Tag: The Lord Bishop of Coventry

The below Parliamentary question was asked by The Lord Bishop of Coventry on 2015-11-17.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the humanitarian conditions inside Camp Liberty.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns

The UN Assistance Mission for Iraq (UNAMI) monitors Camp Liberty and has judged humanitarian standards inside the Camp to be well in excess of basic humanitarian standards. Trucks containing food, medicine and diesel fuel continue to routinely enter the camp.

We continue to engage with the Government of Iraq on the welfare of the residents of Camp Liberty. Our Embassy in Baghdad regularly raises this issue with the Government of Iraq. We support UN calls for more to be done to protect residents, but remain of the view that the Government of Iraq is responsible for security at the camp.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by The Lord Bishop of Coventry on 2016-07-20.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what representations they have made this year to the government of Saudi Arabia regarding the use of beheading and crucifixion as criminal punishments.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns

The UK opposes the death penalty in all circumstances and in every country, especially for crimes other than the most serious and for juveniles, in line with the minimum standards set out in the EU Guidelines on the Death Penalty of 2008 and the provisions of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the Arab Charter on Human Rights.

We continue to raise the cases of Ali Al-Nimr, Dawood Al-Marhoon and Adullah Al-Zaher with the Saudi authorities at the highest levels, including during the former Foreign Secretary, my Rt Hon. Friend the Member for Runnymede and Weybridge (Mr Hammond)’s most recent visit to Saudi Arabia on 29 May. We expect that Ali Al-Nimr and the two others who were convicted as juveniles will not be executed.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by The Lord Bishop of Coventry on 2015-12-07.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of Iraq’s National Identity Law, and the impact that it will have on religious minorities in Iraq and their right to freedom of religion or belief.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns

We are concerned by Iraq’s proposed National Identity Law, in particular Article 26 which could restrict freedom of religion or belief, which is a basic human right.

We welcome the resolution adopted by the majority of the Iraqi Council of Representatives on 17 November declaring its intention to amend the law.

The National Identity Law is yet to be discussed since Parliament has been in recess. We will continue to monitor this issue closely.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by The Lord Bishop of Coventry on 2016-07-20.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the levels of discrimination experienced by Shia citizens in Saudi Arabia in the fields of public education, government employment and religious freedom.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns

We frequently raise religious freedom as part of our dialogue with the Saudi authorities on a wide range of human rights issues, including freedom of thought, conscience and religion. We pursue this dialogue though a variety of means, including diplomatic channels and Ministerial visits. The Saudi Arabian authorities are encouraging reforms at a pace that is acceptable to Saudi society.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by The Lord Bishop of Coventry on 2015-12-07.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what representations they have made to the government of Iraq regarding the National Identity Law and the right to freedom of religion or belief for all in Iraq.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns

We are closely following the proposed National Identity Law in Iraq. Our Embassy in Baghdad has raised at the highest level our concern about the potential effect of the Law, particularly Article 26, on minority ethnic and religious communities of Iraq. We have called on the members of the Council of Representatives to reconsider Article 26 and either remove it, or amend it from the proposed law. We have asked that the determination of the child’s religion for purposes of personal status law should only be made once she or he turns 18 years of age. We welcome the resolution adopted by the majority of the Council of Representatives on 17 November declaring its intention to amend the law. We continue to encourage the Government of Iraq to recognise all religious groups and ensure freedom of religion or belief in Iraq.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by The Lord Bishop of Coventry on 2016-07-20.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the decision by the Specialised Criminal Court in Saudi Arabia to sentence Ali Mohammed Baqir Al-Nimr, Abdullah Al-Zaher and Dawood Al-Marhoon to death by crucifixion for seeking democratic reforms in that country.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns

The UK opposes the death penalty in all circumstances and in every country, especially for crimes other than the most serious and for juveniles, in line with the minimum standards set out in the EU Guidelines on the Death Penalty of 2008 and the provisions of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the Arab Charter on Human Rights.

We continue to raise the cases of Ali Al-Nimr, Dawood Al-Marhoon and Adullah Al-Zaher with the Saudi authorities at the highest levels, including during the former Foreign Secretary, my Rt Hon. Friend the Member for Runnymede and Weybridge (Mr Hammond)’s most recent visit to Saudi Arabia on 29 May. We expect that Ali Al-Nimr and the two others who were convicted as juveniles will not be executed.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by The Lord Bishop of Coventry on 2015-12-08.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what has been the financial cost to date of UK air strikes against Daesh in Iraq.

Earl Howe

It is not possible to separate out the costs of military action in Iraq from that of wider counter-Daesh operations due to the inter-related nature of UK military activity. The net additional cost of UK counter-Daesh operations to date is approximately £150 million. This includes around £80 million for military operations between August 2014 – 31 March 2015 and a net additional cost to date in this financial year of around £70 million.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by The Lord Bishop of Coventry on 2015-12-08.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is the projected financial cost for this financial year of UK air strikes against Daesh in Syria.

Earl Howe

It is not possible to separate out the costs of military action in Syria from that of wider counter-Daesh operations, due to the inter-related nature of UK military activity. Based on current levels of activity, the net additional cost of increased UK activity in Syria is not expected to rise above the low tens of millions of pounds.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by The Lord Bishop of Coventry on 2016-03-22.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of progress towards political reconciliation and community cohesion in Iraq.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns

We welcome the commitments that Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi has made to reaching out to all of Iraq’s communities and delivering the reforms needed to progress reconciliation in Iraq.

Although Prime Minister Abadi has taken a number of important steps in this regard, including appointing the most inclusive government that Iraq has seen for a decade and advancing decentralisation, the reconciliation process remains in the early stages, with progress slow.

Key elements of the reconciliation agenda – including legislation aimed at addressing the grievances of Iraq’s communities – remain at various stages of deliberation in Parliament.

During his recent visit to Iraq the Foreign Secretary, my Rt Hon. Friend the Member for Runnymede and Weybridge (Mr Hammond), discussed the importance of genuine reform and meaningful reconciliation with Prime Minister Abadi and emphasised the importance of progress. We continue to support Prime Minister Abadi in his efforts to build a better future for all of Iraqis.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by The Lord Bishop of Coventry on 2015-10-22.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of steps taken by Saudi Arabia to revise textbooks, curricula, and teaching methods to remove content disparaging religions other than Islam.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns

Freedom of religion or belief is severely restricted in Saudi Arabia. Public expression of any religion other than Islam is forbidden, non-Muslims are not permitted to worship openly or establish places of worship in Saudi Arabia although private worship is permitted.

We are aware that the Saudi Arabian authorities have introduced programmes focussed on removing material from text books that might be considered hateful or inciteful. We continue to support dialogue and opportunities for reform.