Tag: 2024

The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 14 July 2024.

British Ambassador Hamish Cowell hosted a Business and Trade reception to celebrate record-breaking bilateral trade figures between the UK and Lebanon.

In 2023, bilateral trade figures between the UK and Lebanon passed the £1bn mark for the first time ever, reaching a record high of £1.1 billion, an increase on over 45% on 2022. Export brands increased to £160 million. The top five goods exported by the UK to Lebanon throughout 2023 were mechanical power generators, cars, beverages, dairy products, medicinal and pharmaceutical products. Services accounted for over £600m.

The reception was attended by the Minister of Public Health, Dr Firas Abiad and a wide range of Lebanese businesspeople and entrepreneurs investing in Lebanon and the UK. His Majesty’s Trade Commissioner for the Middle East and Pakistan at the UK Department for Business and Trade, Oliver Christian delivered a recorded video message to the guests.

During the reception, Ambassador Cowell said:

Given the many local and regional challenges, it is great to be able to celebrate these record-breaking figures which are testament to the strength of the UK/Lebanon partnership. They demonstrate the opportunities our businesses are finding in both countries. We are very keen to see more UK brands come to Lebanon. We are also supporting Lebanese investments in the UK across various sectors.

His Majesty’s Trade Commissioner Oliver Christian’s video message:

We’re here to celebrate the strength of our UK-Lebanon relationship, evidenced by our bilateral trade figures which reached a record high in 2023. This achievement is remarkable in and of itself, but even more so in the context of the challenges that face Lebanon today.

British brands are widening their footprint in the Lebanese market. Just last month The Entertainer Toy Shop opened its first branch in Lebanon. Baylis and Harding are now present in the market, and we expect more brands like E L and N café to follow later this summer.

We’ve seen great success on our investment side as well, with brilliant Lebanese brands like Swiss Butter, Meat the Fish and Nada Ghazal Jewellery now establishing in the UK.

I hope to visit soon to hear directly from you about the incredible country which has so much to offer.

The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 14 July 2024.

Foreign Secretary David Lammy visits Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories to progress diplomatic efforts for long-term peace and security in the region.

• Foreign Secretary to call for an immediate ceasefire, the release of all hostages and a rapid increase of humanitarian aid into Gaza on first Middle East visit
• in meetings with Prime Minister Netanyahu and President Abbas, David Lammy will make the urgent case for a credible and irreversible pathway towards a two-state solution
• the Foreign Secretary announces £5.5 million to UK-Med to support their ongoing work to provide humanitarian assistance and medical treatment to those in Gaza

David Lammy is visiting Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories today [Sunday 14 July] on his first trip to the Middle East since becoming Foreign Secretary.

He will focus on the UK’s diplomatic role in helping to bring the conflict in Gaza to an end and making progress towards long-term peace and security in the Middle East.

He will raise the urgent need for a ceasefire agreed by both sides, which includes the release of all hostages and a rapid increase of aid into Gaza.

The Foreign Secretary will also announce that the UK will provide another £5.5 million this year to UK-Med to fund their life-saving work in Gaza. UK-Med is a frontline medical aid charity who send experienced humanitarian medics, including those working in the NHS, to crisis-hit regions to deliver life and limb-saving health care.

This funding will be used to support the ongoing work of their field hospitals and the emergency department at Nasser Hospital. It will allow medics, including those from the UK, to continue carrying out vital work to treat thousands more patients suffering from acute respiratory illnesses, infections, and explosive fragmentation trauma cases.

Foreign Secretary David Lammy said:

The death and destruction in Gaza is intolerable. This war must end now, with an immediate ceasefire, complied with by both sides. The fighting has got to stop, the hostages still cruelly detained by Hamas terrorists need to be released immediately and aid must be allowed in to reach the people of Gaza without restrictions.

