theodi/ndl-core-corpus huggingface dataset:
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Lewis Cocking:To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will make it her policy to (a) bring forward legislative proposals and (b) strengthen enforcement on fast food delivery companies to ensure they are not employing illegal immigrants. \p Dame Angela Eagle: Yes.

Through the Border Security, Asylum and Immigration Bill, the Government is introducing tough new laws to clamp down on illegal working, including in the food delivery sector. This means that for the very first time, employment checks will be extended to cover businesses hiring gig economy and zero-hours workers in sectors like food delivery.

The Government is also already working closely with all major food delivery platforms to ensure they understand their responsibilities in terms of preventing illegal working. As a result, Deliveroo, Uber Eats and Just Eat are now undertaking employment checks on all of their workers, including registered substitutes.
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Lewis Cocking:To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many and what proportion of people who arrived in the UK illegally were granted leave to remain in the last 12 months. \p Dame Angela Eagle: The Home Office publishes statistics on detected irregular arrivals to the UK in the ‘Immigration System Statistics Quarterly Release’. Data on outcomes of asylum claims from small boat arrivals is published by arrival date in table Irr_D03 of the ‘Irregular migration to the UK detailed datasets’, and by initial decision date in table Asy_02c of the ‘asylum summary tables’, with the latest data up to the end of March 2025. Data on asylum outcomes for people who arrived irregularly by other routes is not published.
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Apsana Begum:To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what plans her Department has to increase the number of available appointments at the Visa Application Centre in Minsk, Belarus. \p Seema Malhotra: UK Visas and Immigration (UKVI) monitor the number of appointments released in Minsk on a regular basis and work with our supplier, VFS, to provide additional slots where this is possible. UKVI review appointment requests for those customers with compelling or compassionate circumstances, where there is an urgent need to travel, as well as applications from family members of British nationals or those applying for a EUSS Family permit to prioritise these customer groups.
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Ben Obese-Jecty:To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps she has taken to house asylum seekers who enter the country illegally with a pet; and what happens to the pet. \p Dame Angela Eagle: The Home Office has an obligation to provide destitute asylum seekers with accommodation and subsistence support whilst their application for asylum is being considered.  This does not extend to accommodating pet animals.

Great Britain has one of the toughest pet border checking regimes in the world and we are committed to preserving the UK’s high standards of biosecurity and animal welfare.

If full compliance with our import health requirements cannot be demonstrated pets will be placed in quarantine at the owner’s expense, which can be up to four months depending on the circumstances. Where an individual is unable to pay quarantine fees, this may result in the pet being rehomed.

The Hon Member’s question may have been prompted by media reports on 20-21 May stating that – for the first time – a dog (reported to be an Alsatian) had been taken into quarantine at Dover after arriving with its owner by small boat.

For the official record, I can clarify that this was not the first dog to arrive by small boat, but the fifth since 2021, and it was not an Alsatian but a Chihuahua. The four dogs previously recorded as arriving over that period came on 21/8/21 (Mixed Breed), 14/6/22 (Jack Russell), 11/10/22 (Pomeranian) and 24/8/23 (Yorkshire Terrier).
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Claire Hanna:To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the average waiting time is for any asylum seeker to receive a decision from the date they claimed asylum. \p Dame Angela Eagle: The average time taken to process a substantive decision is not currently available from published data and could only be collated and verified for the purposes of answering this question at disproportionate cost.

However, the Home Office does publish data on the number of asylum claims awaiting an initial decision by duration in table Asy_D03 of the ‘Asylum detailed datasets’, as part of the ‘Immigration System Statistics Quarterly Release’.

Additionally, data on the percentage of applications processed within 6 months is published in table ASY_01 of the ‘Immigration and Protection’ data of the Migration Transparency Data collection.
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Claire Hanna:To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the average waiting time for a decision for any asylum seeker is once they have received confirmation that their application is receiving prioritisation due to compassionate circumstances. \p Dame Angela Eagle: The requested information is not currently available from published data and could only be collated and verified for the purposes of answering this question at disproportionate cost.

