UKPOL.CO.UK

Tag: Hilary Benn

  • Hilary Benn – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    Hilary Benn – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Hilary Benn on 2016-04-18.

    To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what assessment she has made of the effect of conflict in South Sudan on the availability of medicines in that country.

    Mr Nick Hurd

    The recurrent shortage of medical supplies in South Sudan is a result of the failure of the South Sudanese Government to take responsibility for the procurement of medicines for their people, against the backdrop of the ongoing conflict.

    The UK, along with donor partners, has agreed a staggered strategy (to December 2016) to prevent a major drugs shortage crisis across the country. In addition, the DFID-led Health Pooled Fund will help in the procurement and supply of essential drugs between 2017 and 2018. This programme will also include the establishment of a robust, South Sudan government-led, system for the future procurement, management and distribution of medicines. The UK continues to advocate for the South Sudanese government to allocate sufficient funds to essential medicines for their people, and demands both the government and opposition to work together to urgently implement the August peace agreement.

  • Hilary Benn – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Hilary Benn – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Hilary Benn on 2016-04-26.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent assessment he has made of implications for democracy and the rule of law in Macedonia of the recent presidential pardon for politicians in that country.

    Mr Philip Hammond

    As the Minister for Europe, my Rt Hon. Friend the Member for Aylesbury (Mr Lidington) made clear in a public statement on 14 April, we are deeply concerned by President Ivanov’s decision to pardon those individuals currently under investigation in Macedonia over allegations of abuse of power. The decision protects those officials and former Ministers accused of corruption and denies justice to the people of Macedonia. Functioning rule of law means that all people must be held legally accountable for their actions and allegations fully investigated. We, together with international partners, have urged President Ivanov to reverse his decision and we have raised wider concerns about the credibility of forthcoming elections and the level of commitment to the democratic process with former Prime Minister and leader of the governing party VMRO, Nikola Gruevski.

  • Hilary Benn – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Hilary Benn – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Hilary Benn on 2016-05-25.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with the Kenyan government on the closure of the Dadaab refugee camp.

    Mr Philip Hammond

    The Secretary of State for International Development, my Rt Hon. Friend the Member for Putney (Justine Greening) discussed the announcement about the Dadaab refugee camp with Kenya at the World Humanitarian Summit on 25 May.

  • Hilary Benn – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    Hilary Benn – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Hilary Benn on 2016-09-06.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, with reference to the Answer of 24 March 2016 to Question 31582, whether the Government has offered support to the government of Iraq on collecting forensic evidence of genocide committed against the Yazidis and other religious minority groups.

    Mr Tobias Ellwood

    We continue to condemn in the strongest terms the appalling crimes that Daesh has committed in Iraq against Christians, Yezidis and other minorities, as well as the majority Muslim population.

    On 21 July, The Foreign Secretary, my Rt Hon. Friend the Member for Uxbridge and South Ruislip (Boris Johnson), announced that the UK will work with international partners to drive a global campaign to hold Daesh to account for its crimes. Over the summer, Ministers and officials have been working with international partners, including the Government of Iraq, to establish the character and scope of this campaign. We will take forward action on it in New York later this month.

  • Hilary Benn – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Hilary Benn – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Hilary Benn on 2016-10-07.

    To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many calls have been made by employers to the Employer Checking Service in each of the last five years.

    Mr Robert Goodwill

    The Employer Checking Service deals with checks submitted by employers via the web-based form.

    In the calendar year of 2011 the Employer Checking Service processed 33,769 checks.

    In the calendar year of 2012 the Employer Checking Service processed 52,868 checks.

    In the calendar year of 2013 the Employer Checking Service processed 59,452 checks.

    In the calendar year of 2014 the Employer Checking Service processed 67,609 checks.

    In the calendar year of 2015 the Employer Checking Service processed 69,606 checks.

    From 1st January 2016 to 9th October 2016 the Employer Checking Service processed 33,095.

  • Hilary Benn – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Exiting the European Union

    Hilary Benn – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Exiting the European Union

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Hilary Benn on 2016-10-10.

    To ask the Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union, if he will make an assessment of the effect on the UK (a) car, (b) food and (c) drinks industry of the UK leaving the EU without securing any preferential trade agreements and reverting to standard World Trade Organisation tariffs.

    Mr Robin Walker

    My Department, working with officials across government, continues to undertake a wide range of data analyses to inform the UK’s position for the upcoming negotiations with our EU partners. We have been clear that we will not provide a running commentary that might undermine our negotiating position.

