Tag: Lord Judd

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Judd on 2016-01-19.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government, in the light of the changes in leadership in the Office for Nuclear Regulation and the Environment Agency, whether they remain confident that the regulation of the siting, design and construction of the Geological Disposal Facility, and of other nuclear plant construction and commissioning, is and will continue to be sufficiently staffed and supported with the necessary level of expertise and resources to fulfil their supervisory responsibilities.

Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth

The Department meets regularly with the Office for Nuclear Regulation and the Environment Agency to review their current and planned resources to deliver their programme of work. Based on these agreed project and workforce plans, I am confident both regulators will continue to have the resources they need across all disciplines to carry out their current and planned future programme.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Judd on 2016-05-19.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they are taking, in Calais and throughout Europe, to enhance the processes for identifying children with rights to family reunion in the UK.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon

The UK and France are running regular joint communication campaigns in northern France which inform unaccompanied children and others of their right to claim asylum in France and of the family reunion process. The frequency of these campaigns has been increased in line with the Joint Declaration signed in August 2015. Since February 2016 more than 20 children have been transferred to the UK from France and there are many other cases in train.

75 UK personnel will be deployed to Greece to support implementation of the EU-Turkey Migration Agreement. Supporting the operation of the Greek asylum system is a fundamental part of our approach to identifying individuals in need of protection at the earliest opportunity, including those who may be eli-gible for family reunification under the Dublin Regulation. We are also providing bilateral support to the Dublin Unit in Italy.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Judd on 2016-05-24.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what are the tasks and role of UK military personnel committed to service at the headquarters of the UN.

Earl Howe

The UK currently has four military personnel at the United Nations (UN) headquarters in New York:

The Deputy Military Advisor to the UN Secretary General and Deputy Head of the Office of Military Affairs (OMA).

A Special Assistant/Military Assistant to the Military Advisor to the UN Secretary General and Head of the OMA.

A Military Planner within the Military Planning Service of the OMA.

A Gender Advisor seconded to the OMA.

These officers support the UN by: providing strategic and operational military advice on the efficiency and the effectiveness of military components in UN Peacekeeping missions; conducting research and contributing to the development of policy; maintaining close links to national Permanent Missions to the UN; and liaising with non-governmental organisations. The Gender Advisor also ensures implementation of Security Council resolutions on Women, Peace and Security (WPS), providing advice on recruitment and force generation, and support to military gender advisors at Field Headquarters. WPS and the Prevention of Sexual Violence in Conflict Initiative are HMG priorities, and the Gender Advisor is uniquely placed to influence the UN’s work on these issues.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Judd on 2016-09-12.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what response they are making, both bilaterally and multilaterally, to the statement on 8 September of the Commissioner-General of the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine at the extraordinary general meeting called to discuss the acute financial challenges currently faced by the organisation.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns

The UK is a long-term supporter of the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA), and we regularly discuss with UNRWA how it can resolve its financial situation. The UK remains committed to supporting the Agency and Palestinian refugees at this difficult time in the region. My officials are in close contact with UNRWA’s senior management about the current funding position.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Judd on 2016-01-19.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of whether the expertise and staff resources of the Office for Nuclear Regulation and the Environment Agency are sufficient to monitor effectively the investment and inputs in the nuclear industry by China, Japan, France and other foreign investors.

Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth

The Department meets regularly with the Office for Nuclear Regulation and the Environment Agency to review their current and planned resources to deliver their programme of work. Based on these agreed project and workforce plans, I am confident both regulators will continue to have the resources they need across all disciplines to carry out their current and planned future programme.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Judd on 2016-05-19.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of whether improving the accessibility and clarity of the rules covering family reunion, and ensuring that those rules were more flexibility applied, would prevent perilous journeys being undertaken by children seeking asylum in the UK.

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon

Our family reunion policy is intended to allow immediate family members, who formed part of a family unit before the refugee fled their country, to reunite in the UK with the refugee and rebuild their lives together. Those family members can apply from the country in which they are resident.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Judd on 2016-05-24.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many people, and of what nationalities, the UK is training as international peacekeepers; what is the form of such training; and by which UK personnel it is provided.

Earl Howe

Her Majesty’s Government makes a significant contribution to improving the effectiveness of peacekeeping forces through its training activities.

