Asked by: David Amess (Conservative - Southend West)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to promote the Maldives fishing industry ahead of COP26.
Answered by Victoria Prentis - Attorney General
As President of the UNFCCC COP26 in partnership with Italy, the UK is committed to showcasing ambitious action on climate change and inspiring others to do the same. Through our COP26 Presidency the UK will champion and drive forward the protection of marine ecosystems and wider nature-based solutions to improve the ocean’s resilience to climate change and support the restoration of habitats critical for adaptation and resilience, alongside carbon sequestration.
As a newly independent coastal State the UK will expand and enhance our efforts to manage fisheries sustainably, protect ecosystems and combat illegal fishing at an international scale through our engagement in Regional Fisheries Management Organisations (RFMOs), other international organisations such as the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations, and directly with individual States. The UK has recently joined five RFMOs, including the Indian Ocean Tuna Commission, to which the Maldives is also a party. The UK looks forward to working with the Maldives in these fora.
Asked by: Patrick Grady (Scottish National Party - Glasgow North)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, with reference to the judgment of the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea on 28 January 2021, what steps he is taking to ensure that when Ships of the Royal Navy are within the 12 nautical mile territorial sea of the Chagos Archipelago they comply with the laws and regulations of Mauritius as the coastal State as required by the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea.
Answered by James Heappey
The United Kingdom is aware of the judgment delivered on 28 January by the Special Chamber of the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea formed to deal with the Dispute concerning delimitation of a maritime boundary claimed by Mauritius to exist between Mauritius and Maldives in the Indian Ocean. The UK is not a party to these proceedings, which can have no effect for the UK or for maritime delimitation between the UK (in respect of the British Indian Ocean Territory) and the Republic of the Maldives.
We have no doubt about our sovereignty over the territory of the British Indian Ocean Territory, which has been under continuous British sovereignty since 1814. Mauritius has never held sovereignty over the Archipelago, and we do not recognise its claim. We have made a long-standing commitment to cede sovereignty of the territory to Mauritius when it is no longer required for defence purposes. We stand by that commitment.
Owing to the UK's sovereignty over the territory, the prevailing laws and regulations within its 12 nautical mile territorial sea are those enacted in governance of a British overseas territory. The domestic laws and regulations of Mauritius do not apply. As such, there is no requirement for Royal Navy ships to adhere to Mauritian law when within the 12 nautical mile territorial sea.
Asked by: Christian Matheson (Independent - City of Chester)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, with reference to his Department's guidance, Coronavirus (covid-19): travel corridors, published on 3 July 2020, what plans he has to include the Maldives on that list; and what criteria his Department uses to decide which countries to include on that list.
Answered by Kelly Tolhurst
The Government takes a range of factors into account when deciding which countries to add or remove from the Travel Corridor list. This includes:
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We recognise how important travel and tourism is for the Maldives. However, inbound travel from the Maldives presents a high risk to the UK given continued elevated incidence of COVID-19 indicating community transmission of the virus. The Government keeps the list of travel corridors under constant review. We will make further exemptions when we are sure that we can do so safely and responsibly.
Asked by: Gill Furniss (Labour - Sheffield, Brightside and Hillsborough)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, in which countries the UK is (a) conducting air and drone strikes and (b) deploying military personnel on countert-errorism operations.
Answered by James Heappey
UK Armed Forces are currently operating in support of counterterrorism operations in four countries (Afghanistan, Iraq, Somalia and Mali), are presently providing counterterrorism training to an additional nine partner nations: Bangladesh, Cameroon, Ghana, Indonesia Kenya, Lebanon, Maldives, Saudi Arabia and Tunisia. The RAF is conducting strike operations only in Iraq and Syria. The publicly available 'Ministry of Defence Annual Report and Accounts 2018 to 19' contains further details.
Asked by: Gill Furniss (Labour - Sheffield, Brightside and Hillsborough)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, in how many countries the UK armed forces are conducting counter-terrorism operations; and in how many of those countries the UK is (a) conducting air and drone strikes and (b) deploying troops where they may use or have used lethal force.
Answered by James Heappey
UK Armed Forces are currently operating in support of counterterrorism operations in four countries (Afghanistan, Iraq, Somalia and Mali), and are presently providing counterterrorism training to an additional nine partner nations: Bangladesh, Cameroon, Ghana, Indonesia Kenya, Lebanon, Maldives, Saudi Arabia and Tunisia. The RAF is conducting strike operations only in Iraq and Syria. The publicly available 'Ministry of Defence Annual Report and Accounts 2018 to 19' contains further details. UK Armed Forces retain an inherent right to self-defence wherever they are deployed. This includes up to (and including) lethal force if there is an imminent threat to life and it is judged that there is no other way to stop the danger.