However, the Home Office does publish data on the number of asylum claims awaiting an initial decision by duration in table Asy_D03 of the ‘Asylum detailed datasets’, as part of the ‘Immigration System Statistics Quarterly Release’.

Additionally, data on the percentage of applications processed within 6 months is published in table ASY_01 of the ‘Immigration and Protection’ data of the Migration Transparency Data collection.
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Mike Tapp:To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, which database systems are the people who have arrived via small boat crossing checked against for (a) criminal and (b) counter-terrorism information; and how long does it take on average for full checks on people to be conducted and the full results received. \p Dame Angela Eagle: The Home Office checks all small boat arrivals against a range of secure systems. These include internal databases, law enforcement records, biometric verification platforms and immigration history systems.

Biometrics and biographic details taken are checked and compared against relevant Home Office systems and police criminality databases, including domestic and international data to establish whether the person is a threat to public safety.

Timings for the returns of results can vary, some systems provide instant access due to direct integration and others require third party intervention. Overall, we aim to receive results within 24-hours.

All security checks are completed before any individual is bailed from Manston.
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Natasha Irons:To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what information her Department holds on the number of assessments undertaken by the National Age Assessment Board that were subject to a legal challenge in (a) 2023 and (b) 2024; and how many and what proportion of those decisions found in favour of the National Age Assessment Board. \p Dame Angela Eagle: The number of age assessments undertaken by the National Age Assessment Board that were subject to a legal challenge was 22 in total (1 in 2023 and 21 in 2024).

20 of the 22 age assessments decisions were successfully defended (91%).
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Matt Vickers:To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the (a) total headcount and (b) full-time equivalent number of police officers was in England and Wales as of 30 June in each year from 2015 to 2024. \p Dame Diana Johnson: The Home Office collects and publishes data on the size of the police workforce in England and Wales, as at 31 March and 30 September each year, on a full-time equivalent (FTE) and headcount basis, in the ‘Police Workforce, England and Wales’ statistical bulletin, available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/police-workforce-england-and-wales.

While data as at 30 June has not historically been routinely collected, between 31 March 2020 and 2023, during the Police Officer Uplift Programme, the Home Office published quarterly data on the number of police officers (headcount only) in England and Wales. This included quarterly data for June 2020 to June 2022 and can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/police-officer-uplift-statistics

Additionally, the latest release of the Police Workforce statistics included an ad-hoc Annex to show the number of officers in England and Wales, on a headcount basis, at 30 June 2024: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/police-workforce-england-and-wales-30-september-2024/police-workforce-england-and-wales-30-september-2024#annexa

Information prior to June 2020 was not collected centrally.
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Anneliese Dodds:To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether the Defending Democracy Taskforce has made an assessment of the potential implications for its policies of the report by Demos entitled Epistemic Security 2029: Protecting the UK’s information supply chain and strengthening democratic discourse for the next political era, published on 29 November 2024. \p Dan Jarvis: The Department for Science, Innovation and Technology is a core member of the Defending Democracy Taskforce and is working to build information resilience and protect our democracy, including through key levers such as the Online Safety Act.

My officials have been in touch with Demos to learn more about their work and consider any potential policy implications arising from their research.
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Kevin Hollinrake:To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 21 May 2025 to Question 52622 on National Security: China, what information her Department holds on whether the United Front Work Department has sought to interfere in the planning process for the proposed Chinese Embassy in London. \p Dan Jarvis: In line with my previous response to UIN 29609 on 12/02/25, the planning application has been called in by the Secretary of State for the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government and she will make this quasi-judicial decision independent from the rest of Government, and from any form of external interference by any other party.
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Charlotte Cane:To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what progress her Department has made on recruiting a Permanent Prevent Commissioner. \p Dan Jarvis: The Home Secretary announced the creation of a new Independent Prevent Commissioner role in a statement to the House on 17 December 2024.

