Tag: Lord Hylton

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Hylton on 2015-10-27.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether Shaker Aamer has yet been released from detention at Guantanamo Bay to rejoin his family in England; if not, why not; and what representations they are making to the government of the United States on his behalf.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns

We can confirm that Shaker Aamer was released from Guantanamo Bay and returned to the UK on 30 October.

It has been a longstanding British Government policy to secure Mr Aamer’s return to the UK. We welcome his release and continue to support President Obama’s commitment to closing the detention facility at Guantanamo.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Hylton on 2015-11-17.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is their response to the call by the European Commission as part of the EU enlargement strategy for Turkey to lift media restrictions to improve respect for human rights and the rule of law, and to re-start comprehensive peace negotiations with Kurdish militants and constitutional nationalists.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns

We welcome the Commission’s EU enlargement strategy, which commends Turkey’s considerable efforts on refugees and recognises the progress Turkey has made in recent years. The strategy also highlights where Turkey needs to do more to meet EU standards through continuing reform, particularly in the areas of fundamental rights, including freedom of expression, and rule of law. As we have made clear, the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) needs to cease its attacks and we fully support a resumption of peace talks. The UK stands ready to help in any way it can.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Hylton on 2015-11-26.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what plans they and the major aid agencies have made for protecting refugees who are still in, or are crossing, south-east Europe this winter.

Baroness Verma

The UK has so far provided nearly £16 million to ensure migrants and refugees arriving in and travelling through Europe are provided with warmth, comfort and lifesaving humanitarian support and protection during the winter. DFID is funding humanitarian organisations such as the Red Cross, UNHCR and the International Organization for Migration, as well as humanitarian NGOs in southern Europe and the Balkans. These organisations are tailoring interventions to meet the needs of children, families and older people. This includes medical assistance, special transport services to help keep families together and support the most vulnerable, referral of children and other vulnerable people to specialised services, and efforts to reunite families that have become separated during their journey. We have also delivered in-kind assistance via the EU’s Civil Protection Mechanism. Through this, the UK has provided migrants and refugees in Slovenia, Serbia and Croatia with blankets, sleeping bags and tents so that 11,000 people in each country are provided with warmth and comfort during the winter.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Hylton on 2015-12-10.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Bates on 8 December (HL4152), how many refugees have applied for family reunion in Britain (1) from France, and (2) from other countries, since 1 January 2013; and how much of the funding provided by the UK under the Joint Declaration of 20 August has so far been (1) spent, and (2) committed to be spent.

Lord Bates

For the period January 2013 to September 2015, internal management information (not quality assured to National Statistics standards) indicates there were 11 entry clearance visa family reunion applications made from France and 17,292 from other countries.

Under the Joint Declaration of 20 August 2015, the UK has committed to providing €5 million (£3.6 million) per year for two years to help manage the migrant population in Calais by providing support and facilities elsewhere in France, the first of these two payments is currently being processed. This is in addition to €750,000 (£530,000) which has been paid to fund a project to identify and protect vulnerable people in the camps in Calais.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Hylton on 2015-12-21.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government when the recommendations of the independent reviewer of the overseas domestic worker visa will be implemented.

Lord Bates

The Government is considering carefully the recommendations of James Ewins and will announce its response in due course.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Hylton on 2016-01-20.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what action is being taken, both by them internationally and through voluntary agencies, to prevent refugees now in transit through south-eastern Europe from dying of cold; and whether they consider that action is sufficient.

Baroness Verma

The UK is providing £46 million of humanitarian support to address the needs of refugees and other irregular migrants transiting through Europe and the Balkans. This support is enabling host governments and international organisations including the Red Cross, United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, the United Nations Children’s Fund, the International Organisation for Migration, and non-governmental organisations to provide basic care, assistance, protection, and information to people on the move, with a particular focus on children and the most vulnerable. Of this, £30.5 million is specifically targeted at meeting needs during the Winter. This includes 178,000 warm blankets, 1,700 ‘winterised’ tents to shelter people from the cold weather, warm clothing, hot food, medicines and medical support where low temperatures mean more people will get sick.

DFID continually reviews humanitarian needs and has deployed experts to countries along the route to assess conditions first-hand. Their assessment is that UK support is appropriate and well targeted, although they remain concerned by the conditions being experienced by already vulnerable people, particularly those who become stranded. DFID will keep the humanitarian situation under review and adapt the UK’s response to emerging needs.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Hylton on 2016-02-04.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what special education programmes are being provided for those Iraqis and Syrians who have reached the UK since 2012, broken down into those for (1) children, (2) young people, and (3) adults.

Lord Bates

Asylum seekers and those granted refugee status or humanitarian protection have access to free state schooling. Those granted refugee status have immediate access to student support for higher education courses.

Local authorities in England are responsible for providing additional educational support, such as English language training.

Where schools need to provide additional support for English as an Additional Language (EAL) pupils the funding arrangements enable local authorities to allocate a proportion of their funding to schools on the basis of the number of pupils in each school who have EAL and who have been in the school system for a maximum of three years.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Hylton on 2016-02-22.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what representations they have made to the government of France about their plans for the refugees now in the Grande Synthe site near Dunkirk; what improvements are in progress; and whether voluntary organisations will be involved.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns

The management of the migrant situation in Dunkirk is the responsibility of the French government. We share the French government’s concerns about the difficult living conditions in the region and continue to assist their efforts to provide support and facilities elsewhere in France. Migration issues were discussed at the UK-France Summit on 3 March. The summit communiqué provides details of the further cooperation agreed.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Hylton on 2016-03-08.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what progress they are making with the governments of the United States, Russia, and others, to stabilise Syria and to make significant progress on peace negotiations.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns

The UK has been undertaking stabilisation activities in Syria for a number of years, through projects totalling over £100 million funded under the Conflict Pool and thereafter the Conflict, Stability and Security Fund. But as the Government made clear at the London Conference on Syria in February, the post conflict stabilisation and reconstruction needs in Syria following a political settlement which ends the civil war will require a significant international response.

We are currently working with our international partners to ensure a coordinated post-conflict planning effort which is able to respond to the timeline that will – we hope – emerge from successful UN-mediated peace talks in Geneva, which are due to resume on 14 March. However, as agreed at the London Conference, it will rightly be for the UN to coordinate this work, with the support of Member States including the UK.

The UK is supporting peace negotiations through our leading role in the International Syria Support Group, as well as our support to the Syrian High Negotiations Committee. UN Special Envoy Staffan de Mistura intends to resume peace negotiations in Geneva from 14 March. We hope that this effort delivers rapid progress towards political transition as envisaged by the 2012 Geneva Communiqué.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Hylton on 2016-04-12.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what evidence they have received, if any, that Turkey (1) refused access to Syrians fleeing their own country, (2) forcibly returned both registered and unregistered refugees to Syria, (3) split families and separated children from parents in the process of returning refugees to Syria, (4) denied registration to refugees already in Turkey, and (5) failed to provide clean water and sanitation to refugee camps near the frontier.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns

Turkey is generously hosting over 2.7 million Syrian refugees and has provided Syrians in Turkey with access to healthcare, education and legal employment. The UN has said that refugee camps in Turkey are among the best in the world and we are not aware of any problems with water and sanitation. We have received no evidence of split families or Turkey denying registration to refugees already in Turkey. We are aware of reports of forced returns to Syria but have seen no evidence of these allegations. We continue to work closely with Turkey and the EU to further improve the situation for refugees and asylum seekers in Turkey, including through our contribution to the €3 billion package of EU financial support for Turkey.