The Ministry of Defence delivers training to overseas militaries through the deployment of Short Term Training Teams (STTTs) and deployable experts, and via our overseas training establishments:

– British Peace Support Team (East Africa) (BPST(EA)), focused on delivering training to African Mission in Somalia contributing countries.

– British Peace Support Training (South Africa) (BPST(SA)), focused on training troops deployed to West Africa (Cote D’Ivoire, Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), and Mali).

– British Military Advisory Training Team (Czech Republic) (BMATT Czech), providing Peace Support Operations (PSOs) training to partner nations including Slovenia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Morocco, and Romania.

– Peace Support Operations Training Centre (PSOTC) (Sarajevo), delivering training to personnel from Bosnia & Herzegovina (BiH) and other countries including Austria, Croatia, Turkey, Tunisia, Latvia, Lithuania, and Estonia.

These establishments provide training on a range of themes including theatre specific pre-deployment training, as well as courses on gender, Preventing Sexual Violence in Conflict Initiative (PSVI), and Human Trafficking. The training is carried out by a wide variety of UK Armed Forces personnel, most of whom are dedicated trainers in their fields. They also draw on the expertise of other specialists within the Forces.

In the last 12 months, BPST(EA) and deployed UK-based Short Term Training Teams have trained more than 7,000 soldiers and police from nine countries through 68 different training tasks. Training is adapted depending on the needs of the country. BPSTs adjust courses to include high-end technological intelligence training, logistics, counter-IED, and leadership and operational planning.

In the same period, BPST(SA) has trained 1,700 Malawian military personnel in preparation for their deployment to the United Nations Organization Stabilization Mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo (MONUSCO). In the coming year, 600-800 Zambian troops are due to be trained by BPST(SA) before their deployment to the UN Multidimensional Integrated Stabilisation Mission in the Central African Republic (MINUSCA).

BMATT Czech has provided training in Peace Support Operations to 424 personnel from partner countries, a number of whom are now capable of delivering Peace Support Operation training in-country themselves.

PSOTC, now under command of BiH forces, supported by UK trainers, has trained 46 military personnel from a number of countries in preventing sexual violence in conflict.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Judd on 2014-06-26.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what action they are taking to ensure that any extension of the mutual defence agreement with the United States is designed to assist the fulfilment of the purposes of the non-proliferation treaty and to fulfil the undertaking in that context given by the existing nuclear powers.

Baroness Warsi

We are committed to the goal of a world without nuclear weapons and firmly believe that the best way to achieve this is through gradual disarmament negotiated through a step-by-step approach within the framework of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. The UK has a strong record on nuclear disarmament and continues to be at the forefront of international efforts to control proliferation, and to make progress towards multilateral nuclear disarmament. The UK-USA Mutual Defence Agreement is, and will continue to be, in full compliance with our obligations under the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Judd on 2015-02-10.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government, following their policy of prioritising survivors of sexual violence for their Syrian refugee resettlement programme, what similar action they are taking in respect of the situation of Yazidi women and girls.

Lord Bates

The Government is deeply concerned about the crises in Syria and Iraq and the suffering and hardship they are causing for millions of people, particularly those who have endured appalling violence, persecution and abuse. We are committed to helping those in need and have so far provided £39.5 million to help the 2.2 million displaced Iraqis, many of whom were victims of ISIL’s persecution. These funds provide food, shelter, water and medical care to thousands of vulnerable families.

Tackling violence against women and girls is a priority for the Government. The action we are taking includes providing funding to support the UN Population Fund in the coordination and information management of the international response to support victims of sexual and gender based violence. The UK has also specifically committed funding to help establish community outreach teams that are providing psychosocial support and referrals to appropriate services for survivors of sexual and gender based violence.

We will continue to be actively involved in the region and will closely monitor developments but we have no current plans to expand the Syrian Vulnerable Persons Relocation (VPR) scheme, or implement a similar scheme specifically for Iraq.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Judd on 2015-10-05.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answers by Lord Gardiner of Kimble on 17 September (HL1861 and HL1991), what further steps remain in the process of taking a decision about extending the boundaries of the Lake District and Yorkshire Dales National Parks, and what timetable they have set for those further steps to be taken.

Lord Gardiner of Kimble

The Secretary of State is giving careful consideration to the inspector’s report on the inquiry into proposed extensions to the Lake District and Yorkshire Dales National Parks and will issue her decisions in due course.