Lord David Anderson KC was announced as the interim Commissioner on 21 January, to allow work to begin swiftly.

An open competition to recruit the permanent Independent Prevent Commissioner is underway, and an update will be provided once an appointment has been made.
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Anneliese Dodds:To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps the Defending Democracy Taskforce (a) has taken and (b) plans to take to help tackle threats to democracy outside of election periods. \p Dan Jarvis: The Defending Democracy Taskforce is driving forward a programme of work to secure the democratic integrity of the UK from the full range of threats. Alongside its work to protect elections, since the General Election the Taskforce has:

Engaged with international partners to share lessons learnt and expertise to help tackle similar threats to our democracies.
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Chris Law:To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to help ensure humanitarian access in Sudan. \p Mr Hamish Falconer: The UK is playing a leading role in response to the crisis in Sudan, including efforts to facilitate more consistent humanitarian access into and within the country. On 13 February, the previous Development Minister convened a Development Ministers' meeting, alongside the Emergency Relief Coordinator, Tom Fletcher, to focus on how we can accelerate and improve the UN-led international humanitarian response and better coordinate donor advocacy and engagement. At the April London Sudan Conference, the Foreign Secretary highlighted the importance of humanitarian access and the co-chairs' statement from the Conference called on the warring parties to facilitate rapid, safe, and unimpeded humanitarian access in accordance with the commitments made in the Jeddah Declaration, and in adherence with their obligations under international humanitarian law. He also announced £120 million which will deliver life-saving services to more than 650,000 people.
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Mr Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi:To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether he plans to remain a signatory to the Convention on the Prohibition of the Use, Stockpiling, Production and Transfer of Anti-Personnel Mines and on their Destruction. \p Stephen Doughty: The Convention on the Prohibition of the Use, Stockpiling, Production and Transfer of Anti-Personnel Mines and on their Destruction (also known as the Ottawa Convention) continues to play an important role in protecting civilians from harm caused by anti-personnel landmines. As a State Party to the Ottawa Convention, the UK's commitment to it remains unwavering. We continue to encourage countries to join the Ottawa Convention and subscribe to its provisions, and we discourage States from using anti-personnel landmines.

His Majesty's Government continues to publicly express its commitment to the Ottawa Convention, most recently by Minister of State, Baroness Chapman, at a House of Lords debate on Landmines and Cluster Munitions on 03 April 2025.

[https://hansard.parliament.uk/Lords/2025-04-03/debates/F6C91136-946C-463C-81BC-A41C98E6386D/LandminesAndClusterMunitions]
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Anneliese Dodds:To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether human rights issues in Kyrgyzstan have been examined within the framework of the Developing Countries Trade Scheme. \p Stephen Doughty: The UK Government reserves the right to suspend preferences on particular goods, or to suspend a country from the Developing Countries Trading Scheme (DCTS) if it finds that they have seriously and systemically breached international conventions in relation to human rights.

When considering suspensions, the UK may assess, among other things, the impact on the beneficiary country's economic and development prospects, the impact on the country's most vulnerable people and the effectiveness of a suspension in bringing about change.