Asked by: Dan Jarvis (Labour - Barnsley Central)
Question to the Department for International Development:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, whether she plans to allocate aid to the Maldives to support policy in relation to (a) rising sea levels and (b) human displacement.
Answered by Nigel Adams
The UK does not have a bilateral aid programme related to climate change in the Maldives. Most of our support to the Maldives is provided through multilateral institutions and key climate change funds.
The UK is acutely aware of the unique vulnerabilities that climate change poses to small island developing states, such as the Maldives, and we are actively using our influence in the UN and multilateral development banks to raise their concerns on issues such as natural disasters and climate change.
We are the largest contributor to the Green Climate Fund and the World Bank’s International Development Association, the largest European donor to the Asian Development Fund, and a significant contributor to the Green Environment Facility, which are all helping the most vulnerable countries like the Maldives adapt to climate change, including human displacement and risks related to rising sea levels.
Asked by: Daniel Kawczynski (Conservative - Shrewsbury and Atcham)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what the Government’s policy is on claims the Maldives have made on the seabed around the British Indian Ocean Territory.
Answered by Christopher Pincher
We have no doubt about our sovereignty over the British Indian Ocean Territory, which has been under continuous British sovereignty since 1814. As communicated to the UN Secretary-General at the time the Government considers that the submission of the Republic of the Maldives to the Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf of 28 July 2010 does not take into full account the 200 nautical mile Fisheries and Environment Zones of the British Indian Ocean Territory, both of which themselves respect boundaries agreed with the Maldives at a technical level. The United Kingdom is fully committed to formalising these boundaries with the Maldives at the earliest opportunity.
Asked by: Marquess of Lothian (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they have discussed with the government of Zimbabwe reports by human rights and civil society organisations in that country of a crackdown against activists, including the recent case of seven activists who were detained on treason charges in May at Harare International Airport on their return from the Maldives.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
We continue to raise our serious concerns regarding the arrests of civil society activists in Zimbabwe. Our Ambassador in Harare raised the case of the seven activists with Zimbabwean Foreign Minister Moyo on 30 May. Embassy officials have also attended court hearings. The UK provides extensive financial and technical assistance to civil society organisations in Zimbabwe who support Zimbabwean citizens in holding the state to account.
Asked by: Lord Bowness (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Department for International Trade:
To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answers by Viscount Younger of Leckie on 14 May (HL15424 and HL15425), which are the 27 members of the World Trade Organisation (WTO) with which the UK trades solely on WTO terms.
Answered by Viscount Younger of Leckie - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
The World Trade Organisation (WTO) Members with which the UK trades purely on WTO Terms - not subject to any Free Trade Agreement or preferential trade regime – are: Argentina, Australia, Bahrain, Brazil, Brunei Darussalam, China, Chinese Taipei, Cuba, Gabon, Hong Kong, Kazakhstan, Kuwait, Macao, Malaysia, the Maldives, New Zealand, Oman, Paraguay, Qatar, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Thailand, United Arab Emirates, the US, Uruguay and Venezuela.
Asked by: Keith Vaz (Labour - Leicester East)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, which nationalities were able to use e-passport gates in (a) 2016, (b) 2017, (c) 2018 and (d) to date in 2019; and which nationalities are planned to be able to access e-passport gates in 2020.
Answered by Caroline Nokes
Eligibility to use ePassport gates is currently limited to UK/EU/EEA and Swiss nationals aged 12 and over using an ePassport, and adult members of the Registered Traveller Service (RTS). From this summer, nationals from Australia, Canada, Japan, New Zealand, Singapore, South Korea and the United States of America will also be routinely eligible to use the ePassport gates.
In respect of RTS, in January 2016, it was open to eligible nationals of Australia, Canada, Japan, New Zealand, United States of America, Hong Kong (Special Administrative Region only), Singapore, South Korea and Taiwan.
In November 2016, RTS was expanded to include eligible nationals from Argentina, Belize, Brazil, Brunei, Costa Rica, Chile, El Salvador, Guatema-la, Honduras, Israel, Malaysia, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Paraguay and Uruguay.
A further expansion of RTS took place in October 2017 to include eligible nationals from Andorra, Bahamas, Botswana, Holy See (Vatican City), Ma-cao (Special Administrative Region of China), Maldives, Monaco, Namibia, Nauru, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, Seychelles, St Vincent and the Grenadines, Tonga and Trinidad and Tobago.
We keep the border under regular review and will monitor the impact of the recently announced expansion of eligibility before considering any further expansion to additional nationalities.