Asked by: Andrew Rosindell (Conservative - Romford)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with representatives from the Pitcairn Islands.
Answered by Christopher Pincher
Minister for the Commonwealth and the UN, Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon, held a bilateral meeting with Leslie Jaques, Lead Councillor for International Relations and Divisional Manager for Economics and Finance for Pitcairn at the Joint Ministerial Council in December 2018. The Minister reaffirmed the future sustainability of the island as being an important issue for Government, reassured that we remain committed to fully involving the Overseas Territories in the EU exit negotiation process and welcomed the positive findings of the Child Safety Review.
The Governor for Pitcairn visited the islands in May 2018, and is planning a further visit this August.
I was also glad to learn of the amazing work the Islanders contributed to on cleaning some of the horrendous plastic pollution from the beaches of Henderson Island (which is part of the Pitcairn group) last month.
Asked by: Lord West of Spithead (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government how the Maritime Conservation Areas around UK Overseas Territories are (1) monitored, and (2) policed.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The Blue Belt programme is actively working with UKOTs to ensure large scale Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) have effective monitoring and enforcement regimes in place. Blue Belt funding provides targeted satellite surveillance across the maritime zones of British Indian Ocean Territory, South Georgia & the South Sandwich Islands, British Antarctic Territory, Pitcairn, St Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha. The Programme is working closely with the National Maritime Information Centre (NMIC), allowing the use of the NMIC systems to undertake surveillance of all UKOTs, and has implemented a system to assess the risks of illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing. The programme is also trialling new and emerging technologies such as unmanned aerial vehicles, which potentially improve the UKOTs' ability to monitor these vast and often remote areas, in conjunction with traditional monitoring platforms where available.
The Blue Belt has also funded work to ensure there are effective legislation and robust compliance frameworks in place, to enforce the MPAs. To support the OTs, the Blue Belt programme has improved the process whereby vessel monitoring data is requested from flag states, and has raised issues of non-compliance through Regional Fisheries Management Organisations.
Asked by: Chris Ruane (Labour - Vale of Clwyd)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many square kilometres of marine protected areas there were in (a) the UK and (b) UK overseas territories in each year for which data is available.
Answered by Thérèse Coffey
a) Marine Protected Areas in the UK:
Year | Area (km2) |
2012 | 73,890 |
2013 | 82,952 |
2014 | 143,497 |
2015 | 143,651 |
2016 | 165,252 |
2017 | 207,477 |
2018 | 209,185 |
b) Marine Protected Areas in UK overseas territories:
UK OT | MPA (km2) | Date of designation |
British Antarctic Territory South Orkney Islands Southern Shelf MPA | 94,000 | 2009 |
British Indian Ocean Territory (Chagos) | 640,000 | 2010 |
South Georgia and Sandwich Islands | 1,240,000 | 2012; enhanced in 2013 & 2018 |
Pitcairn Islands | 840,000 | 2016 |
St Helena | 445,000 | 2016 |
TOTAL | 3,259,000 |
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In addition to these Marine Protected Areas, as announced in the Spring Statement, the UK Government is backing an Ascension Island bid to protect 100% of its offshore waters. Ascension Island plans to designate over 445,00km2 of its waters as a fully protected no-take Marine Protected Area.
Tristan da Cunha has committed to designating a comprehensive marine protection regime across its 750,000km2 maritime zone by 2020.
Asked by: Lord Soames of Fletching (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, which countries the Overseas Territories Directorate in his Department is responsible for.
Answered by Alan Duncan
The Overseas Territories Directorate is responsible for the following British Overseas Territories:
Anguilla
Bermuda
British Antarctic Territory
British Indian Ocean Territory
Cayman Islands
Falkland Islands
Montserrat
Pitcairn, Henderson, Ducie and Oeno
St Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha
South Georgia and the South Sandwich islands (SGSSI)
Turks and Caicos Islands
Virgin Islands (commonly known as British Virgin Islands)
Asked by: Mary Creagh (Labour - Wakefield)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, pursuant to the oral contribution by the further to the remarks of the Minister for Europe and the Americas on 20 February 2018, Official Report, column 13, how many sq km of sea around the UK Overseas Territories are subject to marine protection.
Answered by Alan Duncan
Currently there are over 3 million km2 of protected ocean around the UK Overseas Territories of the British Indian Ocean Territory, South Georgia & the South Sandwich Islands, Pitcairn, St Helena, and within British Antarctic Territory and Ascension Island waters.
The Government, working with Territory Governments, is on course to deliver 4 million km2 of protected ocean by 2020.
Asked by: Chris Bryant (Labour - Rhondda)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment he has made of the compatibility of the Cayman Islands' ban on (a) civil unions, (b) civil partnerships and (c) same-sex marriage with the (i) Cayman Islands Constitution and (ii) UK's international treaty obligations.