The UK continues to encourage all states to uphold their international human rights obligations, and hold all those who violate or abuse human rights to account. Our Embassy in Bishkek actively monitors the human rights situation in Kyrgyzstan and ministers have raised concerns regarding human rights and media freedom with the Kyrgyz Government.
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Chris Law:To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps he is taking to help ensure that (a) parties to and (b) foreign backers of the conflict in Sudan (i) comply with international humanitarian law and (ii) are held accountable for violations. \p Mr Hamish Falconer: In response to the brutal conflict in Sudan the UK is doing all it can to strengthen adherence to international humanitarian law (IHL), to promote accountability for violations and to improve the protection context for civilians. The UK is using its position as penholder at the UN Security Council and leader of the core group on Sudan at the Human Rights Council to keep a spotlight on, and take actions in response to, the human rights situation in Sudan. To bolster our monitoring capacity we are funding the Centre for Information Resilience (CIR) who are leading efforts to gather open-source evidence about attacks against civilians and infrastructure as well as leading work to monitor hate speech and incitement of violence across the country. We are also providing support to the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) to enable their human rights monitoring and reporting, and in October, led the renewal of the UN Fact Finding Mission for Sudan's mandate as part of the Sudan 'Core Group' in the Human Rights Council. These are vital mechanisms to ensure that evidence of human rights violations and abuses are collected, preserved, and can be used to hold perpetrators to account.  The UK also strongly supports the International Criminal Court's active investigation into the situation in Darfur, including allegations of crimes committed since April 2023.
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Katie Lam:To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether he has a line in his Departmental budget for costs arising from the planned transfer of sovereignty of the British Indian Ocean Territory to Mauritius. \p Stephen Doughty: The Agreement will be underpinned by a financial package which will consist of: an annual payment; a Development Framework underpinned by UK grant funding; and a Trust Fund to benefit Chagossians.  Costs and other aspects of the Treaty can be found at the following link - https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/ukmauritius-agreement-concerning-the-chagos-archipelago-including-diego-garcia-cs-mauritius-no12025
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Anneliese Dodds:To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether human rights issues in Kyrgyzstan were discussed at the first meeting of the Kyrgyz-British Strategic Dialogue in February 2025. \p Stephen Doughty: I raised human rights issues with my Kyrgyz counterpart during the inaugural UK-Kyrgyz Strategic Dialogue in February 2025. We regularly raise human rights at ministerial level with Kyrgyzstan.
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Wendy Morton:To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, with reference to the oral contribution from the Minister of State for Sanctions Implementation and Enforcement on 15 May 2025, Official Report, col 525, when he plans to update the House on how a new joint sanctions intelligence function fit into the existing intelligence framework. \p Stephen Doughty: In the conclusions of the sanctions enforcement review, the Government committed to explore options for more effective join up on intelligence, including the merits of a new joint sanctions intelligence function. This scoping will take place during the current financial year. I will keep the House updated on progress in implementing the review conclusions.
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Wendy Morton:To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, if he will make an assessment of the potential implications for his policies of the potential link between extreme weather events and the number of malaria cases. \p Stephen Doughty: The UK recognises the important links between extreme weather events, exacerbated by climate change, and the number of malaria cases. The UK has spearheaded global efforts to recognise the impacts of climate change on health, through the UN Climate Change Conference of the Parties (COP), and to build stronger, climate resilient health systems that are better placed to respond to malaria in the context of extreme weather events through the Climate Resilient and Sustainable Health Systems Programme and Climate and Health Research Programme. We are also a leading donor in the fight against malaria through our support to the Global Fund and Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance.
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Wendy Morton:To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, if he will make an assessment of the potential impact of UK-based research and development into neglected topical diseases on (a) global health security and (b) jobs in the UK. \p Stephen Doughty: Investment in UK based neglected diseases research and development (R&D) has led to many groundbreaking innovations which have helped to improve and save many lives around the world. On global health security - work on early candidates for malaria vaccines by scientists at Oxford's Jenner Institute laid the foundations for the development of the Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine candidate for COVID-19. The successful roll out of this vaccine has helped to save millions of lives and generated significant societal and economic value. Investment in UK based R&D has also delivered multiple economic benefits by catalysing private investments and boosting other economic activity.
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Bell Ribeiro-Addy:To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether he has made an assessment of the potential impact of recent political arrests in Tanzania on (a) the rule of law and (b) judicial independence in that country. \p Mr Hamish Falconer: Globally, the UK continuously keeps the security and justice situation in partner countries under review through the Overseas Security and Justice Assistance process.

