Tag: Andrew Rosindell

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Rosindell on 2016-05-09.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment he has made of the potential effect of the resignation of Ahmet Davutoğlu as Prime Minister of Turkey on the viability of the agreement between the EU and Turkey on migrants.

Mr David Lidington

I pay tribute to Prime Minister Davutoğlu for his partnership with the UK both as Prime Minister and previously as Foreign Minister. Turkey is a vital friend and ally with whom we cooperate on a host of issues, including tackling the migration crisis. We look forward to continuing that strong cooperation with President Erdoğan and a new Prime Minister once installed.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Rosindell on 2016-06-07.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what reports the Government has received on the territorial dispute between Belize and Guatemala over the area around the Sarstoon River.

Mr Hugo Swire

The Government receives regular reports on the territorial dispute between Belize and Guatemala, including the area around the Sarstoon River.

I met Foreign Minister Elrington of Belize and Foreign Minister Morales of Guatemala on 25 May to discuss the border dispute and progress towards referring the the dispute to the International Court of Justice.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Rosindell on 2016-06-28.

To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what assessment his Department has made of the additional cost of repairing the F35 in the USA rather than the UK during its lifetime; and if he will take steps to allow the electronics of the F35 to be repaired in the UK.

Mr Philip Dunne

The UK Lightning Force will be able to conduct all necessary maintenance of the F-35 aircraft at RAF Marham, including electronic equipment, following aircraft arrival in 2018. When components cannot be repaired on the front line and need to be returned to industry, this will be done via a global network of depots. The global repair network will be adopted by all of the F-35 partners and offers significant benefits in terms of economies of scale and operational availability. It does not mean that components specifically have to go back to the US for repair.

The UK has a through life cost for the F-35, which includes repair costs. I am withholding this information as it has the potential to undermine the UK’s commercial position when negotiating contracts with industry.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Rosindell on 2016-09-15.

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what assessment his Department made before the announcement of 15 September 2016 of the extent of the potential security issue facing the development of Hinkley Point C.

Jesse Norman

Security matters are an integral part of reaching agreement on all new nuclear developments. Following my Rt hon Friend the Secretary of State’s announcement on 28 July 2016, the Government undertook a comprehensive review of the Hinkley Point C project; the review considered all component parts of the Hinkley deal. In the interest of security, we do not comment on security-specific matters.

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

To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, what assessment his Department has made of the effect of commissioning a new Royal Yacht for the promotion of UK trade abroad.

Mark Garnier

I outlined the Government’s position on commissioning a new Royal Yacht for trade promotion during the debate in Westminster Hall on 11 October.

https://hansard.parliament.uk/commons/2016-10-11/debates/A35B4CBD-3DFE-4BB7-B9C4-BB9E99422890/RoyalYachtBritanniaInternationalTrade

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The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Rosindell on 2015-11-02.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he had during his recent visit to the Gulf states to encourage those states to increase their involvement in the (a) war against ISIL and (b) resolution of the refugee situation in Syria.

Mr Tobias Ellwood

The Foreign Secretary discussed the counter ISIL effort with all the countries that he visited during his recent trip to the Gulf, which included Qatar, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia and UAE. We will continue to work intensively with Gulf States to deal with ISIL, both bilaterally and multilaterally, including under the auspices of the Global Coalition to counter-ISIL.

Our partners in the Gulf share our view that ISIL presents a threat to regional stability. Several of them have suffered from ISIL attacks in their homelands, and many host large numbers of refugees fleeing Assad’s and ISIL’s brutality. They are committed to defeating ISIL, and fully recognise that coordinated international action is the best way to achieve that. All the countries that the Foreign Secretary visited during his recent trip are working to defeat ISIL, including as part of the Global Coalition to counter-ISIL.

As a result of the Syrian crisis, there are now over 4 million refugees from Syria in neighbouring countries. All of the countries that the Foreign Secretary visited are in agreement with us that a political solution is the only way to resolve the Syrian crisis.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Rosindell on 2015-11-09.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment he has made of the effect of the recent increase in migrants from Haiti to the Turks and Caicos Islands on local resources on those islands.

James Duddridge

While the number of arrivals of illegal migrants to the Turks and Caicos Islands has decreased over the last two years, each occurrence continues to place a strain on local government resources and increases the risk for loss of life particularly for those arriving in overcrowded boats. Our Embassy in Haiti is pressing the Haitian government to finalise a Memorandum of Understanding to establish agreed arrangements for repatriations and better communication on migration issues.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Rosindell on 2015-11-18.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if he will assess the extent to which grants made by his Department to third parties are used for activities designed to influence his Department, other departments or Parliament.

Alistair Burt

Funding applications from voluntary sector organisations are assessed against a number of criteria, but Departmental policy clearly states that grants will not be awarded if there is any indication within the application that some or all of any funding awarded will be used to support political activities, including political lobbying activity.

It remains an important objective of the Department’s partnership with the voluntary, community and social enterprise sector that they contribute their voice and expertise to national policy making and implementation, and grant awards can support this objective.

However, analysis of each individual grant awarded by the Department to ascertain the impact of this objective would be at disproportionate cost.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Rosindell on 2015-12-01.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, whether the Government held discussions with Commonwealth Heads of Government at the Commonwealth Heads of Government Conference in Malta in November 2015 on increasing the proportion of the UK’s trade with Commonwealth countries.

Mr Hugo Swire

I spoke at the Commonwealth Business Forum to underline the British Government’s strong interest in strengthening our international trade links. The Minister for Trade and Investment, the right hon the Lord Maude of Horsham, addressed the same forum on the importance of leveraging trade networks across the Commonwealth. He also pushed for progress on free trade agreements that will facilitate and increase trade between Commonwealth countries, as well as promoting direct trade with the UK in meetings with ministers from Ghana, Nigeria, Bangladesh, the Bahamas, and Malawi.

In negotiations on the CHOGM communiqué, the UK ensured Commonwealth leaders committed to advance global trade negotiations, including during the WTO ministerial in Kenya this December, and to encourage more states to ratify the WTO Trade Facilitation Agreement.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Rosindell on 2015-12-07.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what progress he has made in his renegotiation with the EU on achieving migration restrictions without requiring treaty change.

Mr David Lidington

Tackling abuses of the right to free movement and reducing the draw that our welfare system can exert across Europe are key elements of the renegotiation agenda. The Prime Minister, my right hon. Friend the Member for Witney (Mr Cameron) has been clear in his discussions with other leaders that the reforms we are seeking must be legally binding and irreversible and that in some areas that will mean treaty change. We look forward to further substantive discussions on this issue at the December European Council.