamaica - Kingston

Armenia

Georgia – Tbilisi

Azerbaijan

Georgia – Tbilisi

Bahamas

Jamaica - Kingston

Barbados

Jamaica - Kingston

Belarus

Ukraine – Kyiv

Belize

Jamaica - Kingston

Benin

Accra - Ghana

Bermuda

USA – Washington DC

Bolivia

UK – London

Botswana

Harare - Zimbabwe

British Virgin Islands

Jamaica - Kingston

Burkina Faso

Ghana - Accra

Burundi

Uganda – Kampala

Cambodia

Singapore

Cape Verde Islands

UK-London

Cayman Islands

Jamaica – Kingston

Congo

UK - London

Cuba

Mexico – Mexico City

Djibouti

Ethiopia – Addis Ababa

Dominica Dominican Republic

Jamaica - Kingston

Democratic Republic of the Congo

Kampala - Uganda

Eritrea

Sana’a - Yemen

Ecuador

Bogota - Colombia

Gabon

London

Grenada

Jamaica - Kingston

Guinea

Sierra Leone – Freetown

Guyana

Jamaica - Kingston

Guatemala

Mexico – Mexico City

Guinea-Bissau

Senegal - Dakar

Haiti

Jamaica - Kingston

Hungary

Croatia - Zagreb

Iceland

Norway - Oslo

Ivory Coast

Ghana – Accra

Khartoum

Egypt - Cairo

Kosovo

Macedonia - Skopje

Kyrgyzstan

Kazakhstan – Astana

Lesotho

South Africa - Pretoria

Liberia

Sierra Leone - Freetown

Libya

Libya - Tripoli

Malawi

Zimbabwe – Harare

Malta

Rome

Mauritania

Morocco – Rabat

Monaco

France – Paris

Mongolia

Japan – Tokyo

Montenegro

Tirana – Albania

Myanmar

Singapore (BDS SEA)

Montserrat

Jamaica - Kingston

Mozambique

South Africa – Pretoria

Panama City

Puerto Rico

Namibia

South Africa – Pretoria

Niger

Mali - Bamako

Papua New Guinea

Australia – Canberra

Paraguay

Argentina – Buenos Aires

Peru

Colombia - Bogota

Rwanda

Uganda – Kampala

Seychelles

Kenya - Nairobi

St Kitts & Nevis

Jamaica - Kingston

St Lucia

Jamaica - Kingston

St Vincent

Jamaica - Kingston

Slovakia

Czech Rep - Prague

Slovenia

Austria – Vienna

South Sudan

Addis Ababa – Ethiopia

Switzerland

Vienna - Austria

Syria

Lebanon

Tajikistan

Kazakhstan – Astana

Tanzania

Kenya – Nairobi

The Gambia

Senegal - Dakar

Timor-Leste (East Timor)

Indonesia - Jakarta

Togo

Ghana – Accra

Tonga

Fiji – Suva

Trinidad & Tobago

Jamaica - Kingston

Turkmenistan

Uzbekistan - Tashkent

Turks & Caicos Islands

Jamaica - Kingston

Uruguay

Argentina - Buenos Aires

Vanuatu

Fiji – Suva

Venezuela

Bogota - Colombia

Zambia

Zimbabwe - Harare


Written Question
State Retirement Pensions: British Nationals Abroad
Monday 15th May 2023

Asked by: Rob Roberts (Independent - Delyn)

Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what the average amount of state pension paid to individuals who live outside the UK is; and if he will provide a breakdown of the average state pension payment in each country in which recipients reside.

Answered by Laura Trott - Chief Secretary to the Treasury

In November 2020, the average (mean) amount of State Pension paid to individuals who live outside the UK was £70.61 per week.

Table 1. Average Amount of State Pension paid to individuals who live outside the UK, November 2020

Residency

Mean Weekly State Pension Amount

Outside United Kingdom

£ 70.61

Source: Stat-Xplore - Home (dwp.gov.uk)

Below is a table of the average (mean) amount of State Pension paid to individuals who live outside the UK, broken down by country of residence, in November 2020.

Table 2. Average Amount of State Pension by Country of Residence, November 2020

Country of Residence

Mean Weekly State Pension Amount

Abroad - Not known

£ 112.62

Albania

£ 110.57

Alderney

£ 126.99

Algeria

£ 62.41

Andorra

£ 94.96

Anguilla

£ 64.93

Antigua

£ 74.02

Argentina

£ 65.18

Aruba

£ 60.29

Ascension Island

£ 91.68

Australia

£ 50.09

Austria

£ 49.24

Azerbaijan

£ 166.77

Bahamas

£ 66.64

Bahrain

£ 97.27

Bangladesh

£ 39.49

Barbados

£ 116.97

Belarus

£ 111.17

Belgium

£ 63.62

Belize

£ 85.01

Bermuda

£ 81.36

Bolivia

£ 106.19

Bosnia and Herzegovina

£ 73.12

Botswana

£ 75.98

Brazil

£ 81.20

Brunei

£ 121.78

Bulgaria

£ 122.47

Burkina Faso

£ 54.09

Cambodia

£ 119.76

Cameroon

£ 58.81

Canada

£ 46.34

Cape Verde

£ 52.18

Cayman Islands

£ 89.42

Chile

£ 72.13

China

£ 96.39

Colombia

£ 89.09

Cook Islands

£ 57.92

Costa Rica

£ 81.75

Cyprus

£ 122.54

Denmark

£ 58.40

Dom Commonwealth (Dominica)