Representatives of our High Commission in Dar es Salaam are attending the trial of opposition leader Tundu Lissu as observers. Our High Commission has raised recent arrests of political leaders with the Government of Tanzania and has called for due process to be followed accordingly.
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Wendy Morton:To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps he is taking to help support diagnostic testing of fevers in countries in Sub-Saharan Africa. \p Stephen Doughty: The UK Government through the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office is a long-term supporter of Product Development Partnerships to develop novel health technologies for diseases where commercial markets fail. This support has led to the development of diagnostics for sleeping sickness, malaria, tuberculosis and COVID-19. Additionally, the UK's current £1 billion pledge to the Global Fund supports testing, treatment, and prevention initiatives across Sub-Saharan Africa and strengthens health systems, helping countries prevent, prepare for, and respond to pandemics. Programmes supported by the Global Fund performed 335 million malaria tests in 2023. Through our £1.65 billion investment in Gavi, the vaccine alliance from 2021-25, the UK is supporting the vaccination of 300 million children, and the procurement and distribution of yellow fever and cholera diagnostic tests. Finally, our £95 million Tackling Deadly Diseases in Africa programme (TDDAP) is strengthening national public health surveillance and laboratory systems to better detect and respond to public health threats and outbreaks in Ghana, Kenya, Malawi, Uganda and DRC.
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Bell Ribeiro-Addy:To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps he is taking to raise the reported deportation of legal observers and human rights defenders from Tanzania with the Tanzanian authorities. \p Mr Hamish Falconer: We are concerned by the reported treatment of activists seeking to observe the trial of Tundu Lissu. Our High Commission in Dar es Salaam has raised the cases of Boniface Mwangi and Agather Atuhaire with the Government of Tanzania.
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Dr Scott Arthur:To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether he plans to maintain the level of UK funding for the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, TB and Malaria. \p Stephen Doughty: The UK remains committed to tackling global health challenges and will continue to work with all international partners towards the collective goal of a healthier, safer and more prosperous world. As part of this, we are proud to be co-hosting the 8th replenishment of the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria with South Africa and we look forward to the Gavi replenishment on 25 June. Decisions on how the Official Development Assistance budget will be used will be worked through as part of the ongoing Spending Review.
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Wendy Morton:To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of Russian disinformation on the ability of humanitarian agencies to function in Ukraine. \p Stephen Doughty: Foreign information manipulation and interference, including disinformation, is just one of the growing range of divisive and destabilising tools in Russia's hybrid warfare strategy. Disinformation can undermine perceptions of the neutrality of aid workers and relief operations, damaging community acceptance, restricting humanitarian access, and increasing risks for aid workers.