I am meeting with Israeli and Palestinian leaders to stress the UK’s ambition and commitment to play its full diplomatic role in securing a ceasefire deal and creating the space for a credible and irreversible pathway towards a two-state solution. The world needs a safe and secure Israel alongside a viable and sovereign Palestinian state.

Central to this is to see an end to expanding illegal Israeli settlements and rising settler violence in the West Bank. Here, in what should be a crucial part of a Palestinian state, alongside Gaza and East Jerusalem, we need to see a reformed and empowered Palestinian Authority.

In Israel, the Foreign Secretary will hold high-level talks with Prime Minister Netanyahu and President Herzog to reiterate the need to end the conflict in Gaza and secure the release of hostages. He will meet with hostage families with links to the UK whose loved ones have been murdered or taken by Hamas.

Highlighting more than 680 tonnes of UK aid in the region and waiting to enter Gaza, including medicines, shelters and hygiene kits, the Foreign Secretary will push the desperate need to rapidly increase aid into Gaza.

In the Occupied Palestinian Territories, the Foreign Secretary will welcome the Palestinian Authority’s commitment to delivering reform and reiterate the UK’s support to Prime Minister Mustafa and his government.

The UK has provided £10 million in aid to support the Palestinian Authority this financial year through the World Bank. The funding will provide vital support for key services, for example through the payment of salaries for 8,200 doctors, nurses and other health workers over 2 months.

In meetings with President Abbas and Prime Minister Mustafa, he will highlight his commitment to recognising a Palestinian state as an undeniable right of the Palestinian people, and as a contribution to a renewed peace process which results in a two-state solution with a safe and secure Israel alongside a viable and sovereign Palestinian state. He will also call out settlements in the West Bank as illegal and harmful to a two-state solution on visit to a Palestinian community.

The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 12 July 2024.

Statement by UK Permanent Representative to the UN Ambassador Barbara Woodward at the UNRWA Pledging Conference 2024.

The devastating violence in Gaza has gone on for far too long. And I pay tribute to the work of UNRWA in unprecedentedly challenging circumstances and to the leadership of Commissioner General Lazzarini. In one of his first acts as UK Prime Minister, Sir Keir Starmer set out the clear and urgent need for an immediate ceasefire that leads to a sustainable peace with security for Israelis and Palestinians alike. We are calling for the release of all the hostages, the upholding of international humanitarian law, and a rapid increase of humanitarian aid into Gaza.

President, Palestinians in Gaza are facing a humanitarian catastrophe and the very real risk of famine. For months they have suffered unbearable hardship without the food and protection from harm that they need. Too many Palestinian civilians are being killed, and much of civilian infrastructure essential to life has been destroyed. The UK is committed to working with our international partners to alleviate this suffering and get more aid to the civilians who need it most.

We welcome the UN’s leadership role in coordinating and delivering the humanitarian response. We recognise that UNRWA is absolutely central to these efforts. It is playing a critically important role in getting aid to those who need it in Gaza and providing essential services, including healthcare and education, to Palestinian refugees across the region.

So I want to take the opportunity again today to pay tribute to those brave and selfless UNRWA staff who face danger every day as they work to get aid to those in desperate need. Today the UK stands with 117 Member States, led by Jordan, Slovenia and Kuwait, in making clear our shared commitment to UNWRA and to make clear our support for the vital role it plays in saving lives and promoting regional stability – a fundamental building block for lasting peace.

President, we were appalled by the allegations that UNRWA staff were involved in the 7 October attacks against Israel. The Secretary-General and the Commissioner General of UNRWA took these allegations seriously and acted decisively. And we are confident that UNRWA is taking robust action in response Catherine Colonna’s independent review, to ensure it meets the highest standards of neutrality, transparency and accountability.

The UK recognises the importance of UNRWA’s mandate and the need for UNRWA to operate on a sustainable financial footing. Following last week’s elections in the United Kingdom, the new Foreign Secretary is closely considering resuming UK funding to UNRWA.

The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 12 July 2024.

