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  • Lord Taylor of Warwick – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Lord Taylor of Warwick – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Taylor of Warwick on 2016-09-12.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government, in the light of the disclosure by Equal Justice of details of six new discrimination claims involving race, sex and gender against the Metropolitan Police Service (MPS), what action they are taking to ensure that MPS black and ethnic minority groups are able to work in an environment that is safe and free from abuse.

    Baroness Williams of Trafford

    The Government takes allegations of unlawful discrimination in the police very seriously and is firmly committed to ensuring the highest possible standards in policing. Such allegations must be investigated thoroughly and, when and where required, perpetrators must be dealt with robustly.

    We are reforming the police disciplinary system to ensure it delivers greater transparency and accountability. We are implementing the recommendations of the Chapman Review to make the police disciplinary system less adversarial with a greater focus on rehabilitation, development and improvement where possible, whilst ensuring the most serious matters are dealt with appropriately and robustly through the police conduct system.

    It is essential that the actions and behaviour of racist police officers are not allowed to undermine public confidence in the police’s ability to respond to, investigate and fight crime, or to tarnish the reputation of the police and the majority of officers who work closely and effectively with people from all communities.

    The public must also have trust that the police represent the communicates they serve, and the proportion of police officers who are from Black, Asian and ethnic minority backgrounds has now risen to its highest level ever with forces taking important steps to attract staff from a diverse range of backgrounds.

  • Baroness Tonge – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Baroness Tonge – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Tonge on 2016-09-12.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what action they intend to take following the demolition of a home in Majdal Shams in the occupied Syrian Golan by the Israeli authorities on 7 September.

    Baroness Anelay of St Johns

    The Government is concerned that there has been a large increase in demolitions since the start of 2016, compared with the monthly average in 2015.

    On 7 September, during a meeting with Israeli Defence Minister Lieberman in London, the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my Hon. Friend the Member for Bournemouth East (Mr Ellwood) raised our concerns about demolitions.

  • Baroness Tonge – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Baroness Tonge – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Tonge on 2016-09-12.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what representations they are making to the government of Israel regarding (1) night raids of Palestinian refugee camps in Area A of the West Bank, (2) the number of injuries to the youth in that camp as a result of those raids, and (3) reports that the Israeli commander responsible for the Dheisheh area threatened to disable the Palestinian youth living there.

    Baroness Anelay of St Johns

    We have not made specific representations to the Israeli authorities over these issues.

  • Baroness Tonge – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Baroness Tonge – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Tonge on 2016-09-12.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what representations they plan to make to the Palestinian Authority to encourage local elections in Gaza and the West Bank as soon as possible, and whether they plan to give the Palestinian Authority assurances that they will accept the result of such elections.

    Baroness Anelay of St Johns

    Our Consulate-General in Jerusalem has regularly discussed the local elections with senior Palestinian officials over the past months. We have made clear our support for genuine and democratic elections as a way of improving accountability. Following the postponement of the elections, we will continue to urge all sides to make efforts to hold these elections in accordance with the law.

  • Baroness Tonge – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Baroness Tonge – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Tonge on 2016-09-12.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what representations they have made to the government of Israel regarding the data collected by the Coalition Against Construction Accidents, about the rates at which Palestinians, Israeli Arabs or foreign nationals have died on Israeli construction sites in the past five years.

    Baroness Anelay of St Johns

    We have not raised this issue with the Israeli authorities.

  • Baroness Tonge – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Baroness Tonge – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Tonge on 2016-09-12.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what representations they plan to make to the government of Israel concerning reports that on 29 August Israeli forces at Salaymeh checkpoint in Hebron fired tear gas at school-children attempting to make their way home.

    Baroness Anelay of St Johns

    While we have not made specific representations on this issue, we have repeatedly raised our concerns with the Israeli authorities about the Israel Defence Forces’ use of force.

  • Baroness Tonge – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Baroness Tonge – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Tonge on 2016-09-12.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what action they intend to take following reports from the UN envoy that, since the diplomatic Quartet called for a halt to the construction of Jewish outposts on Palestinian land, Israeli settlement expansion has increased.

    Baroness Anelay of St Johns

    We continue to raise our serious concerns over this issue with the Israeli Government at all levels. On 07 September, the Parliamentary Under-Secretary for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my Hon. Friend the Member for Bournemouth East (Mr Ellwood) emphasised our concerns about settlements with Israeli Defence Minister Lieberman during their meeting.

  • Lord Watson of Invergowrie – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    Lord Watson of Invergowrie – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Education

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Watson of Invergowrie on 2016-09-12.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what action they plan to take in the light of the publication in the Guardian on 10 September of Department for Education emails and claims that departmental staff sought to undermine and bring about the departure of Natasha Devon from the role of schools mental health champion.

    Lord Nash

    No further action is required as the appropriate action was taken at the time.

  • Lord Alton of Liverpool – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Lord Alton of Liverpool – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Alton of Liverpool on 2016-09-12.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is their assessment of the findings and recommendations in the report published in June by the Conservative Party Human Rights Commission, The Darkest Moment: The Crackdown on Human Rights in China 2013–2016.

    Baroness Anelay of St Johns

    My officials and I have read the report with interest. Although the Government was not asked to give evidence to it and the views stated within it do not reflect Government policy, there is much in the report with which we agree. We are already pursuing an approach consistent with many of the recommendations. For example my ministerial colleagues and I regularly raise concerns about the crackdown on human rights lawyers, repressive legislation, and challenges to freedom of religion or belief. Equally, there are parts of the report which require further investigation to substantiate the claims made, for instance about organ harvesting.

  • Lord Alton of Liverpool – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Lord Alton of Liverpool – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Alton of Liverpool on 2016-09-12.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they plan to conduct a comprehensive review of British foreign policy towards China, including consulting human rights NGOs, human rights lawyers, activists, religious communities and NGOs in China, exiled Chinese dissidents, journalists, academics and other experts, as recommended by the Conservative Party Human Rights Commission.

    Baroness Anelay of St Johns

    The Government’s policy towards China is set by the National Security Council. We have a strong relationship with China, as described in the Global Partnership announced at the State Visit of President Xi to the UK in 2015, and reiterated by the Prime Minister, my Rt Hon. Friend the Member for Maidenhead (Mrs May), during her recent visit to China. In addition to working with China to solve global challenges, and to develop strong trade, investment and people links, we also promote British values. To inform our policy, we maintain contact with a wide range of stakeholders, including human rights NGOs, journalists and academics. The Parliamentary Under-Secretary for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my Hon. Friend the Member for Reading West (Alok Sharma) met Chinese human rights activists when he visited China in August.