Tag: Lord Alton of Liverpool

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Alton of Liverpool on 2016-01-12.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they and the EU will place targeted human rights sanctions on individuals suspected of crimes against humanity in North Korea.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns

We remain deeply concerned by the appalling human rights situation in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK). Without security and stability on the Korean Peninsula and the denuclearisation of the DPRK we are unlikely to see genuine improvements in the human rights situation within that country. This is why the British Government’s priorities of an improved human rights situation and denuclearised DPRK are pursued in parallel. Following the nuclear test of 6 January, we are working closely with other members of the UN Security Council on a robust, and united, international response to the DPRK’s latest violation of existing UN Security Council Resolutions 1718, 1874, 2087 and 2094. These negotiations are on-going and we expect any new resolution to contain further measures that send a clear signal that DPRK’s actions will no longer be tolerated. We will continue to consider a range of available options, whenever we discuss DPRK with international partners.

We will continue to deliver the same strong messages on human rights directly to the regime through our Embassy in Pyongyang and in the UK where, most recently, the Minister of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my right hon. Friend the Member for East Devon (Mr Swire), told the DPRK Ambassador on 7 January, that DPRK resources would be better directed toward improving the lives of its citizens rather than recklessly pursuing its development of nuclear weapons. We also work multilaterally on human rights, through the EU and the UN, where we support the annual UN Third Committee resolution on DPRK Human Rights.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Alton of Liverpool on 2016-01-20.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government why none of the Yazidi women who have escaped following enslavement by ISIS have been given refuge in the UK.

Lord Bates

We recognise the plight faced by vulnerable women and girls in the region, and particularly Yazidi women who have escaped following enslavement by ISIS. That is why we have funded the establishment of three community centres in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq which provide them with psychosocial and legal support, and the provision of two UN technical experts who will continue to improve the coordination of the humanitarian response to gender based violence in Iraq. Through the Iraq Humanitarian Pooled Fund, we are also providing life-saving maternal and child health-care, child protection services, and specialised support for escapees of Daesh terror.

We plan to continue to resettle Iraqi refugees currently in Syria under the Gateway programme and will consider any Yazidi cases that are referred by the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) as part of that caseload. We are also prioritising the most vulnerable refugees through the Syrian Vulnerable Persons Resettlement, under which UNHCR is mandated to identify and refer cases for potential resettlement using its established vulnerability criteria, which include women and girls at risk.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Alton of Liverpool on 2016-02-01.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Prior of Brampton on 24 July 2015 (HL1524), how many modifications can be made to an existing research licence previously approved by the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority before it can no longer be legitimately considered as essentially the same research project as that for which a licence was originally sought; and what sort of modifications can be made to an existing research licence before it is no longer considered to have exactly the same aims as those in the initial licence application that were originally deemed to fulfil the purposes specified in the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act 1990 as amended.

Lord Prior of Brampton

The Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority has advised that there are no fixed number of modifications that can be made to an existing research licence project. Such questions are considered on a case by case basis with reference to the statutory tests.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Alton of Liverpool on 2016-02-22.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they are taking to ensure that funds, financial assets or economic resources are not being made available by UK nationals, UK-owned businesses, including tour companies, or other entities within UK territory, to sanctioned North Korean entities, or to that country’s nuclear and ballistic missiles programme.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns

UN sanctions measures on the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) include the requirement of all member states to freeze funds, other financial assets and economic resources on their territories, which are owned or controlled by individuals and entities designated by the UN Sanctions Committee or Security Council as being engaged in or supporting DPRK’s nuclear or ballistic missile programmes. The EU has legislated to give effect to UN sanctions. In the case of the DPRK it has gone beyond them by designating additional individuals and entities at the EU level. It is a criminal offence within the UK to make available funds or economic resources to a listed individual or entity under UN or EU DPRK sanctions measures.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Alton of Liverpool on 2016-03-02.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of (1) the conditions faced by Pakistani refugees who have been incarcerated in detention centres in Thailand, and (2) the allegations contained in the BBC World documentary Our World, broadcast on 27 February, that women and children are being held there, despite being UN-registered asylum seekers; and when they last discussed that situation with the UNHCR and the government of Thailand.

Earl of Courtown

We are concerned about the treatment of refugees and asylum seekers in Thailand. Thailand is not a signatory to the 1951 UN Convention on Refugees. Once any form of legal immigration status expires, refugees and asylum claimants can be deemed illegally in the country even if they have registered with the UN High Commissioner for Refugees. Nonetheless, we have pressed the Thai authorities to apply international humanitarian norms and standards when handling these vulnerable groups. We are also working with the Thai authorities to improve conditions of detention.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Alton of Liverpool on 2016-03-21.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Anelay of St Johns on 24 February (HL6091) and paragraph 13 of United Nations Security Council Resolution 2270, whether they are considering the expulsion of Democratic People’s Republic of Korea’s diplomatic personnel in London in respect of their submission of vessel registration changes to the International Maritime Organisation in 2014.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns

We are not considering the expulsion of Democratic People’s Republic of Korea diplomats in respect of their submission of vessel registration changes to the International Maritime Organisation in 2014.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Alton of Liverpool on 2016-04-18.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government under what conditions they would refer an incident or a series of incidents of suspected mass killings or alleged human rights abuses to the UN Security Council for a determination on whether genocide was occurring as defined by the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns

The Government believes that recognition of genocides should be a matter for international courts, not political bodies. It should be a legal, rather than political determination, decided by international judges after consideration of all the evidence available in the context of a credible international judicial process.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Alton of Liverpool on 2016-05-04.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of recent military attacks by ISIS on the Nineveh Plain Forces (NPF) at Telliskuf; what political and military assistance they are giving to the NPF; and what assessment they have made of the NPF’s objectives.

Earl Howe

Following Daesh’s attack north of Mosul on 3 May, they were pushed back by Kurdish forces. The Kurds regained the lost territory with substantial Coalition air support, which included the use of RAF aircraft. UK assistance in Iraq is channelled, as appropriate, through the Government of Iraq or the Kurdish Regional Government rather than to any individual militia forces, and the UK has made no specific assessment of the objectives of the Nineveh Plain Forces.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Alton of Liverpool on 2016-05-18.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they plan to become a founding donor of the new Education Cannot Wait fund at its launch at the World Humanitarian Summit.

Baroness Verma

The UK has played a leading role in the development of the Education Cannot Wait fund for education in emergencies and protracted crises, which was launched at the World Humanitarian Summit on 23^rd May. The UK has committed to provide £30 million in support over two years to the new fund as a founding donor, which was announced by the International Development Secretary at the fund’s launch.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Alton of Liverpool on 2016-06-06.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of reports that North Korean workers are producing garments for Burberry Group Inc.

Baroness Neville-Rolfe

We have made no such assessment.

The Modern Slavery Act, enacted last year, includes a demanding transparency in supply chains disclosure provision. This provision requires businesses operating in the UK, with an annual turnover of more than £36 million, to produce a slavery and human trafficking statement setting out the steps they have taken during the financial year to ensure that slavery and human trafficking is not taking place in any of its supply chains or its own business.

The provision obliges eligible companies to publish this information on their website, with a conspicuous link from their homepage, so that consumers, investors and the general public know what steps businesses are taking in this regard.