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  • Lord Ahmed – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    Lord Ahmed – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Ahmed on 2016-05-03.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Verma on 26 April (HL7737), what representations they have made to the government of Israel about why it rejected Turkey’s proposal of a floating power-generating ship to help solve the electricity crisis in Gaza.

    Baroness Verma

    The UK has not made representations to Israel about this specific issue. We are in regular discussion with Israel, the Palestinian Authority and other development actors, specifically the UN and EU, about Gaza’s energy crisis. Improving Gaza’s provision of electricity will in turn improve Gaza’s water supply and wastewater treatment. We regularly call on both parties to work on solutions to increase the electricity supply, including press for the extension of the 161 power line and progress towards the conversion of the Gazan power station to gas.

  • Lord Ahmed – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Lord Ahmed – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Ahmed on 2016-05-03.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Anelay of St Johns on 27 April (HL7738), what assessment they have made of the impact of their representations on the government of Israel with regard to house demolitions, in the light of the number of deaths and injuries caused during such incidents in the first three months of 2016.

    Baroness Anelay of St Johns

    The Government remains extremely concerned at the large increase in demolitions in the Occupied Palestinian Territories since the start of 2016, compared to the monthly average in 2015. We are not aware of any deaths which have resulted from demolitions. Our Embassy in Tel Aviv continues to regularly raise our concerns on demolitions with the Israeli authorities. As a result of these representations, the UK’s humanitarian and legal concerns on demolitions have been made clear.

  • 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 2016-05-03.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what efforts they are making to press for the publication of the UN Security Council Sudan Panel of Experts’ most recent report, presented to the Sudan Sanctions Committee in December 2015, detailing the use of cluster munitions and gold smuggling in Darfur.

    Baroness Anelay of St Johns

    The UK fully supports the work of the UN Panel of Experts on Darfur. We are extremely concerned that last year’s report has not been published and have raised this issue with our UN Security Council partners.

  • – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by on 2016-05-03.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government, in the light of the calls by Amnesty International on 15 April that the South Sudanese government must end arbitrary detentions by the intelligence agency”

    Baroness Anelay of St Johns

    The UK consistently raises concerns about arbitrary detentions by the Government of Sudan’s security services, most recently as part of a joint démarche with the EU. The UK also took a lead role in helping to secure a new Commission on Human Rights at the UN Human Rights Council in March that will monitor and report on the human rights situation across South Sudan.

  • Lord Beecham – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    Lord Beecham – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Justice

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Beecham on 2016-05-03.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government why spending on court fine collection is being cut, in the light of the value of fines that remain uncollected.

    Lord Faulks

    In recent years efficiency savings have been required right across HM Courts and Tribunals Service. Continuous improvement practices within compliance and enforcement have led to record totals of financial impositions collected each year for the last four years.

    Following the decision to modernise the compliance and enforcement service through an in-house solution, HM Courts and Tribunals Service has been working to develop a new strategy which will lead to further investment in the service and further increased collections.

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

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

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Cox on 2016-05-03.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they are taking to support the Beja people in Eastern Sudan, in particular to prevent kidnapping and people trafficking.

    Baroness Anelay of St Johns

    The UK is supporting the people of Eastern Sudan, including the Beja people, in a number of ways. The Department for International Development (DfID) spends £30million in Eastern Sudan to help improve vulnerable communities’ food security and nutrition, provide sustainable water supplies and improve sanitation. DfID also provides core funding to the UN High Commissioner for Refugees which supports host and refugee communities across Sudan to improve livelihoods and reduce the risk of human trafficking. The UK is also taking a lead role in the Khartoum Process, which prioritises tackling smuggling and trafficking across the Horn of Africa, including Sudan.

  • – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by on 2016-05-03.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government, in the light of the Human Rights Watch report of 2014 I Wanted to Lie Down and Die, which stated that people trafficking was facilitated by collusion between traffickers and Sudanese and Egyptian police”

    Baroness Anelay of St Johns

    While we welcome the positive steps the Government of Sudan has taken, including passing anti-trafficking legislation and acceding to the UN Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons, we are concerned by reports of collusion between Sudanese border officials and traffickers. We continue to raise these concerns directly with the Government of Sudan and press for action.

  • Baroness Cox – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    Baroness Cox – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Cox on 2016-05-03.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they are taking to ensure that humanitarian charities such as Save the Children and Médecins Sans Frontières are able to give assistance to people in Eastern Sudan, following their expulsion by the government of Sudan in June 2012.

    Baroness Verma

    The UK continues to fund international non-governmental organisations (INGOs) and UN agencies to deliver programmes which target the most vulnerable Sudanese citizens, and ensure that those in need of humanitarian assistance are not left unsupported as a result of expulsion decisions. We meet regularly with the Sudan INGO Steering Committee to discuss issues including humanitarian access, and support them in advocating for access when requested to do so. In addition, DFID is funding £30m of programmes over 3 years in Eastern Sudan to help improve vulnerable communities’ food security and nutrition, provide sustainable water supplies and improve sanitation. DFID also provides core funding to the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) which supports host and refugee communities across Sudan to improve livelihoods.

  • Baroness Deech – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    Baroness Deech – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Deech on 2016-05-03.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Verma on 25 April (HL7413), how the pre-approved EU list of named civil servants is approved, and by whom; and how that process is subject to independent auditing, and by whom.

    Baroness Verma

    The UK uses the EU PEGASE mechanism to earmark funds to payment of vetted PA civil servants and pensioners. The list of PEGASE Direct Financial Support eligible beneficiaries is determined each month by Deloitte auditors on the basis of the EU eligibility criteria. The list of approved recipients is subject to a vetting process that includes screening against international (including Israeli) ad hoc sanctions lists.

  • Baroness Deech – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    Baroness Deech – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Deech on 2016-05-03.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they have given any consideration to suspending aid to the Palestinian Authority in the light of its decision to transfer over £85 million a year to the Palestine Liberation Organisation for the purpose of paying salaries to convicted terrorists imprisoned in Israel.

    Baroness Verma

    DFID is currently reviewing all its programmes following the publication of the updated Official Development Assistance strategy last year. DFID provides financial support to the Palestinian Authority (PA) to help deliver peace and support progress towards a two state solution. DFID funding helps build Palestinian institutions and promotes economic growth so that any future Palestinian state will be a prosperous and effective partner for peace. UK funding to the PA is for vetted civil servants only.

    The PA has reaffirmed that prisoner payments are administered by the Palestinian Liberation Organisation. We continue to lobby that the payments to prisoner’s families are more transparent and needs-based.