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 |
Asked by: Andrew Rosindell (Conservative - Romford)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment he has made of the extent of persecution of Christians in (a) Lebanon and (b) other Middle Eastern countries.
Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.
Asked by: John Howell (Conservative - Henley)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment he has made of the implications for his Department's policies of the United States imposing sanctions on the Lebanese organisation Green Without Borders.
Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK has long condemned the destabilising activities of Hizballah and its affiliates, including Green Without Borders, in the region. Hizballah's activities, particularly along the Blue Line in southern Lebanon, pose a grave threat to civilians living in the vicinity, as well as UN peacekeepers in the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL). At this time of heightened tension in the region, there is an urgent need for calm along the Blue Line. We do not speculate about future UK sanctions designations.
Asked by: Earl of Sandwich (Crossbench - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what support they are providing to African universities and institutions specialising in conflict, in particular in (1) Sudan, (2) South Sudan, (3) Eritrea, and (4) Ethiopia.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Currently we do not provide support to universities in any of the specified countries. Through our recent Strategic Partnership for Higher Education, Innovation and Reform (SPHEIR) programme we have provided support to universities in Somaliland, Kenya, Egypt, Nigeria, Tanzania, Uganda, Rwanda and Sierra Leone and provided conflict support to universities in Jordan and Lebanon supporting Syrian refugees. This programme ran from 2016-2022 and focussed on transforming the quality, relevance, scale, access and affordability of higher education systems through mutually beneficial partnerships. A successor programme is currently being developed which will be accepting/encouraging bids from Ethiopia and South Sudan.
Asked by: Matt Western (Labour - Warwick and Leamington)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, how many Chevening scholarships have been awarded to each country for awarded for the 2023-24 academic year.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
Chevening operates in over 160 countries and territories. For the 2023-24 academic year, our budget of £57.7 million Official Development Assistance (ODA), £1.6 million non-ODA funding, and additional income of around £13.2 million from tuition fee-waivers and external partners allowed us to offer 1440 awards of which 1383 were from ODA funding and 57 from non-ODA funding. Attached is a table indicating numbers from each eligible country. For countries where we offered fewer than five places we withhold the exact number as this would contravene one of the data protection principles. In this case, Sections 40(2) and 40 (3A)(a) of the Freedom of Information Act apply.
| ODA | Country | Awards made (incl. full/part partner funded awards) |
| ODA | AFGHANISTAN | 22 |
| ODA | ALBANIA | 11 |
| ODA | ALGERIA | 7 |
| ODA | ANGOLA / SAO TOME AND PRINCIPE | 15 |
| ODA | ARGENTINA | 15 |
| ODA | ARMENIA | 5 |
| ODA | AZERBAIJAN | 7 |
| ODA | BANGLADESH | 21 |
| ODA | BELARUS | 7 |
| ODA | BELIZE | Fewer than 5 |