  • Hilary Benn – 2022 Parliamentary Question on the Northern Ireland Protocol

    Hilary Benn – 2022 Parliamentary Question on the Northern Ireland Protocol

    The parliamentary question asked by Hilary Benn, the Labour MP for Leeds Central, in the House of Commons on 13 December 2022.

    Hilary Benn (Leeds Central) (Lab)

    What recent discussions he has had with the European Commission on the operation of the Northern Ireland protocol.

    Ian Paisley (North Antrim) (DUP)

    How many hours his Department has spent on negotiations with (a) EU member states and (b) the European Commission on the Northern Ireland protocol in the last month.

    The Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs (James Cleverly)

    Fixing the Northern Ireland protocol is a top priority for this Government. Since September I have been in regular contact with Vice-President Šefčovič. We last spoke on 1 December and I will be seeing him for further talks this week. My officials have also been working with our counterparts in the EU on a regular basis to try to resolve the issues, which we recognise—and we are impressing this upon them—are causing serious, genuine and damaging friction in relationships between the various communities in Northern Ireland.

    Hilary Benn

    I am grateful to the Foreign Secretary for that answer. It was reported recently that the Prime Minister has assured President Biden that an agreement will be reached with the EU in time for the 25th anniversary of the Good Friday agreement. We also read that the Northern Ireland Protocol Bill is on ice while the negotiations continue. Can the Foreign Secretary assure the House that if an agreement with the EU is reached—and we all hope that will happen—the Northern Ireland Protocol Bill will be dropped?

    James Cleverly

    The Northern Ireland Protocol Bill exists for a reason. The commitment that I made to Maroš Šefčovič in the conversations that I had with him and others was that we would not either artificially accelerate that process or artificially hinder or retard it. We have always said that our preferred option is through negotiations. We speak regularly, the tone is positive, and I think that there is now an understanding that the concerns that we have raised, and that have been raised particularly by the Unionist community in Northern Ireland, are not confected but real, and that any agreement would need to address them.

    Ian Paisley

    Is it not the case that there has not been one hour of actual negotiations, because the EU has not extended its mandate to allow for any changes whatsoever in the operation of the current protocol? That being the case, does the Foreign Secretary not believe that the EU will smell weakness in this Government if they take their foot off the pedal with the protocol Bill in the other place? I encourage him to press on with the Bill.

    James Cleverly

    I can assure the hon. Gentleman that the UK negotiating team are very conscious of the frustrations, particularly in the Unionist community in Northern Ireland. But we have also made the point to our interlocutors in the EU that, across communities in Northern Ireland, there is a recognition that the protocol is not working, that it needs to be addressed, and that the relationships between Northern Ireland and Ireland, and between Northern Ireland and the rest of the UK—of which Northern Ireland is a part—all have to function properly. That is the underpinning of the Belfast/Good Friday agreement and that is what we seek to achieve through our negotiations.

    Kevin Foster (Torbay) (Con)

    One needs only to visit the port at Belfast and see the potential for new facilities there to realise the interruption there could be to the vital east-west trade routes that Northern Ireland relies on. Does the Foreign Secretary agree that it is vital that the Government are clear that we do not take anything off the table in getting to an agreement? Even though we want an agreement, we still need all the options to be on the table, to ensure that we get what we need for the United Kingdom.

    James Cleverly

    The United Kingdom’s position has been consistent. We recognise that the way the protocol is working is undermining community cohesion in Northern Ireland and disrupting business flows, particularly east-west between Northern Ireland and the rest of the UK. These issues have to be addressed. That is, I think, something that the EU negotiating team understand, and we will continue negotiating in good faith. However, as I say, the Northern Ireland Protocol Bill exists for a reason, and we want to ensure that we get a good working resolution that is sustainable for all the communities in Northern Ireland.

    Mr Speaker

    I call the shadow Foreign Secretary.

    Mr David Lammy (Tottenham) (Lab)

    For 18 months we have been at an impasse on the Northern Ireland protocol. Instead of negotiations, we have had cheap rhetoric and threats to break agreements. With a UK Government showing determination and diplomatic skill, and an EU willing to be flexible, these problems would be easily resolvable. Is the real problem that the Prime Minister is in the pocket of the European Research Group, too weak to stand up to his Back Benchers, and putting his party before Northern Ireland?

    James Cleverly

    The right hon. Gentleman needs to keep up. We have had very well-tempered negotiations between the UK and EU negotiators. He will find in our public reporting of those negotiations that there has been a high degree of mutual respect. He says that there is an easy resolution. If he believes that, all I would say is that we are waiting to hear it. If it were easy, it would have been done already.