Statement by Fergus Eckersley, UK Political Counsellor, at the Security Council meeting on West Africa and the Sahel.

I would like to start by welcoming the agreement of this Council of a Presidential Statement on UNOWAS. During what is a challenging period for the region, that was an important signal of the Council’s full support for the region’s peace and security. We commend the penholders Sierra Leone and Switzerland for their excellent work to get it agreed.

We wish to make four points today.

First, the UK congratulates Mauritania and Senegal for their peaceful transfers of power. But democracy and civic space are under pressure in the region. We note that timelines for restoration of constitutional governments in Mali and Burkina Faso have been extended, and we reiterate the Council’s call, in its recent Presidential Statement, for the restoration of constitutional order. Guinea’s transition timeline has also slipped, but we welcome ECOWAS’ assessment that some progress has been achieved in Guinea, including a planned referendum on the constitution in 2024.

Second, security across the Sahel is deteriorating. The threat of terrorism is growing, and requires a serious cross-regional response. Foreign mercenaries and proxies are not the answer. They have a track record in the region of worsening existing conflicts and undermining long-term development, and the way they operate often poses grave threats to the protection of civilians, as we saw at Moura in Mali. The UK remains concerned about the security situation in Mali, especially after the withdrawal of MINUSMA. We encourage UNOWAS to help bring all parties back to the negotiating table.

We also note the recent ECOWAS and Alliance of Sahel States summits. We urge all states in the region to seek collective solutions to the growing shared security challenge. As we heard in the Arria meeting called by Sierra Leone on 19 June, effective counter-terror efforts require regional collaboration.

Third, the humanitarian situation in the region continues to get worse. Food insecurity, fueled by violence and displacement, is reaching record levels in the Central Sahel and Nigeria. Climate change is compounding these problems.

Since 2019, UK aid has supported over 15 million people in the Sahel with life-saving assistance, and 3 million in Nigeria since 2017. But access is increasingly restricted, and needs are still going unmet. We call on all actors to ensure safe and unimpeded access for humanitarian assistance.

Fourth, we welcome the IMF’s improved economic forecast, which demonstrates the enormous opportunity for growth across the region despite today’s many challenges.  The UK looks forward to deepening our partnerships in the region, working collaboratively to ensure that we drive forward both growth and security.

The press release issued by the Ministry of Justice on 12 July 2024.

Lord Chancellor Shabana Mahmood has set out how the government will stop the impending collapse of the criminal justice system.

“Our prisons are on the point of collapse”, new Lord Chancellor Shabana Mahmood said today (Friday 12 July) as she set out how the government will stop the impending collapse of the criminal justice system.

The Lord Chancellor explained that if prisons were to run out of places, courts would be forced to delay sending offenders to jail and police unable to arrest dangerous criminals – a crisis which would leave the public at risk from unchecked criminality.

During her first visits as Lord Chancellor, she met hard-working frontline probation staff before a tour of HMP Bedford and HMP Five Wells, and delivered a speech to highlight the dire state of prisons.

In a speech at HMP Five Wells in Northamptonshire, Lord Chancellor Shabana Mahmood said:

When prisons are full, violence rises – putting prison officers on the front line at risk. When no cells are available, suspects cannot be held in custody. This means vanloads of dangerous people circling the country, with nowhere to go.

The police would have to use their cells as a prison overflow, keeping officers off the streets. Soon, the courts would grind to a halt, unable to hold trials.

With officers unable to act, criminals could do whatever they want, without consequence. We could see looters running amok, smashing in windows, robbing shops and setting neighbourhoods alight.

In short, if we fail to act now, we face the collapse of the criminal justice system. And a total breakdown of law and order.

National Police Chiefs’ Council Chair Chief Constable Gavin Stephens, said:

It is pleasing to see the new government has taken action on this pressing issue so quickly.

We are supporting the Ministry of Justice and other partners in the criminal justice system to manage the impact of these changes, particularly around supporting victims, families and others who will be affected.

