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  • Maria Eagle – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Maria Eagle – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Maria Eagle on 2016-10-13.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, how many meetings (a) Ministers and (b) officials of his Department have had with key stakeholders in the pharmaceutical sector on the effect of the UK leaving the EU since 23 June 2016.

    Alok Sharma

    The details of meetings between Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) Ministers and external organisations are published in quarterly returns, which are available at:

    https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/minister-data

    The details of meetings between external organisations and officials across the FCO network are not held centrally and could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.

    “

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

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

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Stephen Doughty on 2016-10-13.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment he has made of the Somaliland government’s work on reconciliation between the communities in the Sool and Sanaag regions of Somaliland; and what support the Government is providing in assisting with those efforts.

    Mr Tobias Ellwood

    ​The UK welcomes the recent dialogue between the Somaliland Government and representatives from the Eastern regions of Sool and Sanaag. This is a Somali-led and Somali-owned process which we hope will result in a more inclusive political settlement and enhance stability in the region. On 16 September, with international partners, we made a statement calling for the Somaliland President urgently to set out a clear process, with timelines, to achieve this.

  • Tim Loughton – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Tim Loughton – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tim Loughton on 2016-10-13.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, at what (a) ministerial (b) official level the Government will be represented in the next round of the human rights dialogue with the Chinese authorities.

    Alok Sharma

    ​I intend to open the UK-China Human Rights Dialogue later this month. As in previous years, the UK delegation will be led by the Director of Asia Pacific Directorate in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office.

  • Tim Loughton – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Tim Loughton – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tim Loughton on 2016-10-13.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, when he last raised the detention of the Panchen Lama with the Chinese authorities; and if he will make a statement.

    Alok Sharma

    We raised the case of the Panchen Lama, Gedhun Choekyi Nyima, at the UK-China Human Rights Dialogue in 2014. The Chinese authorities stated in September 2015 that the Panchen Lama was "leading a normal life" in China.

    We urge China to ensure that any restrictions on the Panchen Lama’s freedom of movement and communication are lifted, so that he may select the career, education or religious life of his choosing. We will continue to support calls by the UN Special Rapporteur for Freedom of Religion or Belief for the relevant authorities to facilitate a meeting between the Panchen Lama and independent international observers.

  • Tim Loughton – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Tim Loughton – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tim Loughton on 2016-10-13.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with the (a) Chinese and (b) Indian authorities on the damming of rivers in Tibet and the effect of that action on water supplies to India.

    Alok Sharma

    ​We have had no discussions with the Chinese or Indian authorities on the damming of rivers in Tibet.

    The UK supports sustainable economic development in Tibet. Decisions about the management of shared regional resources, like water, are best taken in consultation with neighbouring countries.

  • Tim Loughton – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Tim Loughton – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tim Loughton on 2016-10-13.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, when a UK (a) Minister and (b) official last visited (i) the area designated by the Chinese government as the Tibetan Autonomous Region and (ii) the areas of Tibet subsumed by the Chinese government into China in the 1960’s; what requests for such visits are outstanding; and if he will make a statement.

    Alok Sharma

    ​I refer my Hon. Friend to the answer given by the former Minister of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my Rt Hon. Friend the Member for East Devon (Mr Swire), to the Hon. Member for Dundee West (Mr Law), on 4 May 2016 (PQ 35590), copied below for ease of reference:

    The Hon. Member for Bury South (Mr Lewis) was the last serving Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) minister to visit the Tibet Autonomous Region (TAR), in September 2009. An FCO official last visited the TAR in June 2014. We continue to press the Chinese authorities for further access.

  • Andrew Rosindell – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Andrew Rosindell – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Rosindell on 2016-10-13.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, if he will take steps to review the level of limited diplomatic representations of the UK in Central America.

    Sir Alan Duncan

    The UK Government’s links with the Central American region are strong and were enhanced in 2012 following the then Government’s decision to reopen our Embassy in El Salvador. We have Embassies located in five of the seven Central American countries – Belize, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala and Panama. We also have Honorary Counsuls in Nicaragua and Honduras.

    Our Ambassadors to Guatemala and Costa Rica are non-resident Ambassadors to Honduras and Nicaragua respectively. They and their staff in Guatemala City and San José visit Honduras and Nicaragua regularly and engage across the full range of our interests in the region. While we keep our diplomatic network under review, there are currently no plans to change the UK’s diplomatic footprint in Central America.

    I look forward to meeting my counterparts from across Central America at the EU-CELAC (Community of Latin American and Caribbean States) Foreign Ministers meeting in the Dominican Republic on 25-26 October.

  • William Wragg – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    William Wragg – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department of Health

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by William Wragg on 2016-10-13.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what plans he has to require clinical commission groups to start collecting data on the number of children who have been abused and need therapeutic support.

    Nicola Blackwood

    We are investing in new data sources on both mental health prevalence and service use. From January 2016, the new Mental Health Services Dataset began to collect data for both adults and children, including data on outcomes, length of treatment, the source of referral, location of appointment and demographic information. This includes seeking to improve available data on the prevalence of child abuse and related mental health issues, using the national children and adolescent mental health survey, as well as data collection specifically on the prevalence of child sexual abuse. This collection will start in targeted settings where people who are sexually abused are more likely to be seen: for example in children and adolescent mental health service, adult mental health, maternity and public health services (contraceptive and sexual health clinics, substance misuse, school nurses, and health visiting).

    NHS Digital is working with Departmental officials and with clinicians to develop the technical capability and data collection will start to be rolled out from the beginning of the next financial year. The data collection will help clinical commissioning groups (CCGs) to better plan services for people who have been abused.

    All CCGs have already produced Local Transformation Plans (LTPs) to transform their local offer to improve children and young people’s mental health and wellbeing. These Plans cover the full spectrum of mental health issues; from prevention and improving access to support and care for existing and emerging mental health problem to ensuring that inpatient services are available for those who need them, including therapeutic support for children who have been abused. From 2016-17 children and young people’s mental health is being mainstreamed as part of the normal NHS England planning cycle so that LTPs are integrated into the wider Sustainability and Transformation Planning process.

  • Lisa Nandy – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Lisa Nandy – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lisa Nandy on 2016-10-19.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how much was spent on work by Ben Emmerson QC during the period that he served as the most senior lawyer for the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse; and if she will publish a breakdown of those costs.

    Sarah Newton

    On 12 March 2015 the former Home Secretary established the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse under the Inquiries Act 2005. The Inquiry is independent of the Government and is responsible for the management of its own budget and the publication of its own financial reports.

  • Alan Brown – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Alan Brown – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Alan Brown on 2016-10-19.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many immigration applications were affected by the flooding incident at Leeds Royal Mail Depot on 15 December 2015; how many such applications have been resolved; what additional resources are being applied to resolve outstanding such cases; what the target timescales for completion of outstanding such cases are; and if she will make a statement.

    Mr Robert Goodwill

    The flood impacted 501 immigration applications. All customers impacted were advised that their individual application was involved in the incident. Once the impact of the flood had been dealt with the applications were handled under our normal casework procedures and checks. To date 468 of the applications have been completed. The remaining 33 applications are still under consideration.