£ 77.73

Dominican Republic

£ 107.52

Dutch Caribbean

£ 67.76

Ecuador

£ 85.95

Egypt

£ 78.64

El Salvador

£ 80.36

Equatorial Guinea

£ 142.11

Ethiopia

£ 88.34

Falkland Islands and Dependencies

£ 85.64

Faroe Islands

£ 33.01

Fiji

£ 73.66

Finland

£ 58.89

France

£ 113.52

French Overseas Departments

£ 84.34

French Polynesia

£ 55.84

Gambia

£ 91.46

Germany

£ 46.48

Ghana

£ 56.69

Gibraltar

£ 100.77

Greece

£ 109.44

Greenland

£ 23.21

Grenada

£ 77.33

Guam

£ 83.49

Guatemala

£ 77.73

Guernsey

£ 84.86

Guyana

£ 60.60

Honduras

£ 79.02

Hong Kong

£ 85.42

Hungary

£ 102.32

Iceland

£ 71.68

India

£ 50.10

Indonesia

£ 106.53

Iran

£ 70.85

Iraq

£ 64.11

Ireland

£ 66.41

Isle of Man

£ 127.85

Israel

£ 101.27

Italy

£ 56.79

Jamaica

£ 116.05

Japan

£ 46.97

Jersey

£ 70.02

Jordan

£ 67.90

Kazakhstan

£ 124.13

Kenya

£ 79.34

Kuwait

£ 103.54

Kyrgyzstan

£ 76.07

Laos

£ 100.66

Lebanon

£ 88.20

Lesotho

£ 59.64

Liechtenstein

£ 28.62

Luxembourg

£ 83.34

Macau

£ 77.52

Madagascar

£ 62.23

Malawi

£ 71.90

Malaysia

£ 77.87

Malta

£ 104.22

Mauritius

£ 108.25

Mexico

£ 74.98

Moldova

£ 124.94

Monaco

£ 111.96

Montserrat

£ 65.67

Morocco

£ 75.51

Mozambique

£ 74.56

Myanmar

£ 84.84

Namibia

£ 70.17

Nepal

£ 63.99

Netherlands

£ 55.81

Nevis, St Kitts-Nevis

£ 75.56

New Caledonia

£ 79.61

New Zealand

£ 46.44

Nicaragua

£ 79.72

Nigeria

£ 27.65

Norfolk Island

£ 55.18

North Macedonia

£ 24.20

Norway

£ 58.24

Oman

£ 89.53

Pakistan

£ 48.74

Panama

£ 96.96

Papua New Guinea

£ 75.49

Paraguay

£ 68.41

Peru

£ 88.02

Philippines

£ 138.86

Poland

£ 59.39

Portugal

£ 119.47

Puerto Rico

£ 77.32

Qatar

£ 113.55

Republic of Croatia

£ 62.10

Republic of Estonia

£ 78.98

Republic of Georgia

£ 129.54

Republic of Latvia

£ 68.34

Republic of Lithuania

£ 42.71

Republic of Slovenia

£ 60.38

Romania

£ 99.40

Russia

£ 85.51

Saint Helena & Dependencies

£ 89.27

San Marino

£ 29.33

Sark

£ 117.68

Saudi Arabia

£ 86.88

Senegal

£ 74.13

Serbia

£ 123.58

Seychelles

£ 79.10

Sierra Leone

£ 52.66

Singapore

£ 89.20

Solomon Islands

£ 79.08

Somalia

£ 44.20

South Africa

£ 56.52

South Korea

£ 41.69

Spain

£ 120.61

Sri Lanka

£ 59.98

St Lucia

£ 76.63

St Vincent & Grenadines

£ 80.10

State Union of Serbia and Montenegro

£ 53.44

Sudan

£ 71.27

Suriname

£ 151.95

Swaziland

£ 79.26

Sweden

£ 57.52

Switzerland

£ 51.98

Syria

£ 63.61

Tahiti

£ 77.00

Taiwan

£ 105.85

Tanzania

£ 87.61

Thailand

£ 119.10

The Czech Republic

£ 92.30

The Slovak Republic

£ 49.82

Togo

£ 50.10

Tonga

£ 73.36

Tours (Individuals on Tour)

£ 133.34

Trinidad & Tobago

£ 55.37

Tunisia

£ 88.16

Turkey

£ 132.24

Turks and Caicos Islands

£ 118.32

Uganda

£ 88.33

Ukraine

£ 115.86

United Arab Emirates

£ 107.46

United States

£ 74.19

United States Minor Outlying Islands

£ 75.89

Uruguay

£ 77.74

Vanuatu

£ 85.86

Venezuela

£ 67.62

Vietnam

£ 125.09

Virgin Islands (British)

£ 91.77

Virgin Islands (USA)

£ 72.74

Western Samoa

£ 34.12

Yemen

£ 42.90

Zambia

£ 75.67

Zimbabwe

£ 48.98

Source: Stat-Xplore - Home (dwp.gov.uk)