    Mr Speaker

    Let us hear from the SNP spokesperson.

    Alyn Smith (Stirling) (SNP)

    I say to the Foreign Secretary that if politics goes wrong for him, he has a great career in stand-up ahead of him.

    This discussion is not happening in a vacuum. The Foreign Secretary will be aware of a poll in The Irish Times yesterday that showed that 54% of the people of Northern Ireland are in favour of EU membership. I want to see a negotiated outcome over the protocol; we all do. There are things with the protocol that need to be addressed, and we all agree on that, but the Northern Ireland Protocol Bill is not the way to do that. Surely he must recognise that it is the biggest block to progress in these talks, and that now is the time to scrap it.

    James Cleverly

    I am the one who has been in the conversations with the EU. I know that it does not particularly like the Northern Ireland Protocol Bill, but, nevertheless, the conversations that I have had with my direct interlocuters and that our officials have been having with their opposite numbers in the EU system have been progressing. As I have said, there are still a number of serious issues that need to be resolved, but we are working in good faith. The Bill exists for a reason and it is important that it is there.

    I welcome the hon. Gentleman highlighting the fact that there is pretty much universal agreement now that the protocol needs to be changed, because that is what is driving an increased degree of community tension and disruption in Northern Ireland.

    While I am on my feet, let me welcome the hon. Gentleman resuming his place.

  • Hilary Benn – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    Hilary Benn – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Hilary Benn on 2015-10-16.

    To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, pursuant to the Answer of 12 October 2015 to Question 11278, who is responsible for restrictions on commercial and humanitarian shipping to Yemen.

    Mr Desmond Swayne

    A number of parties are responsible for the conflict in Yemen which has led to the restrictions on commercial and humanitarian shipping to Yemen. At President Hadi’s request, Saudi-led Coalition airstrikes began in March 2015 following a rebellion against President Hadi and the Government of Yemen by the Houthi’s and forces loyal to former president Saleh. Intense fighting and insecurity on the ground has resulted in restrictions being placed on commercial and humanitarian shipping, and it is proving difficult to distribute food and fuel to those who need it making the humanitarian situation even worse.

    The most important action to address the humanitarian situation, beyond a ceasefire, is to open up access for commercial and humanitarian goods to reach those most in need. All parties to the conflict should take all reasonable steps to allow and facilitate humanitarian access, to facilitate immediate access to life-saving supplies both into and within Yemen. The Secretary of State for International Development recently reinforced this message at the United Nations General Assembly in September.

    The UK also supports the UN Verification and Inspection Mechanism, UNVIM, which is now being established to address commercial shipping needs. It involves setting up an internationally-staffed maritime verification centre to replace the existing informal Coalition mechanism. To be effective, all commercial cargo should be within the scope of UNVIM – including fuel.

  • Hilary Benn – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    Hilary Benn – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Hilary Benn on 2015-10-16.

    To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, pursuant to the Answer of 12 October 2015 to Question 11278, who is currently responsible for impeding humanitarian access to people in need in Yemen.

    Mr Desmond Swayne

    All parties to the conflict are responsible for impeding humanitarian access to people in need in Yemen. Intense fighting on the ground is making it increasingly hard for agencies to reach those in need within Yemen. This is compounded by restrictions on imports of commercial and humanitarian supplies into the country, including fuel. This in turn is hampering the distribution of humanitarian supplies within country, including essential food and medicines.

    The UK continues to call on all parties to facilitate rapid, safe and unhindered access to all people in need in Yemen. The UK is one of the largest donors to the crisis and has announced £75m to respond to the crisis in Yemen. UK aid is providing vital medical supplies, water, food and emergency shelter, working with trusted and impartial actors who have a strong track record in delivering assistance in difficult and dangerous places. We also support a UN-led process on access negotiations and the establishment of the Access Working Group where partners report cases of obstruction and accessible routes.

  • Hilary Benn – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Leader of the House

    Hilary Benn – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Leader of the House

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Hilary Benn on 2015-10-16.

    To ask the Leader of the House, whether he has had discussions with the Chairs of the Business, Innovation and Skills, International Development, Foreign Affairs and Defence select committees on their re-establishment of the Committees on Arms Export Controls.

    Chris Grayling

    No. The re-establishment of the Committees on Arms Export Controls (CAEC) is a matter for the relevant committees under Standing Order No. 137, which allows for the concurrent meeting of any select committee with another for the purpose of deliberating or taking evidence.