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Tag: Baroness Kinnock of Holyhead

  • Baroness Kinnock of Holyhead – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Baroness Kinnock of Holyhead – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Kinnock of Holyhead on 2014-06-26.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is their response to reports that the government of Sudan has reconstituted the Janjaweed militias and that they are operating under its command and control.

    Baroness Warsi

    The latest report of the UN Secretary General on Darfur states that the Sudanese government’s Rapid Support Forces (RSF), that use similar tactics to militia groups previously armed by government known as Janjaweed, have been responsible for widespread abuses against civilians, which include rape, looting and the burning of houses. The report also makes it clear that the armed opposition groups, in particular the Sudanese Liberation Army Minni Minnawi faction, bear heavy responsibility for civilian displacement.

    We have made it clear to the Sudanese government in the strongest terms that such behaviour is wholly unacceptable. On 7 April the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my hon. Friend the Member for Boston and Skegness (Mr Simmonds), publicly condemned attacks against civilians, and specifically raised the actions of the RSF with Sudanese Foreign Minister Karti on 28 April.

  • Baroness Kinnock of Holyhead – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    Baroness Kinnock of Holyhead – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Kinnock of Holyhead on 2014-06-26.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is their response to the inclusion of a sustainable development goal to reduce inequality within and among countries by 2030 on the list of proposals being considered by United Nations member states.

    Baroness Northover

    The UK supports a focus on “leaving no one behind” across the post-2015 framework, as was recommended by the High Level Panel Report on the post-2015 development agenda, which was co-chaired by the Prime Minister.

    In practice, “leaving no one behind” means that targets must be met across all income and social groups.

    Language on inequality is included in the most recent draft list of goals and targets released by the co-chairs of the Open Working Group (OWG) on 2 June. The final goals and targets in the post-2015 development framework will however be subject to international negotiations in the United Nations, in which the UK will play an active role.

  • Baroness Kinnock of Holyhead – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Baroness Kinnock of Holyhead – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Kinnock of Holyhead on 2014-06-04.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is their assessment of the reports that Joseph Kony and senior members of the Lords Resistance Army are hiding in a Sudanese-controlled area of a disputed enclave bordering the Central African Republic.

    Baroness Warsi

    We have not been able to assess the veracity of reports that Joseph Kony and senior members of the Lords Resistance Army are hiding in a Sudanese-controlled area of a disputed enclave bordering the Central African Republic. However, we are aware of reports that local authorities in south-eastern Central African Republic (CAR) have been in contact with a contingent of the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) who have expressed an interest in surrendering.

    The British Government condemns in the strongest possible terms the atrocities carried out by the LRA. Although much reduced in numbers, the LRA remains an unprincipled, violent threat to civilians in the heart of Africa. The UK has consistently promoted a co-ordinated regional and international approach to defeating the LRA. We continue to encourage the UN and African Union to implement their counter-LRA strategies in full and bring Kony to justice.

  • Baroness Kinnock of Holyhead – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    Baroness Kinnock of Holyhead – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Kinnock of Holyhead on 2014-04-02.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Northover on 18 March (WA 16) on women’s rights in Afghanistan, what are the details of the funding already being allocated to tackling violence against women in Afghanistan; and what proportion it constitutes of the total budget for work in Afghanistan by the Department for International Development.

    Lord Wallace of Saltaire

    Two programmes directly address violence: £3M towards a joint programme with Australia to improve the implementation of laws designed to protect women and girls affected by violence; and £19.9M DFID support to the Tawanmandi programme with grants to Civil Society Organisations, where at least £2M of grants from 2014 will go to organisations primarily focused on the elimination of violence against women and girls.

    Violence is also indirectly addressed through a long term approach of promoting women’s rights, empowerment and education. DFID has a wide range of programmes supporting this agenda, e.g. £4.5M nation-wide support to women’s political participation and the £47M Girls Education Challenge fund improving access to education for 250,000 marginalised girls.

  • Baroness Kinnock of Holyhead – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    Baroness Kinnock of Holyhead – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Kinnock of Holyhead on 2014-04-02.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Northover on 18 March (WA 16), how many programmes are already being implemented to tackle violence against women in Afghanistan; and how many programmes focussing on the other strategic priorities of the Department for International Development in Afghanistan are being implemented.

    Lord Wallace of Saltaire

    Two programmes directly address violence: £3M towards a joint programme with Australia to improve the implementation of laws designed to protect women and girls affected by violence; and £19.9M DFID support to the Tawanmandi programme with grants to Civil Society Organisations, where at least £2M of grants from 2014 will go to organisations primarily focused on the elimination of violence against women and girls.

    Violence is also indirectly addressed through a long term approach of promoting women’s rights, empowerment and education. DFID has a wide range of programmes supporting this agenda, e.g. £4.5M nation-wide support to women’s political participation and the £47M Girls Education Challenge fund improving access to education for 250,000 marginalised girls.