Earlier this year the UK and Ukraine signed a landmark 100 Year Partnership and committed to deeper cooperation to combating foreign information manipulation and interference. The UK also co-sponsored a UN Security Council resolution in May 2024 on the protection of humanitarian personnel worldwide encouraging action against misinformation and disinformation campaigns.
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Wendy Morton:To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what further multilateral steps he plans to take following the London-Sudan Conference on 15 April 2025 to support a political solution in Sudan. \p Mr Hamish Falconer: The Foreign Secretary will continue to use all levers at his disposal to address Sudan's brutal conflict. As part of these efforts, the Foreign Secretary will engage with a range of multilateral partners to improve humanitarian access, to promote the protection of civilians and to secure an end to the fighting. Next month, the UK will, for the first time, join a meeting of the Consultative Group, which comprises representatives from the African Union, the European Union, the Intergovernmental Authority on Development, the League of Arab States and the United Nations, to discuss joint efforts for peace and efforts to bring both parties to the conflict to the negotiating table.
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Wendy Morton:To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps he is taking following the London-Sudan Conference on 15 April 2025 to help secure UN Security Council consensus on Sudan. \p Mr Hamish Falconer: The UK continues to use its position as penholder on Sudan at the United Nations Security Council to take action to improve humanitarian access, to promote the protection of civilians and to secure an end to the fighting. We will work constructively with Council members in pursuit of these aims.
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Wendy Morton:To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent discussions his Department has had with Humanitarian Action on the situation in Sudan. \p Mr Hamish Falconer: Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO) Ministers and officials are in frequent contact with Humanitarian Action for Sudan (HAS) as part of UK efforts to address Sudan's brutal conflict. Officials recently attended the HAS launch event and updated attendees on the London Sudan Conference. Officials have also met with the HAS representatives as part of consultations about future UK-funded humanitarian programmes in Sudan. Prior to the London Conference, the Minister for Africa hosted a roundtable with members of HAS, led by Zeinab Badawi, as part of our pre-Sudan Conference engagement with members of the Sudanese diaspora. This private event provided an opportunity to share ambitions and potential outcomes for the April 15 Sudan Conference and obtain and discuss thinking from HAS. The FCDO greatly values the knowledge and experience that HAS and other diaspora groups bring and we look forward to further engagements with them.
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Wendy Morton:To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps he is taking with international partners to help tackle sexual violence in conflict in Sudan; and what assessment he has made of the potential impact of conflict in Sudan on women and girls. \p Mr Hamish Falconer: The UK remains committed to tackling gender-based violence in Sudan. On 8 May 2025, the Minister for Development visited the Sudan-Chad border to raise awareness of the conflict and speak directly with Sudanese refugees, including survivors of sexual violence and torture. This followed a visit by the Foreign Secretary in January 2025, where he announced £20 million to support to lifesaving sexual and reproductive health services. At the London Sudan Conference on 15 April, the Foreign Secretary announced a further £120 million in UK funding for this financial year. Through the Sudan Free of Female Genital Mutilation programme, UK funding will also support work on protection, prevention and care services in response to the increasing rates of conflict-related sexual violence (CRSV) across Sudan. On 13 March, the Minister for Africa chaired a UN Security Council Briefing on CRSV in Sudan, highlighting the worsening trends and emphasising the need for an immediate cessation of hostilities.
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Wendy Morton:To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment he has made of adequacy of levels of access granted to UN agencies to Sudan for the provision of humanitarian support. \p Mr Hamish Falconer: Impediments to aid delivery imposed by the warring parties in Sudan are having a devastating impact on civilians. Our Ministers and diplomats are doing all they can to improve humanitarian access. During last month's London Sudan Conference, chaired by the Foreign Secretary, attendees agreed to use their influence with the parties, and urge them to lift all impediments, and guarantee safe, rapid, and unimpeded access throughout Sudan for humanitarian supplies and personnel. At the conference the Foreign Secretary announced a further £120 million in UK funding which will provide life-saving aid to more than 650,000 people.
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Wendy Morton:To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 7 May 2025 to Question 48426 on Sudan: Humanitarian Aid, what steps he is taking to ensure that UK aid is reaching the people that need it in Sudan. \p Mr Hamish Falconer: The UK is playing a leading role in response to the crisis in Sudan, including efforts to facilitate more consistent humanitarian access into and within Sudan. We will continue to use all levers at our disposal to address Sudan's brutal conflict and to improve humanitarian access. At the April London Sudan Conference, the Foreign Secretary highlighted the importance of humanitarian access and the co-chairs' statement from the Conference called on the warring parties to facilitate rapid, safe and unimpeded humanitarian access in accordance with the commitments made in the Jeddah Declaration, and in adherence with their obligations under international humanitarian law.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-06-05)

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Wendy Morton:To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 8 May 2025 to Question 47226 on Sudan: Food Aid, what steps he is taking to ensure that UK-funded humanitarian assistance in Sudan directly reaches (a) protection services, (b) maternal healthcare, (c) access to food aid and (d) other services for women and girls. \p Mr Hamish Falconer: The conflict in Sudan is having a devastating impact on civilians throughout the country, particularly women and girls. At the recent London Sudan Conference, the Foreign Secretary announced a package of support budgeted at £120 million which will deliver life-saving services to more than 650,000 people. The majority of this funding will be delivered through key UN agencies, including UNICEF and the World Food Programme which will provide life-saving food and nutrition supplies as well as vital water, sanitation, maternal and hygiene programmes. Through the Sudan Free of Female Genital Mutilation programme, this funding will also support work on protection, prevention and care services in response to the increasing rates of gender-based violence and conflict-related sexual violence across Sudan and provide emergency support to survivors of these atrocities.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-06-05)

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Jim Shannon:To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps he is taking with international partners to (a) help prevent violence against Christian communities in Burkina Faso and (b) support displaced people impacted by religious persecution. \p Mr Hamish Falconer: The UK strongly condemns reports of attacks on religious minorities in Burkina Faso and has consistently called on all actors in Burkina Faso to respect human rights and adhere to international humanitarian law.

