Contributions
1,178 recent contributions in Hansard
HANSARDDiplomatic Relations: Saudi ArabiaAbsolutely not. I raised the issue of detained women campaigners when I was recently in Saudi Arabia, and the Prime Minister has raised the case of Raif Badawi, the blogger who…02 Apr 2019HANSARDDiplomatic Relations: Saudi ArabiaI had not heard that report, but it would be excellent news. I can reassure the right hon. Lady that I raised the issue when I met the Saudi Foreign Minister on my recent visit.…02 Apr 2019HANSARDTopical QuestionsI start by paying tribute to my right hon. Friend the Member for North East Bedfordshire (Alistair Burt), who stepped down last week. He served twice as Minister for the Middle…02 Apr 2019HANSARDTopical QuestionsI am very happy to look into the case in detail for the hon. Gentleman. Turkey may be a NATO ally and an important friend of the United Kingdom, but that does not prevent us from…02 Apr 2019HANSARDTopical QuestionsYes we can, and indeed we will. This November, we will host a major conference on the prevention of sexual violence as a tool of conflict. I have met Nadia Murad and Dr Denis…02 Apr 2019HANSARDTopical QuestionsI would say to them that the shadow Chancellor was absolutely right when he said that Venezuela was “socialism in action”.02 Apr 2019HANSARDTopical QuestionsI think people would see it as very curious that a country that voted to take back control was choosing to cede control in a number of areas of vital national interest. I think…02 Apr 2019HANSARDTopical QuestionsI very much welcome young people being involved in climate change issues; I do not welcome quite so much their missing school to do so. I would say that we are making a lot of…02 Apr 2019HANSARDTopical QuestionsI thank my right hon. Friend for raising this issue, and indeed for raising it consistently. He is absolutely right: Mexico is the most dangerous country in the world in which to…02 Apr 2019HANSARDTopical QuestionsNATO has, I think, been the most successful military alliance ever, and it is the foundation of our rules-based international order. My message is very simple: we must not be…02 Apr 2019HANSARDHong Kong: Six-monthly ReportThe latest six-monthly report on the implementation of the Sino-British Joint Declaration on Hong Kong was published today. It covers the period from 1 July to 31 December 2018.…27 Mar 2019HANSARDImplementation of International Humanitarian Law at Domestic Level: Voluntary ResortI am delighted to inform the House that the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) has today published the United Kingdom Government’s first “Voluntary Report on the Implementation…11 Mar 2019HANSARDMiddle East and YemenThe United Nations describes the situation in Yemen as the worst humanitarian crisis in the world. Of a population of less than 30 million people, 24 million depend on aid for…07 Mar 2019HANSARDPersecution of ChristiansThe UK has long championed freedom of religion, but I am concerned that we could do more for the 240 million Christians estimated to be facing persecution for their faith around…26 Feb 2019HANSARDPersecution of ChristiansThe hon. Gentleman is absolutely right to raise that issue. Good data is available from the campaigning organisation Open Doors, from which we get the figure that there are 240…26 Feb 2019HANSARDPersecution of ChristiansMy right hon. Friend the Minister for the Middle East met the Foreign Minister of Sudan yesterday. We remain concerned; Sudan is one of the five countries where Christians suffer…26 Feb 2019HANSARDPersecution of ChristiansOn 4 July last year, Lord Ahmad, who is in Geneva at the moment, was appointed the Prime Minister’s special envoy for freedom of religious belief. He is himself from a persecuted…26 Feb 2019HANSARDPersecution of ChristiansWe have excellent relations with the new Government of Pakistan; in fact, I spoke to the Pakistani Foreign Minister yesterday. We co-operated on the Asia Bibi issue. We wanted to…26 Feb 2019HANSARDPersecution of ChristiansWe do all we can to raise these issues. I raised freedom of religion issues with my counterpart, Foreign Minister Wang Yi, when I went to China last August. We raised them in…26 Feb 2019HANSARDPersecution of ChristiansIt is often because they are in the grip of totally misguided ideologies. I thank my hon. Friend for his long championing of this issue. It is a little known fact that around 80%…26 Feb 2019