  • Baroness Kinnock of Holyhead – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Baroness Kinnock of Holyhead – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Kinnock of Holyhead on 2014-04-08.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is their assessment of the call made by Ban Ki-Moon for funds to enable the United Nations to deploy peacekeepers to the Central African Republic.

    Lord Wallace of Saltaire

    On 10 April the UK co-sponsored UN Security Council Resolution 2149 establishing a UN Peacekeeping Operation – MINUSCA – in the Central African Republic (CAR). We welcome this development which will support an end to the violence and help build long-term stability in CAR. The UK is the fifth largest contributor to the UN’s peacekeeping budget, which will be used to support the UN Mission.

  • Baroness Kinnock of Holyhead – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    Baroness Kinnock of Holyhead – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Kinnock of Holyhead on 2014-04-08.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is their assessment of the cases made by the Food and Agriculture Organisation and the World Food Programme in respect of the establishment of a humanitarian operation in the Central African Republic.

    Lord Bates

    It estimated that 1.3 million people (30% of the population) are food insecure. 60% of farmers have indicated that their crop production in 2013 was significantly reduced and around 50% of livestock was either looted or lost. 94% of farmers reported insufficient access to seeds for the upcoming planting season.

    DFID is supporting short and medium term solutions to assist people through the lean season and plant staple crops to harvest in August. We have committed £4 million to FAO for the distribution of seeds and tools and to support livelihood activities such as home gardening. FAO will assist 150,000 farming households through the provision of seeds and tools. We will continue to closely monitor the humanitarian situation.

    The UK has been closely monitoring the situation and has pledged a total of £23m to the response in 2013 and 2014 and is one of the largest humanitarian donors to CAR. The UK’s assistance is helping hundreds of thousands of people and will go towards the protection of civilians (in particular violence against women and girls); to urgent medical assistance; and to food security and livelihoods assistance.

  • Baroness Kinnock of Holyhead – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    Baroness Kinnock of Holyhead – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Kinnock of Holyhead on 2014-04-08.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is their assessment of the level of aid funding available to the Central African Republic and of the need of food of the population of that country.

    Lord Bates

    The humanitarian situation in the Central African Republic (CAR) is acute. There are critical and pressing needs in the country following the coup in March 2013. The UN estimates that the whole population (4.6 million people) have been affected by this conflict and that 2.5 million people are in immediate need of humanitarian assistance, including protection, food, health, water and sanitation and shelter. 1.3 million people (3% of the total population) are in need of food assistance.

    The UK has pledged a total of £23m to the response in 2013 and 2014 and is one of the largest humanitarian donors to CAR. The UK is the third largest humanitarian donor to CAR in 2014 alongside pledges from the EC: $62(£37m), USA: $47m (£28m), the UN Central Emergency Response Fund: $20m (£12m), the World Bank: $20m (£12m) and Sweden: $15m (£9m).

  • Baroness Kinnock of Holyhead – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    Baroness Kinnock of Holyhead – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Kinnock of Holyhead on 2014-04-08.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what are the financial contributions made by each individual member state of the European Union to the crisis in the Central African Republic.

    Lord Bates

    On 20 January, the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs and the EU co-chaired a high-level meeting in Brussels to discuss the humanitarian situation in the Central African Republic, its implications and financial requirements. Countries and International Finance Institutions pledged a total of $496m to the appeal: $203m of this is for humanitarian operations in 2014, and $294m for stabilisation and recovery. Member States have to date collectively contributed $87m (£52m) to the crisis in the Central African Republic.

    Contributions by EU Member States include: UK: £18m; Sweden: £9.2m; Denmark: £5.4m; France: £5.3m; Finland: £3m; Luxembourg: £2.3m; Ireland: £2.1m; Germany: £2.0m; Netherlands: £1.7m; Italy: £1.6m; Belgium: £800,000; Austria: £400,000; Czech Republic: £100,000; Estonia: £80,000; Greece: £40,000; Slovenia: £20,000; Malta: £20,000; Lithuania: £16,000.

  • Baroness Kinnock of Holyhead – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Baroness Kinnock of Holyhead – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Kinnock of Holyhead on 2014-06-05.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of reports by the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs that senior Lord’s Resistance Army commanders are gathered in the north-east of the Central African Republic and the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

    Baroness Warsi

    We have not been able to assess the veracity of reports that senior members of the Lord’s Resistance Army are gathered in the north-east of the Central African Republic (CAR) and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. However, we are aware of reports that local authorities in south-eastern CAR have been in contact with a contingent of the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) who have expressed an interest in surrendering.

    The British Government condemns in the strongest possible terms the atrocities carried out by the LRA. Although much reduced in numbers, the LRA remains an unprincipled, violent threat to civilians in the heart of Africa. The UK has consistently promoted a co-ordinated regional and international approach to defeating the LRA. We continue to encourage the UN and African Union to implement their counter-LRA strategies in full and bring Kony to justice.