The below Parliamentary question was asked by Douglas Alexander on 2014-04-07.
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, whether he has asked President Rajapaksa of Sri Lanka to resign as Chairperson in Office of the Commonwealth in the light of the decision to investigate potential human rights abuses in Sri Lanka.
Mr William Hague
Any decision on the Chair-in-Office role is for all Commonwealth Heads of Government to take by consensus.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Douglas Alexander on 2014-06-09.
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, whether he considers the existing mandate of the UN Special Envoy to Syria is sufficient.
Mr William Hague
The UK fully supports the role of the UN Special Representative and the efforts to bring about political transition as set out in the Geneva Communiqué. The scope of the mandate for Mr Brahimi’s successor is under consideration by the UN.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Douglas Alexander on 2014-04-03.
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what support the UK Government plans to provide through the EU in advance of presidential elections in Ukraine in May 2014.
Mr William Hague
The UK will be sending 90 short term observers, in addition to the 10 long term observers already in Ukraine, to join the observer mission being mounted by the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR). This will allow for an objective assessment as to whether the required standards are met. We also welcome the announcement by the OSCE/ODIHR that they will be providing advice and training on running elections.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Douglas Alexander on 2014-04-29.
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what meetings he has had with (a) representatives of the Colombian government, (b) Colombian civil society and (c) Colombian businesses to discuss his Department’s Action Plan on Business and Human Rights since its launch in September 2013.
Mr William Hague
I visited Colombia in February this year and discussed business and human rights in my meetings with President Santos, and in meetings with the Ministers of Foreign Affairs, Finance and Trade, and with civil society. I welcomed the development of the Colombian national policy on business and human rights during these meetings and raised the importance of protecting Trade Unionists and human rights defenders. We have a strong partnership with the government of Colombia on implementation of the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights, in the context of the November 2011 Joint Declaration on Human Rights by the Prime Minister and President Santos.
In addition, British Embassy officials in Bogota have had several meetings with the Colombian government, civil society and businesses in Colombia to discuss the UK Action plan on business and human rights in line with our commitment to working for widespread international uptake of the UN Guiding Principles and to developing partnerships with other countries to progress this.
Last year, the Foreign and Commonwealth Office funded a project to assist Colombia in drafting its national policy. The Colombian public policy on business and human rights has been formed as a result of consultation across 33 regions and involving over 19,000 people.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Douglas Alexander on 2014-06-09.
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, with reference to the Answer of 10 April 2014, Official Report, column 377W, on Sri Lanka, what assessment he has made of the suitability of President Rajapaksa to serve as Chairperson in Office of the Commonwealth.
Mr William Hague
The position of Chair in Office, which is occupied by the host of the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) for two years after the event, was formally created in 2009. No formal guidance exists on the role. The decision for Sri Lanka to host CHOGM, and become Chair in Office thereafter, was taken at CHOGM in 2009. There has been no consensus amongst member states to revisit this decision.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Douglas Alexander on 2014-04-03.
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, when a Minister of his Department last visited Gibraltar.
Mr William Hague
The Minister of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my right hon. Friend the Member for Aylesbury (Mr Lidington), was the last Minister from the Foreign and Commonwealth Office to visit Gibraltar, in April 2011. My right hon. Friend hopes to visit again this year.
The Minister of State for the Armed Forces, my right hon. Friend the Member for Rayleigh and Wickford (Mr Francois) visited in December 2013.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Douglas Alexander on 2014-04-29.
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what his assessment is of the effect of his Department’s Action Plan on Business and Human Rights since its launch in September 2013.
Mr William Hague
The UK Action Plan on Business and Human Rights was the first country plan produced, setting out how the Government will implement the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights. We reported progress in implementation in the recently launched Foreign and Commonwealth Office Annual Human Rights Report.
Internationally the UK’s plan has shown our commitment to the widespread uptake of the UN Guiding Principles. Other countries have sought our guidance and advice in developing and producing their own plans.
The Action Plan has set out our expectations of UK business and industry on business and human rights, to encourage initiatives to introduce human rights due diligence and remedy measures into their policies and operations. The Companies Act now requires listed companies to report on their human rights impacts, and The Home Office published a draft Modern Slavery Bill last December to strengthen law enforcement capability to combat human trafficking and labour exploitation.
We are committed to reviewing the effectiveness of our Action Plan in 2015.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Douglas Alexander on 2014-06-09.
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, with reference to the Answer of 10 April 2014, Official Report, column 3778W, on Syria, what assessment his Department has made of the likelihood of President Assad complying with the agreed Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons timetable for the removal and destruction of Syria’s stockpile of chemical weapons.
Mr William Hague
The regime has missed all deadlines set by the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons Executive Council for the removal of chemicals from Syria, including their own deadline of 27 April 2014. Around 7.5 per cent of the materials remain. This means that the 30 June 2014 deadline set by the UN for the elimination of the material can no longer be met. Responsibility for this rests with the regime.
The functional destruction of Syria’s chemical weapon manufacturing capability and the removal of more than 90 per cent of the chemicals used in the programme are significant achievements. However, Syria’s failure to meet the deadlines for removal of the remaining chemicals is unacceptable. The UK and partners continue to press for the urgent completion of removal operations.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Douglas Alexander on 2014-04-03.
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what support the UK has offered through NATO to its Baltic allies since the Russian military incursion into Crimea.
Mr William Hague
The UK, alongside our NATO Allies, remains committed to the preservation of stability and security in Estonia, Lithuania and Latvia and to the guarantee of collective defence under Article 5 of the North Atlantic Treaty.
The Secretary of State for Defence, my right hon. Friend the Member for Runnymede and Weybridge (Mr Hammond), announced on the 17 March the UK has offered to contribute 4 Typhoons to the Baltic Air Policing mission. NATO Foreign Ministers agreed on 1 April to consider further measures as necessary to fulfil NATO’s collective defence mission.
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Douglas Alexander on 2014-04-29.
To ask the Deputy Prime Minister, pursuant to the oral Answer of 6 February 2014, Official Report, column 348W, on Colombia, which representatives of Colombian trades unions he met during his visit to Colombia in February 2014.
Mr Nick Clegg
I refer the Rt. Hon Member to the answer I gave on 11 February, Column 691. In addition to this, all members of the business delegation who accompanied me were briefed on Human Rights issues before the visit.