Written questions by Chowns.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment her Department has made of the potential merits of the United Kingdom joining the Partnership for a Lead-Free Future; and whether she plans to do so.

Awaiting answer.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, with reference to the UK Statement for the Open-Ended Intergovernmental Working Group on Transnational Corporations published 20 October 2025, when her department will publis

The Government remains committed to the implementation of the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights. Work on the UK's National Baseline Assessment is ongoing, and it will be published in the normal way in due course.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment her Department has made of the risks faced by women from religious minority communities in Afghanistan.

Further to the answer provided in the House of Lords on 9 June in response to Question HL416, which I have included below for ease:"Afghanistan is a focus country for the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office's strategy on freedom of religion ...

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what role the UK is playing at the UN Human Rights Council in relation to women’s rights and Freedom of Religion or Belief in Afghanistan.

Further to the answer provided in the House of Lords on 9 June in response to Question HL416, which I have included below for ease:"Afghanistan is a focus country for the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office's strategy on freedom of religion ...

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, if she will take diplomatic steps to encourage the Lebanese Government to accede to the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court.

The UK Government is a supporter of the International Criminal Court (ICC) and the Rome Statute and remains committed to promoting accountability for the most serious international serious crimes. The UK encourages all states to engage constructively with...

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, if she will make an assessment of the potential implications for her policies of the recommendation in Human Rights Watch's report entitled From Bogotá to El Fasher, publishe

I refer the Hon Member to the answer provided on 8 June to Question 4500.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps her Department is taking to prepare humanitarian support for countries bordering the Democratic Republic of the Congo in the event of the Ebola outbreak spreading.

Further to my statement to the House on 21 May (HCWS60), the Minister of State for International Development visited Kinshasa on 29 May to see first-hand how agencies on the ground are responding to the Ebola outbreak, with the support of the UK and other...

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what diplomatic steps her Department is taking to ensure safe and unrestricted humanitarian access in areas of the Democratic Republic of the Congo affected by the Ebola outb

Further to my statement to the House on 21 May (HCWS60), the Minister of State for International Development visited Kinshasa on 29 May to see first-hand how agencies on the ground are responding to the Ebola outbreak, with the support of the UK and other...

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps her Department is taking to ensure that healthcare workers in the Democratic Republic of the Congo are safeguarded from the Ebola outbreak.

Further to my statement to the House on 21 May (HCWS60), the Minister of State for International Development visited Kinshasa on 29 May to see first-hand how agencies on the ground are responding to the Ebola outbreak, with the support of the UK and other...

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether she has made an assessment of the potential merits of the creation of a UN coordinator role to lead regional responses to the Ebola outbreak in central Africa.

Further to my statement to the House on 21 May (HCWS60), the Minister of State for International Development visited Kinshasa on 29 May to see first-hand how agencies on the ground are responding to the Ebola outbreak, with the support of the UK and other...

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what diplomatic steps she is taking with international partners to engage conflict parties in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo to improve humanitarian access to a

Further to my statement to the House on 21 May (HCWS60), the Minister of State for International Development visited Kinshasa on 29 May to see first-hand how agencies on the ground are responding to the Ebola outbreak, with the support of the UK and other...

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what discussions her Department's (a) Ministers and (b) officials based overseas have had with the Government of Indonesia on the clearance of indigenous peoples’ rainforests

We are aware of the ongoing issues around the implementation of food estates in Papua, including in Merauke District.The UK's Human Rights Ambassador, Eleanor Sanders, raised the importance of free, prior and informed consent for indigenous people and loc...

What assessment he has made of the potential impact of the UK's Investor-State Dispute Settlement Scheme on foreign policy goals.

The UK is party to 77 Bilateral Investment Treaties (BITs) that contain Investor-State Dispute Settlement (ISDS). The UK’s international investment agreements aim to enhance opportunities for UK businesses to expand overseas, with commitments that seek to limit the barriers they face, make it easier to navigate local rules, and ensure investments are treated lawfully, and protected against unfair or arbitrary action. These are fully consistent with our foreign policy goals and our economic ambitions for the country. We keep the operation of these provisions under review.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether she has made an assessment of the risk of the possibility of arms supplied from the UK to Israel being used to commit serious violations of humanitarian law in Iran and Lebanon.

I refer the Hon Member to the answer provided on 2 April in response to Question 122968.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether she has made an assessment of the risk of the possibility of arms supplied from the UK to the USA being used to commit serious violations of humanitarian law in Iran.

I refer the Hon Member to the answer provided on 2 April in response to Question 122968.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether she plans to attend the 2026 Review Conference of the Parties to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons in April and May 2026.

I refer the Hon Member to the answer provided by the Minister of State for Defence in the House of Lords, Lord Coaker, on 10 December 2025, Official Report, vol. 851, cols. 235-238. We will confirm details of representation at the conference in the usual way in due course.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps her Department is taking to help increase humanitarian access for INGOs operating in Sudan.

I refer the Hon Member to the statement made by the Foreign Secretary on 5 February following her recent visit to the Chad-Sudan border.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what information her Department holds on the number of UK citizens who have been (a) arrested, (b) detained and (c) deported by the Israeli authorities for picking olives in the West Bank; and whether her Department has made representations on behalf of those people.

We provided consular assistance to fewer than five British nationals detained by Israel in October 2025, all of whom have subsequently left the region. It is our long-standing policy not to publish statistical information on the reasons for consular assistance where fewer than five people have been affected, as this risks identifying the individuals involved.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, for what reason the UK opposed advancing discussions on a new optional protocol on free education at the Intergovernmental Working Group on Free Education in September 2025; and whether she plans to review that decision.

The UK is committed to investing in children and promoting equal access to education. The UK already provides free primary and secondary education and has been supporting partners globally to deliver education for all. We challenged the need for a new optional protocol as free secondary education is already provided for under the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child and the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights. States Parties to these treaties should already be providing free education.We do not believe the resources required to develop a new treaty solely on free pre-primary education are justified when they could otherwise be used to implement existing international obligations.This position is in line with several UN entities, including United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund (UNICEF), the leading actor on child rights with a global presence and understanding of lived realities.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 21 October 2025 to Question 80475 on Israel: Palestine, what response she has received from the Israeli Government in relation to her calls to allow the International Committee of the Red Cross unfettered and immediate access to detention facilities.

Ministers and officials continue to raise this as a priority with our Israeli counterparts, and we will keep the House updated on the progress of these efforts.