| ODA | BHUTAN | 5 |
| ODA | BOLIVIA | 6 |
| ODA | BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA | 6 |
| ODA | BOTSWANA | 5 |
| ODA | BRAZIL | 46 |
| ODA | BURUNDI | Fewer than 5 |
| ODA | CAMBODIA | 14 |
| ODA | CAMEROON / CHAD / EQUATORIAL GUINEA / GABON | 8 |
| ODA | CHINA | 33 |
| ODA | COLOMBIA | 14 |
| ODA | CONGO, The Democratic Republic Of The/Central African Republic/Republic of Congo | Fewer than 5 |
| ODA | COSTA RICA / NICARAGUA | 6 |
| ODA | COTE D'IVOIRE | 7 |
| ODA | CUBA | 8 |
| ODA | DJIBOUTI | Fewer than 5 |
| ODA | DOMINICAN REPUBLIC/HAITI | 13 |
| ODA | EAST CARIBBEAN ODA (GRENADA, ST LUCIA, DOMINICA, ST VINCENT & THE GRENADINES, ANTIGUA AND BARBUDA) | 11 |
| ODA | EAST TIMOR | Fewer than 5 |
| ODA | ECUADOR | 6 |
| ODA | EGYPT | 30 |
| ODA | EL SALVADOR | Fewer than 5 |
| ODA | ERITREA | Fewer than 5 |
| ODA | Eswatini | Fewer than 5 |
| ODA | ETHIOPIA | 13 |
| ODA | GAMBIA | 5 |
| ODA | GEORGIA/South Caucasus | 14 |
| ODA | GHANA / BENIN / TOGO /BURKINA FASO | 16 |
| ODA | GUATEMALA / HONDURAS | 5 |
| ODA | GUINEA | Fewer than 5 |
| ODA | GUYANA / SURINAME | 5 |
| ODA | INDIA | 38 |
| ODA | INDONESIA | 43 |
| ODA | IRAQ | 18 |
| ODA | JAMAICA | 13 |
| ODA | JORDAN | 8 |
| ODA | KAZAKHSTAN | 9 |
| ODA | KENYA | 33 |
| ODA | KOSOVO | 8 |
| ODA | KYRGYZ REPUBLIC | Fewer than 5 |
| ODA | LAOS | 13 |
| ODA | LEBANON | 10 |
| ODA | LESOTHO | 6 |
| ODA | LIBERIA | Fewer than 5 |
| ODA | LIBYA | 10 |
| ODA | MADAGASCAR/COMOROS | 8 |
| ODA | MALAWI | 6 |
| ODA | MALAYSIA | 41 |
| ODA | MALDIVES | 7 |
| ODA | MALI | Fewer than 5 |
| ODA | MAURITANIA | 5 |
| ODA | MAURITIUS | 7 |
| ODA | MEXICO | 34 |
| ODA | MOLDOVA | 6 |
| ODA | MONGOLIA | 17 |
| ODA | MONTENEGRO | 7 |
| ODA | MOROCCO | 11 |
| ODA | MOZAMBIQUE | 15 |
| ODA | MYANMAR | 11 |
| ODA | NAMIBIA | 14 |
| ODA | NEPAL | 11 |
| ODA | NIGER | Fewer than 5 |
| ODA | NIGERIA | 39 |
| ODA | NORTH MACEDONIA | 6 |
| ODA | OVERSEAS TERRITORIES | 12 |
| ODA | PACIFIC POOL | 32 |
| ODA | PAKISTAN (DOES NOT INCLUDE FELLOWS) | 46 |
| ODA | PALESTINIAN TERRITORIES | 11 |
| ODA | PANAMA | 5 |
| ODA | PARAGUAY | 17 |
| ODA | PERU | 11 |
| ODA | PHILIPPINES | 23 |
| ODA | RWANDA | 8 |
| ODA | SAMOA + COOK ISLANDS | Fewer than 5 |
| ODA | SENEGAL / CAPE VERDE /GUINEA-BISSAU | 8 |
| ODA | SERBIA | 7 |
| ODA | SIERRA LEONE | 6 |
| ODA | SOMALIA | 17 |
| ODA | SOUTH AFRICA | 47 |
| ODA | SOUTH SUDAN | 6 |
| ODA | SRI LANKA | 10 |
| ODA | SUDAN | 14 |
| ODA | SYRIA | 15 |
| ODA | TAJIKISTAN | Fewer than 5 |
| ODA | TANZANIA | 17 |
| ODA | THAILAND | 24 |
| ODA | TUNISIA | 6 |
| ODA | TURKEY | 20 |
| ODA | TURKMENISTAN | 6 |
| ODA | UGANDA | 21 |
| ODA | UKRAINE | 37 |
| ODA | UZBEKISTAN | 7 |
| ODA | VENEZUELA | 7 |
| ODA | VIETNAM | 23 |
| ODA | YEMEN | 9 |
| ODA | ZAMBIA | 11 |
| ODA | ZIMBABWE | 7 |
| Non-ODA | AUSTRALIA | Fewer than 5 |
| Non-ODA | BAHAMAS | Fewer than 5 |
| Non-ODA | BARBADOS (+ ST KITTS AND NEVIS) | Fewer than 5 |
| Non-ODA | BRUNEI | Fewer than 5 |
| Non-ODA | CANADA | Fewer than 5 |
| Non-ODA | CHILE | Fewer than 5 |
| Non-ODA | HONG KONG | Fewer than 5 |
| Non-ODA | ICELAND | Fewer than 5 |
| Non-ODA | ISRAEL | Fewer than 5 |
| Non-ODA | JAPAN | Fewer than 5 |
| Non-ODA | NEW ZEALAND | Fewer than 5 |
| Non-ODA | SEYCHELLES | Fewer than 5 |
| Non-ODA | SINGAPORE | 5 |
| Non-ODA | SOUTH KOREA | Fewer than 5 |
| Non-ODA | TAIWAN | 5 |
| Non-ODA | TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO | Fewer than 5 |
| Non-ODA | URUGUAY | 10 |
