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Jamil el-Banna
Sarah Teather: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs (1) when the most recent occasion was on which officials in his Department discussed the case of Jamil el-Banna with the United States Administration; [55031]
(2) how many times (a) he, (b) Ministers in his Department and (c) officials in his Department raised the subject of Jamil el-Banna's captivity in Guantanamo Bay with the United States Administration in the last three years; [55043]
(3) how many letters (a) he, (b) Ministers in his Department and (c) officials in his Department have written to the United States Administration regarding the case of Jamil el-Banna. [55044]
Ian Pearson: It is long-standing policy that the Government cannot make consular representations for individuals who are not British nationals.
However, we agreed exceptionally in March and April 2005 that the then Foreign and Commonwealth Office Minister (right hon. Baroness Symons) should meet the families of those detainees, including Jamil el-Banna whom we knew had been resident in the UK, but who are not British Nationals. She then passed on the concerns expressed to us by the families to the US authorities in April 2005.
We continue to raise concerns of a humanitarian character regarding detentions at Guantanamo with the US authorities on a regular basis. We have raised issues
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relating to detainees who were formerly resident in the UK, including Mr. el Banna's case, with the US on a number of occasions since April 2005, as part of these regular exchanges.
Kurdish Region
Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on (a) political progress and (b) the impact of unification in the two Kurdish administrations since the war in the Kurdish region of Iraq. [54782]
Dr. Howells: The Kurdish people have a proud tradition of political participation. Following the removal of the former regime, the two Kurdish administrations agreed to form one unified Kurdish Regional Government (KRG). This will be a challenging task—merging the two governments involves downsizing from 27 to 16 Ministries and reunifying some 400,000 civil servants from the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) and more than 500,000 civil servants from the Kurdish Democratic Party (KDP).
This decision is testament to the Kurds commitment to democratic rule. Nechirvan Barzani, from the KDP, has been named Prime Minister of the KRG and the position of Deputy Prime Minister will be filled by a member from the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan. The KRG continues to play a crucial role in promoting the formation of a government of national unity, and has advocated a strong central government.
Lebanon
John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what steps are being taken by his Department to promote and foster the transition to democracy in Lebanon. [55434]
Dr. Howells: The Government are actively supporting the transition to democracy in Lebanon. We are encouraged by Prime Minister Siniora's efforts to undertake political reform. Along with our EU partners, we participated in the monitoring of last June's parliamentary elections. We have also contributed £200,000 to the UN Development Programme's support for the Commission on Electoral Reform.
My right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary, visited Lebanon on 4–5 January to emphasise the UK's commitment to political reform in the Lebanon.
Maldives
Andrew George: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment he has made of the human rights situation in the Maldives. [56137]
Dr. Howells: We continue to have concerns about the human rights situation in the Maldives, including freedom of expression and association and the right to fair trials conducted with due legal process. We are also concerned that some recent trials of political activists appear to have political motivations.
We monitor developments in the Maldives closely. We make clear our concerns about human rights and democracy to the Government of the Maldives
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bilaterally, and with EU partners, on a regular basis. We promote improvements in human rights where we can. We have in the past supported the work of the Human Rights Commission of the Maldives, non-governmental organisations concerned with fair trials and, most recently in January, the training of journalists.
It is essential in this context that the Maldives moves forward quickly with democratic reforms. All political groups in the Maldives need to engage in dialogue to move towards a consensus on constitutional change, within a clear and limited time scale. We strongly support the efforts of the Commonwealth Secretariat and the Commonwealth Secretary-General's Special Envoy in furthering this agenda.
Middle East
Jeremy Corbyn: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what the Government's policy is on the borders of the state of Israel. [56775]
Dr. Howells: As the Quartet has consistently made clear, we continue to believe that, final status issues can only be resolved through negotiations and agreement between the parties themselves. We share the Quartet's goal of a two-state solution with Israel secure within her borders and Palestine established as a viable, contiguous state. We shall continue to work to this end.
Nuclear Co-operation
Mr. Clegg: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what is the UK Government's policy on a US-India agreement on nuclear co-operation. [56734]
Dr. Howells: As my right hon. Friend the Prime Minister said on 2 March, we warmly welcome the announcement that India and the US have reached agreement on civil nuclear co-operation, as announced by President Bush and Prime Minister Singh on 2 March.
We believe the agreement can make a significant contribution to energy security, development, economic and environmental objectives for India and the international community, as well as represent a net gain for the non-proliferation regime.
The Government have supported this initiative from its inception and has been actively involved throughout. We will continue to work closely with the US and India, and with partners in the Nuclear Suppliers Group and elsewhere, on the detail of this important issue.
Overseas Offices
David T.C. Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what the running costs were of the Department's offices in (a) Pretoria, (b) Beijing, (c) Amman, (d) Islamabad, (e) Bangkok, (f) Bridgetown, (g) Brasilia, (h) Kingstown, (i) Montserrat, (j) Paris and (k) Rome in 2004–05. [54664]
Dr. Howells:
The running costs of the missions listed in the question in 2004–05 were as follows:
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The figures derive from the expenditure allocated to the budget for each mission, on a range of accounts covering all aspects of the day-to-day running of the mission. The salaries and allowances of the UK-based staff at each mission are not included as this information could be collated only at disproportionate cost.
Palestine
Mr. Brady: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether (a) he and (b) his officials have received representations from the French government on the future funding of the Palestinian Authority since the formation of the new Palestinian Cabinet. [55877]
Dr. Howells: On 27 February, my right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary discussed funding for the Palestinian Authority with his French counterpart. The Quartet (EU, UN, US and Russia) agrees that all members of a future Palestinian government must be committed to non-violence, recognition of Israel, and acceptance of previous agreements and obligations, including the Roadmap. There is a fundamental contradiction between armed group and militia activities and the building of a democratic state. We support this approach.
Mr. Clappison: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assurances have been (a) sought from and (b) given by the Palestinian Authority about adherence to (i) international agreements, (ii) renunciation of violence and (iii) recognition of Israel following the Palestinian legislative elections. [56063]
Dr. Howells: The Quartet (EU, UN, US and Russia) agrees that all members of a future Palestinian government must be committed to non-violence, recognition of Israel, and acceptance of previous agreements and obligations, including the Roadmap. We support this approach.
We fully support Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas's speech at the inauguration of the Palestinian Legislative Council on 18 February calling for the pursuit of negotiations, non-violence, and respect for existing agreements and recognition of Israel. We seek the same assurances from Hamas.
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