Contributions
1,953 recent contributions in Hansard
HANSARDBahraini Political PrisonersThe hon. Gentleman seems to think that he has clarified his position, but he has made it more chaotic and incoherent. If he does not think that trade deals are about securing an…13 Jan 2022HANSARDBahraini Political PrisonersI am grateful to the hon. Member for Argyll and Bute (Brendan O’Hara) for securing the debate. It gives me the opportunity to put on record an alternative—and, I suspect, more…13 Jan 2022HANSARDBahraini Political PrisonersOutrageous. The Father of the House, my hon. Friend the Member for Worthing West (Sir Peter Bottomley), said something typically wise: it would not take much for Bahrain to become…13 Jan 2022HANSARDBahraini Political PrisonersMy understanding is that the United Nations is already engaging with Bahrain on a number of the issues that the right hon. Gentleman has put forward. I have a number of other…13 Jan 2022HANSARDBahraini Political PrisonersA number of right hon. and hon. Members have raised the issue of progress and I will come to that, particularly with regard to the Gulf strategy fund. I want to clarify a point…13 Jan 2022HANSARDFCDO StaffingThe hon. Gentleman has raised the case of Luke Symons previously, and directly with me, and I commend him for his work in support of his constituent and his constituent’s family.…16 Dec 2021HANSARDFCDO StaffingI remind the hon. Gentleman and the House that we have gone through an unprecedented financial contraction because of covid. The British Council, which derives a significant…16 Dec 2021HANSARDFCDO StaffingI remind the hon. Lady and the House that there is a difference between the figure that is used internally by officials for planning purposes and decisions that are made by…16 Dec 2021HANSARDFCDO StaffingThe hon. Gentleman invites me to make spending commitments at the Dispatch Box, and sadly I am not able to. He raises an important and interesting point. I will pass on his thanks…16 Dec 2021HANSARDFCDO StaffingThe integrated review sets out our priorities. The Government will ensure that our diplomatic teams and our civil servants, both in the FCDO and in other forward-facing parts of…16 Dec 2021HANSARDFCDO StaffingI repeat my point that these decisions will be made by Ministers in the new year in line with the timetable set out in the spending review.16 Dec 2021HANSARDFCDO StaffingTo respond to my hon. Friend’s kind words about my command of the Arabic language, shukran jazeelan. Actually, I will accept his compliment on behalf of the members of the FCDO…16 Dec 2021HANSARDFCDO StaffingThe hon. Gentleman knows that I have a huge degree of respect for him. However, his questions are predicated on a starting point which I have just said at the Dispatch Box is not…16 Dec 2021HANSARDFCDO StaffingI thank my hon. and gallant Friend for the question. Let me start off by saying that the Foreign Secretary has made it clear—and, indeed, my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister…16 Dec 2021HANSARDFCDO StaffingMy hon. Friend makes an incredibly important and accurate point about the value that our diplomatic network and our diplomats around that network provide. We are all incredibly…16 Dec 2021HANSARDFCDO StaffingOnce again the hon. Gentleman throws around the figure of 20% staff cuts. I can tell him that it is nonsense. The UK remains a top-tier global diplomatic powerhouse. I pay…16 Dec 2021HANSARDFCDO StaffingI thank my hon. Friend for his comments. When I visit our posts around the world—around my region—I am incredibly pleased to see the seamless integration of various Departments…16 Dec 2021HANSARDFCDO StaffingThe situation in Afghanistan remains terrible, which is why we have doubled our financial support to it, for the very reasons that the hon. Lady highlighted. We will continue to…16 Dec 2021HANSARDFCDO StaffingI thank my right hon. Friend and predecessor for that point. Diplomacy and the nature of international relations are changing. We have to invest in future-facing resources, which…16 Dec 2021HANSARDFCDO StaffingAs I have said a number of times, the decisions about the future structure, prioritisation and orientation of the Department will be made by Ministers in due course and the…16 Dec 2021