The UK remains committed to funding official development aid to address the drivers of conflict and reduce the influence of violent extremist organisations in the region, including through providing over £142 million in bilateral official development aid to the Sahel in Financial Year 2024/25. The majority of this was used on humanitarian aid for displaced people but programmes also promote stability and conflict resolution, provide health services and bolster resilience to climate change.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-06-05)

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Victoria Collins:To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to support humanitarian programmes in central Africa. \p Mr Hamish Falconer: The UK supports a range of humanitarian activities across central Africa, including emergency food assistance, treatment for malnourished children and life-saving sexual and reproductive health services. We are concerned by the escalation of humanitarian needs in central Africa, spurred on by the conflict in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). The UK allocated over £80 million for humanitarian programmes in DRC last financial year (2024-25), including cash and food aid, access to clean water and support to halt the spread of mpox through our health emergencies programme. We are working in partnership with UNHCR to provide vital assistance to refugees in the region, and we aim to assist 3.5 million people with our humanitarian support in DRC this year. The UK remains in regular contact with DRC, Rwanda and other partners to support a peaceful resolution to the conflict in eastern DRC.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-06-05)

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Wendy Morton:To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment he has made of the implications for his Department’s policies of aid blocking by the warring parties in Sudan. \p Mr Hamish Falconer: Impediments to aid delivery imposed by the warring parties in Sudan are having a devastating impact on civilians. UK Ministers and diplomats are doing all they can to improve access. During last month's London Sudan Conference, chaired by the Foreign Secretary, attendees agreed to use their influence with the parties, and urge them to lift all impediments, and guarantee safe, rapid, and unimpeded access throughout Sudan for humanitarian supplies and personnel. At the conference the Foreign Secretary announced a further £120 million in UK funding which will provide life-saving aid to more than 650,000 people.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-06-05)

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Carla Lockhart:To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs what steps he has taken as part of the UK-Nigeria Security and Defence Partnership (a) to help prevent the persecution of religious minorities and (b) to support progress in defeating Boko Haram and Islamic State West Africa. \p Mr Hamish Falconer: Nigeria is facing rising conflict and insecurity. This includes terrorist groups in the North East such as Boko Haram and Islamic State West Africa who target all those who do not subscribe to their extremist views. Through our UK-Nigeria Security and Defence Partnership (SDP), we are working with Nigeria's security forces to tackle insecurity and violence against civilian communities, including those of different religious backgrounds and belief systems. For example, in North-East Nigeria our partnership is delivering vital risk education around Improvised Explosive Devices and establishing civilian-military engagement to address local security needs. As part of the SDP, we have also committed to working with Nigeria to respond to the shared threat of terrorism and violent extremism. At the last UK-Nigeria SDP dialogue in February 2024 we welcomed a commitment from Nigeria on timely, effective and human rights compliant investigations of, and prosecutions for, terrorism crimes.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-06-05)

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Wendy Morton:To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps he is taking to help protect humanitarian workers in Sudan. \p Mr Hamish Falconer: Sudan remains an extremely perilous context for humanitarian personnel. Nearly 100 humanitarian aid workers have been killed since the conflict started in April 2023. To protect civilians including aid workers, the UK continues to advocate that parties to the conflict uphold international humanitarian and human rights obligations as applicable, whilst calling for the implementation of relevant UN Security Council resolutions, including UNSCR 2736 (2024) on El Fasher, Darfur. On 24 April, the Foreign Secretary also issued a statement following renewed attacks in El Fasher, calling for security guarantees in order to deliver aid rapidly and safely.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-06-05)

