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  • Richard Burden – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Richard Burden – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Burden on 2015-11-13.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what advice and information his Department has distributed to UK nationals in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt since 28 October 2015 on staying in that resort; and if he will place copies of such documents in the Library.

    Mr Tobias Ellwood

    On 4 November 2015, we amended our Travel Advice to advise against all but essential travel by air to Sharm el-Sheikh. We have not changed our Travel Advice for the resort itself. The FCO’s Travel Advice, available at www.gov.uk/foreign-travel-advice, provides objective information and advice to help individuals make better-informed decisions about their travel, and the Egypt page has been regularly updated to reflect developing events since the crash of the Russian airliner on 31 October.

    We have worked closely with airlines and tour operators, and deployed consular officials to the airport and resort to assist British nationals. As part of their work, these officials have distributed extracts from our Travel Advice for Egypt, statements from the Department for Transport, and contact details for the embassy and airlines. They have also distributed short “Frequently Asked Questions” documents at the airport and resort. As much of this information is already on www.gov.uk, we do not plan to place copies of these documents in the Library.

  • Michael Dugher – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Michael Dugher – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Michael Dugher on 2015-11-13.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, whether the former Emir of Qatar, Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani, is a diplomat at Minister-Counsellor rank in the Qatari embassy to the UK; and if he will make a statement.

    James Duddridge

    According to our records Hamad bin Khalifa Bin Hamad Al-Thani holds the rank of Minister-Counsellor at the Embassy of Qatar in London.

  • Margaret Hodge – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Margaret Hodge – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Margaret Hodge on 2015-11-13.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment he has made of the progress made by the Turks and Caicos Islands in meeting the Prime Minister’s ambition for a public register of beneficial ownership since June 2013.

    James Duddridge

    I refer the Right Honourable Lady to the answer given by my Hon Friend the member for Hertfordshire South West (David Gauke), the Financial Secretary to the Treasury to questions 10437, 10438 and 10448, which sets out the criteria we expect the Overseas Territories to meet in relation to their central register of company beneficial ownership, or similarly effective system.

    We are in discussions with the Turks and Caicos Islands authorities on this and are offering technical assistance as they develop their proposals.

  • Richard Burden – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    Richard Burden – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Transport

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Burden on 2015-11-13.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent discussions the Government has had with (a) the Egyptian authorities, (b) airlines and (c) other national and international bodies on changes to the allocation of slots for flights arriving and leaving Sharm el-Sheikh airport.

    Mr Robert Goodwill

    Both the Department for Transport (DfT) and the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) have been in regular liaison, and worked in partnership, with the Egyptian authorities to agree the allocation of slots for UK aircraft at Sharm-el-Sheikh since the temporary resumption of UK-bound flights on 6 November. As is the usual practice, UK airlines have agreed the slot timetables directly with the Egyptian authorities for the flights being arranged. Both the FCO and DfT spoke with other national bodies at Sharm-el–Sheikh on the overall initial allocation.

  • Richard Burden – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Richard Burden – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Burden on 2015-11-13.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps he is taking to ensure consistent and comprehensive communications by travel insurance companies with UK nationals in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt.

    Mr Tobias Ellwood

    The Foreign and Commonwealth Office encourages British nationals to take out comprehensive travel insurance before all foreign travel and to consider carefully the type of insurance they need for their trip. In doing so we work closely with key industry partners such as the Association of British Insurers, who supported ‘Know Before You Go’ campaign activity on travel insurance in May, July and August this year. We also provide information and advice about travel insurance on the GOV.UK website: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/foreign-travel-insurance. During our response to recent events in Sharm el Sheikh we worked closely with the airlines and tour operators to ensure consistency of approach to the package offered for those delayed in-country and to minimise the impact on travellers.

  • Margaret Hodge – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Margaret Hodge – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Margaret Hodge on 2015-11-13.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment he has made of the time taken for Montserrat to respond to his Department’s consultation on a public register of beneficial ownership.

    James Duddridge

    I refer the Right Honourable Lady to the answer given by my Hon Friend the member for Hertfordshire South West (David Gauke), the Financial Secretary to the Treasury to questions 10437, 10438 and 10448, which sets out the criteria we expect the Overseas Territories to meet in relation to their central register of company beneficial ownership, or similarly effective system. We are in discussions with the Montserrat authorities on this and are offering technical assistance as they develop their proposals.

  • Margaret Hodge – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Margaret Hodge – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Margaret Hodge on 2015-11-13.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, if he will ensure that any agreement on a central registry of beneficial ownership in the Turks and Caicos Islands will include access for the public with legitimate reason.

    James Duddridge

    I refer the Right Honourable Lady to the answer given by my Hon Friend the member for Hertfordshire South West (David Gauke), the Financial Secretary to the Treasury to questions 10437, 10438 and 10448, which sets out the criteria we expect the Overseas Territories to meet in relation to their central register of company beneficial ownership, or similarly effective system.

    We are in discussions with the Turks and Caicos Islands authorities on this and are offering technical assistance as they develop their proposals.

  • Matthew Pennycook – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Matthew Pennycook – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Matthew Pennycook on 2015-11-13.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what representations his Department has made to the Indian government on re-opening border crossings to Nepal since discussions were held between the British and Indian ambassadors to Nepal on border blockages on 30 October.

    Mr Hugo Swire

    I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 9 November 2015 to question 15614 which can be located at: www.parliament.uk/writtenanswers. In addition to this answer, I discussed the blockage at the border with the Indian Foreign Secretary during the visit of Prime Minister Modi to the United Kingdom.

  • Margaret Hodge – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Margaret Hodge – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Margaret Hodge on 2015-11-13.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment he has made of the time taken for the Turks and Caicos Islands to respond to his Department’s consultation on a public register of beneficial ownership.

    James Duddridge

    I refer the Right Honourable Lady to the answer given by my Hon Friend the member for Hertfordshire South West (David Gauke), the Financial Secretary to the Treasury to questions 10437, 10438 and 10448, which sets out the criteria we expect the Overseas Territories to meet in relation to their central register of company beneficial ownership, or similarly effective system.

    We are in discussions with the Turks and Caicos Islands authorities on this and are offering technical assistance as they develop their proposals.

  • Margaret Hodge – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Margaret Hodge – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Margaret Hodge on 2015-11-13.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment he has made of the progress made by Montserrat in meeting the Prime Minister’s ambition for a public register of beneficial ownership since June 2013.

    James Duddridge

    I refer the Right Honourable Lady to the answer given by my Hon Friend the member for Hertfordshire South West (David Gauke), the Financial Secretary to the Treasury to questions 10437, 10438 and 10448, which sets out the criteria we expect the Overseas Territories to meet in relation to their central register of company beneficial ownership, or similarly effective system. We are in discussions with the Montserrat authorities on this and are offering technical assistance as they develop their proposals.