| 1350 |
Asked by: Lord Grocott (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask His Majesty's Government who are the Trade Envoys; to which country each Trade Envoy has been assigned; and what is the party affiliation of each Trade Envoy and the length of time in post.
Answered by Lord Johnson of Lainston - Minister of State (Department for Business and Trade)
There are currently 36 Prime Minister’s Trade Envoys and information as below.
Country | Trade Envoy | Date of PM Appointment | ||
LATIN AMERICA & THE CARIBBEAN | ||||
Colombia, Chile, Peru, Argentina | Mark Menzies MP (Con) | September 2016 & September 2017 for Argentina | ||
Panama, Dominican Republic, Costa Rica | Baroness Hooper of Liverpool (Con) | October 2020 | ||
Brazil | Marco Longhi MP (Con) | August 2021 | ||
AFRICA | ||||
Algeria | Lord Risby of Haverhill (Con) | November 2012 | ||
Uganda & Rwanda (watching brief for DRC) | Lord Popat (Con) | January 2016 | ||
Egypt and Cameroon | Sir Jeffrey Donaldson MP (DUP) | January 2016 & August 2021 for Cameroon | ||
Nigeria | Helen Grant MP (Con) | October 2020 | ||
Kenya | Theo Clarke MP (Con) | Reappointed May 2023 | ||
South Africa & Mauritius | Andrew Selous MP(Con) | September 2017 & January 2023 for Mauritius | ||
Tanzania | Lord Walney (Non-Affiliated) | August 2021 | ||
Ghana | Baroness Hoey (Non-Affiliated) | August 2021 | ||
Tunisia & Libya | Yvonne Fovargue MP (Lab) | March 2022 | ||
Angola, Zambia & Ethiopia | Laurence Robertson MP (Con) | Reappointed March 2023 | ||
MIDDLE EAST | ||||
Israel | Lord Austin of Dudley (Non-affiliated) | October 2020 | ||
Iran | Lord Lamont of Lerwick (Con) | January 2016 | ||
Lebanon | Lord Risby of Haverhill (Con) | August 2019 | ||
Iraq | Baroness Nicholson of Winterbourne (Con) | January 2014 | ||
Jordan, Kuwait & Palestine Territories | Baroness Morris of Bolton (Con) | November 2012 | ||
UAE | Gareth Thompson MP (Con) | March 2023 | ||
| ||||
Azerbaijan, Turkmenistan, Kazakhstan | Baroness Nicholson of Winterbourne (Con) | April 2016 & Kazakhstan July 2017 | ||
Mongolia | Daniel Kawczynski MP (Con) | October 2020 | ||
Ukraine | Baroness Meyer (Con) | October 2020 | ||
Turkey | Lord Hutton (Lab) | May 2022 | ||
EUROPE | ||||
Switzerland & Liechtenstein | Sir Stephen Timms MP (Lab) | August 2021 | ||
Western Balkans (Albania, Bosnia & Herzegovina, Kosovo, North Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia) | Martin Vickers MP (Con) | October 2020 | ||
APAC | ||||
Australia | Lord Botham (Crossbench) | August 2021 | ||
Taiwan | Lord Faulkner (Lab) | January 2016 | ||
Japan | Greg Clark MP (Con) | May 2022 | ||
Thailand, Myanmar, Brunei & Vietnam | Mark Garnier MP (Con) | October 2020 & for Vietnam January 2023 | ||
Singapore | Lord Sarfraz (Con) | January 2022 | ||
Republic of Korea | Sir John Whittingdale (Con) | May 2022 | ||
Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines & ASEAN | Richard Graham MP (Con) | Reappointed March 2023 | ||
Cambodia & Laos | Heather Wheeler MP (Con) | Reappointed March 2023 | ||
New Zealand | David Mundell MP (Con) | Reappointed March 2023 | ||
SOUTH ASIA | ||||
Bangladesh | Rushanara Ali MP (Lab) | March 2016 | ||
Sri Lanka | Lord Mervyn Davies of Abersoch (Crossbench) | October 2020 | ||
North America | ||||
Canada | Dame Maria Miller MP (Con) | May 2022 | ||
USA (specific focus on driving trade promotion with existing MOU states) | Sir Conor Burns MP (Con) | May 2023 | ||
