Tag: Lord Hylton

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Hylton on 2015-12-08.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of how many prisoners are prevented from progressing towards release because they are unable or unwilling to take specified training courses that the Parole Board insists are the only acceptable evidence of reduced risk on release.

Lord Faulks

It is not mandatory for a prisoner to complete specific courses or programmes before he can be considered for release by the Parole Board. The Parole Board is required to assess the prisoner’s overall risk of serious harm to the public and, in doing so, will consider a range of factors, including, where available, the prisoner’s response to specific offending behaviour programmes (OBPs).

The Parole Board already takes into account other indicators of reduced risk, including where the prisoner has engaged effectively with professional staff on a one to one basis or undertaken education, work and training. In addition, the Parole Board will consider the prisoner’s behaviour in custody, together with evidence drawn from the prisoner’s attitudes – for example, how well the prisoner handles stressful situations.

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

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what action they are taking to help the combatants in Yemen to agree a ceasefire and to remove the external blockade, in particular of supplies.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns

The UK welcomes the positive progress made at UN-facilitated talks held between 15 and 20 December 2015 and the ceasefire that commenced on 15 December including the intention to extend this until 28 December. We fully support the UN’s efforts to return to an inclusive political process and strongly encourage all parties to the conflict to respect the ceasefire, which will allow urgent medical and humanitarian aid to reach those in need. The engagement of the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my hon. Friend the Member for Bournemouth East (Mr Ellwood), our Ambassadors, and the UK Special Envoy to Yemen Sir Alan Duncan, with key Yemeni actors has supported this process. We are also providing financial support to the UN Special Envoy’s Office. As Yemenis are highly reliant on food and fuel imports for their basic needs (food, health, water, electricity), one of our top priorities is to help commercial shipping return to pre-conflict levels. We welcomed the Government of Yemen’s commitment in October to allow commercial ships access to Yemen. The number of ships has increased in recent weeks: over 50 ships have berthed in both October and November. However, commercial imports are still far below pre-crisis levels. We will continue to monitor this closely and are funding the new UN Verification and Inspection Mechanism along with the US, EU and Netherlands to speed up clearance processes.

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

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is their assessment of the report of the European Parliament Budgetary Control Committee on EU external aid and development programmes.

Baroness Verma

The report concerned is based on internal Commission reports from EU delegations in non-EU countries, many of which are fragile or conflict-affected. These reports identify potential problems during implementation, so that things can be put right in time. We have not seen the actual reports, as these are internal Commission management documents. The report highlights the implementation challenges and the steps taken by the Commission to manage these risks, including the withholding of funds where fraud is thought to be to an issue. If it is proven that money has been wasted we expect the EU and its audit institutions to take swift and decisive action to recoup funds and to carry out a thorough review of all its programmes to provide a clear set of actions to stop this happening again.

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

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of how many refugees from Syria and Iraq have been accepted by Saudi Arabia and each of the Gulf States; and whether other migrants from Syria and Iraq have also been absorbed into those two countries.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns

The UK actively engages with members of the Gulf Cooperation Council, including Saudi Arabia, on humanitarian and development assistance, and the Gulf States continue to contribute generously to humanitarian support for the Syria crisis. The Gulf States are not signatories to the UN Refugee Convention of 1951, and there is no legal refugee status in these countries. Hundreds of thousands of Syrians are living in Gulf States as migrant workers or on visitors’ visas.

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

To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they are discussing unemployment in Kasserine and other parts of Tunisia with the government of that country; and whether any steps are being taken to mobilise investment from the Arab Partnership Fund and other institutions to improve employment rates in those areas.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns

We have regular dialogue with the Tunisian government on a range of issues, including their economic development, particularly in marginalised areas like Kasserine.

UK support to Tunisia has doubled in the last year to nearly £6 million, and we will continue this high level of support in the next financial year. Since 2011, working with international partners and using funds including the Arab Partnership, Arab Partnership Economic Facility and Conflict Security and Stability Fund, the UK has supported private sector development, vocational training, job creation, economic governance and transparency, including in marginalised areas. Partners such as Germany, the US, France, the EU, the European Reconstruction and Development Bank, the World Bank and the European Investment Bank are also involved in similar initiatives. It is also important that the Tunisian government sets out and implements its vision for economic and social development. This will help ensure that international support is sustainable.

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

To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether it is their assessment that 82 per cent of the population of Yemen have humanitarian needs; and what action they are taking to prevent deaths from hunger and disease in that country.

