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  • Roger Godsiff – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Roger Godsiff – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Roger Godsiff on 2016-09-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what discussions she has had with her French counterpart on the conditions at the refugee camp in Calais; and what assistance the UK is providing to improve living standards at that camp.

    Mr Robert Goodwill

    The management of the migrant camp in Calais is the responsibility of the French Government, and they have made suitable alternative accommodation places available for migrants inside the camp.

    With the support of the UK, the French Government has also created more than 160 new centres away from Calais where migrants can consider their options, including whether to claim asylum, in comfort and safety away from the traffickers. Both Governments are clear that there is no reason for migrants to live in the difficult conditions in the camp, there is a reasonable and accessible remedy available in France.

  • Imran Hussain – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Imran Hussain – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Imran Hussain on 2016-09-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what discussions she has had with her foreign counterparts on the use of pellet guns and other non-lethal weapons for crowd control purposes.

    Brandon Lewis

    The Home Office has not had any discussions with foreign counterparts on the use of pellet guns and other non-lethal weapons for crowd control purposes.

  • Imran Hussain – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Imran Hussain – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Imran Hussain on 2016-09-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what support the British High Commissions in India and Pakistan are providing to British citizens affected by the violence in Kashmir.

    Alok Sharma

    The Foreign & Commonwealth Office encourages all British nationals to check the FCO’s Travel Advice web pages before travelling. This highlights the current unrest in Indian-administered Kashmir. It explains that due to the accessibility and current unrest in the area, the level of consular assistance that the FCO can provide is extremely limited.

  • Imran Hussain – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Imran Hussain – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Imran Hussain on 2016-09-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he and his Department have had with the Indian government on recent violence in Kashmir.

    Alok Sharma

    I remain very concerned by reports of violence and offer my condolences to the victims and their families. The United Kingdom abides by its commitments under international law and expects all countries to comply with their international legal obligations. Our High Commission in Delhi is monitoring the situation closely and we have changed our travel advice. The long standing position of the UK is that it is for India and Pakistan to find a lasting resolution to the situation in Kashmir, taking into account the wishes of the Kashmiri people. It is not for the UK to prescribe a solution or to act as a mediator.

  • Steve Reed – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Steve Reed – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Steve Reed on 2016-09-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what reports his Department has received on the lack of clean water in Sri Lanka’s Jaffna Peninsula; and if he will raise that scarcity with the Sri Lankan government.

    Alok Sharma

    The British High Commissioner to Sri Lanka visited Jaffna in June and raised concerns about water contamination with the local authorities. He received assurances that they were aware of the issue and were addressing it. They also discussed water quality in general and longer term plans for providing water through desalination.

  • Stephen Gethins – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Stephen Gethins – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Gethins on 2016-09-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, how many new job vacancies have been advertised in his Department each month in 2016 to date.

    Sir Alan Duncan

    Since 31 December 2015, the FCO has advertised 68 new UK-based job vacancies in the Conflict Security and Stability Fund (CSSF) and the Prosperity Fund, which are cross-Whitehall programmes administered by the FCO. These jobs are funded by the CSSF and Prosperity Fund respectively, not by the FCO administrative budget. The jobs are advertised at 5 weekly intervals.

  • Steve McCabe – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Steve McCabe – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Steve McCabe on 2016-09-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, how much the UK contributed to the funding of UN special envoys through (a) the UN regular budget, (b) the UN peacekeeping budget and (c) voluntary contributions in each of the last five years.

    Alok Sharma

    This response answers PQ 44298 and PQ 44301. For the purpose of these PQs we have defined ‘UN special envoy missions’ as Special Political Mission thematic cluster I, which covers special and personal envoys and advisers of the UN Secretary General.

    The Foreign and Commonwealth Office pays the UK’s assessed contributions for these as a part of our contribution to the UN Regular Budget, which are mandatory under the UN Charter. The UK’s fixed percentage share of the budget for each Special Political Mission was 6.604% during 2011 and 2012, and 5.179% from 2013 to 2015. The peacekeeping budget does not fund Special Political Missions. The UK does not hold a central register of UK voluntary contributions to SPMs.

    The table below provides the total number, annual budget and UK contribution to the cluster I SPM for calendar years 2011-2015.

    Year Number Total budget (UK contribution) in US$ millions
    2015 11 $37.3m ($1.93m)
    2014 10 $24.9m ($1.29m)
    2013 8 $16.7m ($0.866m)
    2012 7 $11.43m ($0.755m)
    2011 6 $8.69m ($0.574m)

  • Steve McCabe – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Steve McCabe – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Steve McCabe on 2016-09-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, how many UN special envoy missions there have been in each of the last five years.

    Alok Sharma

    This response answers PQ 44298 and PQ 44301. For the purpose of these PQs we have defined ‘UN special envoy missions’ as Special Political Mission thematic cluster I, which covers special and personal envoys and advisers of the UN Secretary General.

    The Foreign and Commonwealth Office pays the UK’s assessed contributions for these as a part of our contribution to the UN Regular Budget, which are mandatory under the UN Charter. The UK’s fixed percentage share of the budget for each Special Political Mission was 6.604% during 2011 and 2012, and 5.179% from 2013 to 2015. The peacekeeping budget does not fund Special Political Missions. The UK does not hold a central register of UK voluntary contributions to SPMs

    The table below provides the total number, annual budget and UK contribution to the cluster I SPM for calendar years 2011-2015.
    Year Number Total budget (UK contribution) in US$ millions
    2015 11 $37.3m ($1.93m)
    2014 10 $24.9m ($1.29m)
    2013 8 $16.7m ($0.866m)
    2012 7 $11.43m ($0.755m)
    2011 6 $8.69m ($0.574m)

  • Maggie Throup – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Trade

    Maggie Throup – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Trade

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Maggie Throup on 2016-09-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, what recent discussions he has had with his G7 counterparts on ensuring that countries in Africa receive fair terms of trade when signing trade and investment agreements with other G7 countries.

    Mark Garnier

    The UK Government is committed to ensuring developing countries can reduce poverty through trading opportunities and that such impacts are taken into account in our trade policy. Trade was a key component of the G7 summit this year with commitments on Aid for Trade that will help African countries to negotiate and implement trade agreements. The G20 also expressed support at the recent summit for low-income countries to participate in Global Value Chains.

  • Tania Mathias – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Trade

    Tania Mathias – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Trade

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tania Mathias on 2016-09-02.

    To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, to which countries of concern on human rights the Government has authorised arms sales in the last year.

    Mark Garnier

    From January 2015 – March 2016 licences have been granted for military goods to the following countries of human rights concern:

    Afghanistan; Bahrain; Bangladesh; Burundi; Central African Republic; China; Colombia; Democratic Republic of Congo; Egypt; Iraq; Israel and The Occupied Palestinian Territories; Maldives; Pakistan; Russia; Saudi Arabia; Somalia; South Sudan; Sri Lanka; Sudan; Syria; Turkmenistan; Venezuela; Yemen and Zimbabwe.

    Further details on all licences granted for export are publically available as Official Statistics at www.gov.uk.

    All export licences are issued in strict accordance with the Consolidated EU and National Arms Export Licensing Criteria and any sanctions or embargoes that may be in place at the time an application is submitted for consideration.

    “