Asked by: Viscount Waverley (Crossbench - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of whether the budget apportioned to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office is sufficient for the development of the knowledge, understanding and policy sophistication required in respect of the Islamic world.
Answered by Baroness Anelay of St Johns
The Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) is devoting considerable resource to strengthening the organisation’s expertise and skills, including geographical, language and other relevant expertise, such as understanding the Islamic world. The opening of the FCO’s Diplomatic Academy last year has given new impetus and structure to this work. There is a growing range of formal and informal learning in London and throughout the FCO network, including better sharing of knowledge internally and increased access to external expertise. We put time and effort into understanding political trends globally including the “Islamic” element of political Islam. Our online Foundation Level course includes a basic religious literacy module. Our diplomatic missions report regularly on trends in political Islam and our research analyst cadre provide in-depth expertise, analysis and links to academics and think tanks. The FCO's Human Rights and Democracy Department run training courses on religion and foreign policy which serve as a practitioner level religion/foreign policy module for the Diplomatic Academy. We also offer training on contemporary Islam and its role within politics and society in various regional contexts.
Asked by: Lord Dodds of Duncairn (Democratic Unionist Party - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, if he will make an assessment of the implications for his policy of the needs identified by Open Doors in its report on freedom of religion and the persecution of Christians published in March 2014.
Answered by David Lidington
The Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) works closely with Open Doors. My Noble Friend, the Rt Hon. Baroness Anelay met with Open Doors in October. We value the regular updates they give us on the situation facing persecuted Christians across the world, in particular through their annual report, published in March 2014. We share the view expressed in the Open Doors report that the persecution of Christians and other minorities worldwide is increasing.
Freedom of religion or belief is a human rights priority for the Government. We take action to defend it in individual country situations and through multilateral bodies such as the UN and the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe. We fund project work and have been providing religious literacy training to our staff. We regularly urge governments to ensure the protection of all religious minorities. We encourage them to develop inclusive political systems that are for the good of all citizens.