Baroness Verma

The United Nations report that 21.2 million people – or 82 per cent of the population – require some kind of humanitarian assistance to meet their basic needs or protect their fundamental rights. The UK government uses this UN report as one of its primary data sources.

The UK is the 4^th largest donor to the crisis in Yemen and has more than doubled its humanitarian support over the last year to £85 million for 2015/16. The UK is funding the World Food Programme, who are supporting over 580,000 beneficiaries with food assistance. The UK has also provided £21.7 million this financial year to UNICEF, who are providing health and nutrition services through hospitals and mobile clinics.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Hylton on 2016-03-17.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by the Earl of Courtown on 15 March (HL6695), whether they will call on the government of Turkey to compensate civilians killed or injured, or whose property has been destroyed or damaged, by artillery, demolitions, or air attacks not only in Cizre, but elsewhere in Turkey.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns

We regularly discuss the situation in Cizre and elsewhere in south east Turkey with the Government of Turkey, who have underlined to us their desire to carry out security operations in a careful manner, fully respecting the rule of law. The Foreign Secretary, my Rt Hon. Friend the Member for Runnymede and Weybridge (Mr Hammond), and our Ambassador to Turkey have emphasised to the Turkish government the need to respect human rights and avoid civilian casualties. We call for a Kurdistan Workers’ Party ceasefire and a return to the peace process. Turkey’s Development Minister has said the government is providing a range of support to those affected and is working on monetary and other forms of compensation for those whose homes and properties have been damaged.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Hylton on 2016-04-25.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government why less than 30 of the 157 children at Calais and identified as eligible for family re-union have so far been admitted to the UK; and what plans they have to improve the processes for re-union.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon

There is no official estimate of the number of children in Calais; this is primarily a matter for the French authorities. It is only possible to assess whether an individual has links to the UK that could enable a transfer on family unity grounds once they make an application for asylum in France.

Once an asylum claim is lodged in another Member State, the Dublin Regulation procedure requesting the UK to take charge of a child on family unity grounds can take place very quickly, often in a matter of weeks, subject to consideration of the evidence in each individual case.

Since February 2016 the UK has accepted 30 requests from France under the Dublin Regulation to take charge of asylum seeking children on family grounds of which 23 have already been transferred to the UK. We are working closely with the French Government and NGOs, including on a joint communications campaign to inform migrants of their options and we provided a senior UK asylum official to the French Government who has put processes in place to support an efficient procedure.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Hylton on 2016-05-18.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they plan to request reports from the UN and from human rights groups on the existence in the Philippines of death-squads and their use to murder alleged criminals and victims of mistaken identity.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns

We do not plan to make such a request at this time as we are already aware of reports by groups such as Human Rights Watch on instances of extra judicial killings. Our Embassy in Manila is in frequent contact with human rights groups and the UN in the Philippines on these and a range of other human rights issues. We also work closely with our EU partners to press for investigations into instances of abuse, and to encourage the protection of human rights defenders. The British Government’s view on the importance of the rule of law is clear, consistent and well known in the Philippines. Our Ambassador wrote an Op-Ed on this subject in the Philippine Star newspaper on 19 May 2016

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Hylton on 2016-06-06.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what information they have received about the present situation of the Tartar population of the Crimea, and in particular, how many of them have been arrested or sentenced, how many exiles have been banned from returning, and whether their mosques have been damaged or destroyed.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns

In March I met Refat Chubarov, the Crimean Tatar leader, to discuss the continuing deterioration of human rights on the peninsula since Russia’s illegal annexation, and how this is impacting the Crimean Tatar community. The Crimea Tatars continue to face regular harassment including arrests, detentions, disappearances and restrictions on their rights of worship, assembly and expression. Many also face pressure to take up Russian Citizenship to re-enter Crimea.

International human rights organisations such as the UN and the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) are currently barred from entering Crimea. The UK continues to call on Russia to use their influence with the ‘de-facto’ Crimean authorities to grant access to international organisations. Nevertheless, we are aware of reports that 18 Crimean Tatars are currently held in Russian-run prisons, while several more are under arrest. We are also aware of seven Crimean Tatars who are banned from entering Crimea. We are not aware of reports of mosques being destroyed, however there are reports that mosques and homes have been raided and those inside questioned by Russian security services. The recent banning of the Mejlis, the highest representative body for the Crimean Tatar community, by the Russian de-facto authorities is another example of the continuing erosion of civil liberties and human rights in Crimea.