Answered by Alan Duncan
We are pleased that the British Antarctic Territory, the British Indian Ocean Territory, the Falkland Islands, Gibraltar, the Pitcairn Islands, Saint Helena, Ascension, Tristan da Cunha, and South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands have all taken steps to recognise and enable same-sex marriage. The Domestic Partnership Act passed in Bermuda in February 2018, removed the right to marry but replaced it with a provision for domestic partnerships with the same benefits as married couples. The Foreign Secretary has raised with the Premier of Bermuda his hope that the Domestic Partnership Act will be a stepping stone to putting same sex marriage on a statutory footing in the future.
The European Court of Human Rights has not, so far, interpreted the Convention to include a right to marry for same sex couples and has stopped short of finding a positive obligation generally to introduce protection equivalent to marriage. Anguilla, the British Virgin Islands, the Turks and Caicos Islands, Montserrat and the Cayman Islands do not yet have in place legislation that provides for the recognition of same sex relationships whether by civil unions, civil partnerships or marriage. The new Governor of the Cayman Islands has publicly supported the introduction of civil unions and has urged the Premier and Leader of the Opposition to consider legislative change. There is a provision in the Cayman Islands' Constitution that provides that any person may apply to the Grand Court to determine compatibility with the Bill of Rights.
The European Convention on Human Rights applies to all the Overseas Territories. Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon raised the need to ensure that human rights obligations are upheld, in his meeting with the Premier of the Cayman Islands in October 2017, and with the Governments of all the Caribbean Overseas Territories at the Joint Ministerial Council in November 2017. He will continue to raise the issue of LGBT equality with Territory Governments.
Asked by: Chris Bryant (Labour - Rhondda)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps the Government is taking to ensure that all homosexual citizens in British Overseas Territories have access to the institution of marriage.
Answered by Alan Duncan
We are pleased that the British Antarctic Territory, the British Indian Ocean Territory, the Falkland Islands, Gibraltar, the Pitcairn Islands, Saint Helena, Ascension, Tristan da Cunha, and South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands have all taken steps to recognise and enable same-sex marriage. The Domestic Partnership Act passed in Bermuda in February 2018, removed the right to marry but replaced it with a provision for domestic partnerships with the same benefits as married couples. The Foreign Secretary has raised with the Premier of Bermuda his hope that the Domestic Partnership Act will be a stepping stone to putting same sex marriage on a statutory footing in the future.
The European Court of Human Rights has not, so far, interpreted the Convention to include a right to marry for same sex couples and has stopped short of finding a positive obligation generally to introduce protection equivalent to marriage. Anguilla, the British Virgin Islands, the Turks and Caicos Islands, Montserrat and the Cayman Islands do not yet have in place legislation that provides for the recognition of same sex relationships whether by civil unions, civil partnerships or marriage. The new Governor of the Cayman Islands has publicly supported the introduction of civil unions and has urged the Premier and Leader of the Opposition to consider legislative change. There is a provision in the Cayman Islands' Constitution that provides that any person may apply to the Grand Court to determine compatibility with the Bill of Rights.
The European Convention on Human Rights applies to all the Overseas Territories. Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon raised the need to ensure that human rights obligations are upheld, in his meeting with the Premier of the Cayman Islands in October 2017, and with the Governments of all the Caribbean Overseas Territories at the Joint Ministerial Council in November 2017. He will continue to raise the issue of LGBT equality with Territory Governments.
Asked by: Dan Carden (Labour - Liverpool, Walton)
Question to the Department for International Development:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what steps the Government is taking to boost tourism and other sustainable development projects on Pitcairn Islands.
Answered by Alistair Burt
DFID provides financial aid annually to support the provision of public services to meet the reasonable assistance needs of the people of Pitcairn. This funding also provides regular access to Pitcairn through a dedicated shipping service, supporting freight and passengers, including tourists.
Asked by: Layla Moran (Liberal Democrat - Oxford West and Abingdon)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent discussions his Department has had with Government officials in the Overseas Territories on reducing the amount of waste plastic in oceans.
Answered by Alan Duncan
Cutting plastic pollution in oceans is a key Government priority. We are working with the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs to engage with the Overseas Territories to help them develop and implement policies to reduce plastic waste. Active monitoring of marine waste and clean-up takes place in a number of OTs. Henderson Island in the Pitcairns is particularly badly affected by washed-up ocean plastics. We are working with the Government of the Pitcairn Islands to undertake a scientific study later this year to evaluate the rate and impact of plastics washing ashore there.
Asked by: Greg Knight (Conservative - East Yorkshire)
Question to the Department for International Development:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, how much money from the public purse has been spent on Pitcairn Island in each of the last five years; what projects that spending has been for; and what steps his Department is taking to ensure value for money is achieved.
Answered by Rory Stewart
DFID provides financial aid on an annual basis to support the provision of public services to meet the reasonable assistance needs of the people of Pitcairn (including health, education and securing sea access). Funding through financial aid provides the correct balance between direct engagement with Pitcairn government and HMG oversight to ensure value for money.
Details of financial aid spend for the last five years are:
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2012/13 | £2.884m |
2013/14 | £2.840m |
2014/15 | £2.990m |
2015/16 | £2.910m |
2016/17 | £3.475m |
Additionally the Foreign and Commonwealth Office will provide some financial support for the Marine Protection Area announced in 2016.