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Wendy Morton:To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps he is taking to help ensure that the warring parties in Sudan implement United Nations Security Council Resolution 2736. \p Mr Hamish Falconer: The UK continues to use all diplomatic levers at its disposal to press all parties in Sudan to comply with UN Security Council Resolution (UNSCR) 2736. Despite the disgraceful Russian veto in November 2024 of a UK-Sierra Leone led resolution to build on UNSCR 2736, the UK has continued to work with UNSC partners to galvanise Council action on Sudan. This has included securing a UNSC press statement on 17 April which called for the end of hostilities around El Fasher and full implementation of Resolution 2736.
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Wendy Morton:To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps he is taking to support civilians in (a) Zamzam IDP camp and (b) El Fasher in Sudan to reach safety. \p Mr Hamish Falconer: The UK is appalled by the continued violence in and around El Fasher and the Zamzam Internally Displaced Person camp. On 24 April, the Foreign Secretary issued a statement highlighting the unacceptable levels of civilian harm and called on the warring parties to urgently de-escalate. The Foreign Secretary also stated that the UK will continue to use all tools available to hold those responsible for atrocities to account. Through our ongoing humanitarian programme in Sudan the UK is supporting Emergency Response Rooms who play an integral role in identifying safe areas and exit routes for civilians from combat zones and coordinating their transportation options.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-06-05)

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Bell Ribeiro-Addy:To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent representations he has made to the Government of Tanzania on the arrest and prosecution of opposition political leaders on charges of treason. \p Mr Hamish Falconer: Our High Commission in Dar es Salaam regularly discusses issues of governance with the Government of Tanzania and has raised the case of opposition leader Tundu Lissu at senior levels. The Government supports due process and the rule of law in all legal cases.

During his visit to Tanzania this February, the Minister for Africa discussed Tanzania's political environment in his engagements with ministerial counterparts.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-06-05)

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Chris Law:To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to provide (a) humanitarian assistance, (b) support to (i) local and (ii) regional responders and (c) food aid to people in Sudan. \p Mr Hamish Falconer: At the recent London Sudan Conference, the Foreign Secretary announced £120 million which will deliver life-saving services to more than 650,000 people. The majority of this funding will be delivered through key UN agencies, including the United Nations Children's Fund and the World Food Programme who will provide life-saving food and nutrition supplies as well as vital water, sanitation, maternal, and hygiene programmes. This uplift also provides support to local responders both through the Sudan Humanitarian Fund, which supports the Emergency Response Rooms (ERRs), and the Mercy Corps-led Cash Consortium for Sudan which provides direct cash assistance to Mutual Aid Groups and ERRs on the ground. Our funding will also support displaced people across Sudan and regional countries affected by conflict.
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Source: hansard.parliament.uk (2025-06-05)

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Anneliese Dodds:To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, if he will make an assessment of the potential implications for his policies of trends in levels of suicide among women impacted by conflict in Sudan. \p Mr Hamish Falconer: The human cost of the conflict in Sudan is appalling with the warring parties showing a total disregard for the wellbeing of civilians and women and girls bearing the brunt of the violence. Reports that survivors of sexual violence are said to be increasingly contemplating suicide is an indication of how desperate the context is. The UK is doing all it can to address and respond to such abuses. In February, Lord Collins chaired a UN Security Council Briefing on conflict-related sexual violence in Sudan, emphasising the need for an immediate cessation of hostilities. The UK has also led efforts at the Human Rights Council to establish and renew the mandate for the UN Fact-Finding Mission which is crucial for supporting future accountability efforts in Sudan. On 24 April, the Foreign Secretary issued a statement calling for the warring parties to adhere to their commitments under the Jeddah Declaration to protect civilians. This followed the UN Security Council statement, released on 16 April, condemning the escalation of violence and calling for the parties to urgently implement UN Security Council Resolution 2736.