With only hundreds of places left in the adult male estate, prisons have been routinely operating at over 99 percent capacity since the start of 2023. Prison cells are now expected to run out within weeks. The Lord Chancellor outlined the challenging but necessary steps the Government has been forced to make to prevent their imminent collapse and keep people safe. The Lord Chancellor made clear that the Government must act now to stop this situation from playing out.

Ahead of setting out the next steps to tackle this impending crisis, the Lord Chancellor confirmed that the dysfunctional and unmanageable End of Custody Supervised Licence scheme will come to an end.

Originally launched in October 2023, this early release scheme was brought in to address capacity pressures on the prison estate. Prisoners were initially released 18 days early, but the measure has been repeatedly expanded over the last six months.

Over the course of the scheme, over 10,000 offenders were released.

Instead, the government will temporarily reduce the proportion of certain custodial sentences served in prison from 50% to 40%, with important safeguards and exemptions to keep the public safe and clear release plans to manage them safely in the community.

Sentences for serious violent offences of four years or more, as well as sex offences will be automatically excluded, and, in an important distinction from End of Custody Supervised Licence scheme, the early release of offenders in prison for domestic abuse connected crimes will also be excluded. This will include:

• stalking offences
• controlling or coercive behaviours in an intimate or family relationship
• non-fatal strangulation and suffocation
• breach of restraining order, non-molestation order, and domestic abuse protection order

Anyone released will be strictly monitored on licence by the Probation Service through measures which can include electronic tagging and curfews. They face being recalled to prison if they breach their licence conditions.

The new rules will also not apply to most serious offenders, who already either spend two-thirds of their sentence behind bars or have their release determined by the Parole Board.

The Lord Chancellor will set out that the government had no choice but to take this decision.

Shabana Mahmood said:

There is now only one way to avert disaster. I do not choose to do this because I want to…. but we are taking every protection that is available to us… let me be clear, this is an emergency measure. This is not a permanent change. I am unapologetic in my belief that criminals must be punished.

The changes announced today will come into force in September, giving the Prison and Probation Service time to plan for offenders’ release.

The Lord Chancellor also outlined the government’s promise of transparency with a commitment to providing detailed and regular publications of releases under the changes to standard determinate sentences.

In an acknowledgement of the impact on the Probation Service, Ms Mahmood’s first visit as Lord Chancellor was to Bedford Probation Office where she spoke with frontline staff to hear about the challenges they were facing.

Acknowledging these challenges, the Lord Chancellor has also set out plans to recruit over 1,000 additional trainee probation officers by March 2025, allowing for greater oversight and management of offenders once they leave prisons.

During her speech, the Lord Chancellor reiterated her commitment to tackling the prison crisis for the long term. This included clear plans on how prisons can be built quicker by unblocking the planning system and enacting wider system reform and a 10-year capacity strategy will also be published in the Autumn, in line with the Spending Review timeline.

An Annual Statement on prison capacity will also be published every year, making sure the government is being held to account and must always have the prison places to keep dangerous offenders off the streets. This will make sure the public will never face the situation it is in today again.

Shabana Mahmood concluded in her speech:

The measures I have set out are not a silver bullet but they will give us the time we need to address the prisons crisis, not just today but for years to come.

That means continuing the prison building programme. And only by driving down reoffending will we ever find a sustainable solution to the prisons crisis.

Background information

• The changes to the release point for offenders on standard determinate sentences will require secondary legislation to be voted on by Parliament and could come into force in September.
• It will apply to those already in prison and past the 40% point in their sentence when this comes into force, with the first releases happening in September.
• The majority of prisoners serve Standard Determinate Sentences (SDS) which involves automatic release at a given point. These sentences are available for most crimes.
• Other types of custodial sentence, such as life sentences or extended sentences are used for dangerous offenders where their release before the end of their sentence must be approved by the Parole Board following a detailed risk assessment.