Asked by: Bob Blackman (Conservative - Harrow East)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment he has made of the implications for his policies of reports that Hezbollah has established military outposts in the Shebaa Farms Mount Dov region.
Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
We are actively monitoring reports of a tent being placed south of the Blue Line border by Hezbollah in the Shebaa Farms area. We have discussed this issue with both Lebanon and Israel. We encourage all parties to engage with the relevant UN authorities to find a diplomatic solution to removing the tent and avoid escalation. As a permanent member of the United Nations Security Council, we support the stability and security of Lebanon and Israel through our contribution to the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL). The UK remains concerned by Hezbollah's activities within Lebanon which are in clear breach of UN Security Council Resolutions 1509 and 1701.
Asked by: Lord Hylton (Crossbench - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they will consult the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees on ways to prevent compulsory deportations of Syrians from Turkey and Lebanon.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
We are in regular contact with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) on the full range of issues relating to Syrian refugees in not just Turkey and Lebanon, but also across the region. Whilst we hope that Syrian refugees will ultimately be able to return home, we agree with the UN judgement that conditions in Syria do not currently allow this. The UK continues to work with UNHCR to ensure that any returns adhere to international standards and are safe, voluntary and dignified.
Asked by: Feryal Clark (Labour - Enfield North)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment he has made of the potential implication for his policies of a suspension of food assistance to families in Gaza by the World Food Programme; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
We continue to monitor the ongoing humanitarian situation in Gaza. The UK is a key donor to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA), providing essential humanitarian support to Palestinian refugees across its five zones of operation. In financial year 2022/2023, the UK provided UNRWA with £18.7 million, including £13 million for UNRWA's Programme Budget for spend in Occupied Palestinian Territories (OPTs), Jordan, Lebanon and Syria; as well as £2 million for an employment programme for Gazan women and £3.7 million for food assistance, both under UNRWA's OPTs Emergency Appeal. The UK is not currently a donor to the World Food Programme in Gaza, but recognises the critical role they play in supporting vulnerable families to have access to sufficient food.
Asked by: Jim Shannon (Democratic Unionist Party - Strangford)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment he has made of the implications for his Department's policies of reports that rockets were fired from Lebannon into Israel in April 2023.
Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK Government condemned the indiscriminate rocket attacks from southern Lebanon and Gaza at the time they took place. There is no change in UK policy: the UK remains resolute in its commitment to Israel's security and recognises Israel's right to self-defence. We urge all sides to avoid taking actions which make peace more difficult to achieve.