Written questions by Bedford.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent assessment she has made of the effectiveness of British Trade Envoys in securing economic growth opportunities for the UK.

Awaiting answer.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent assessment she has made of the effectiveness of the risk and reward profile for investment decisions of the British International Investment plc.

Awaiting answer.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, how many civil servants in her Department were found to have broken the Civil Service Code in (a) 2024 and (b) 2025.

I refer the Hon Member to the answer provided on 9 January in response to Question 100981.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what progress has been made on reforming the ECHR.

Last month, the Steering Committee for Human Rights of the Council of Europe adopted elements for a Council of Europe Political Declaration on the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) and irregular migration. Negotiations on the Political Declaration continue based on these elements. We are active in negotiations and will continue to work with international partners to ensure that the ECHR remains effective whilst addressing challenges like illegal migration and cross-border crime.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, how many visas has her Department sponsored for foreign nationals employed in the UK.

The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office does not routinely capture or hold nationality data. Nationality requirements arise only where necessary to meet security clearance criteria and are set out at recruitment. Visa information is not held centrally and, in the absence of a specified timeframe, could only be provided at disproportionate cost.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, how many and what proportion of foreign nationals are employed by her Department within its UK operations.

The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office does not routinely capture or hold nationality data. Nationality requirements arise only where necessary to meet security clearance criteria and are set out at recruitment. Visa information is not held centrally and, in the absence of a specified timeframe, could only be provided at disproportionate cost.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, how many civils servants were found to have broken the Civil Service Code in (a) 2024 and (b) 2025.

The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office does not hold Civil Service‑wide data on findings of breaches of the Civil Service Code. Oversight of the Civil Service Code, including centrally held information on its application across government departments, sits with the Cabinet Office.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, how many departmental employees were on performance management plans in (a) 2023, (b) 2024 and (c) 2025.

I refer the Hon Member to the answer provided on 18 November 2025 in response to Question 89585.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what was the total value of non-contractual severance payments across the department in 2023, 2024 and 2025.

I refer the Hon Member to the answer provided on 19 March in response to Question 120757.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether she has made a recent assessment of the potential impact of the nationality of foreign office civil servants on government policy.

All civil servants are appointed on merit and are required under the Civil Service Code to provide impartial, objective advice to Ministers.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether he has received representations from his US counterpart on freedom of speech in the UK.

Like the United States, the UK supports freedom of expression as a fundamental right and we have a long history of promoting freedom of expression globally, underpinned by our commitment to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent assessment he has made of the potential impact of the Houthi rebels in Yemen on the interests of (a) the UK and (b) UK allies.

Over the last 19 months, the Houthis have conducted attacks against international commercial shipping, as well as British and American warships. This has violated the principle of freedom of navigation, further destabilised the region, and caused the peace process in Yemen to stall. In addition, the Houthis have waged economic warfare against the Government of Yemen and obstructed humanitarian aid from reaching Yemenis in need.The UK has underlined these concerns at the UN Security Council alongside our international partners.The best route towards a secure, stable and prosperous future for Yemen is through an inclusive peace process, under the auspices of the UN Special Envoy, and negotiated political settlement.Furthermore, the UK continues to call for de-escalation within the region. We have long been clear about our concerns over Iran's political, financial and military support to militant and proscribed groups, including the Houthis.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, how many permanent civil servants in his Department had their contract of employment terminated as a result of poor performance in the (a) 2022-23, (b) 2023-24 and (c) 2024-25 financial years.

In financial years 2022/23 and 2023/24 fewer than five permanent Civil Servants were dismissed due to poor performance, and in 2024/25 there were five dismissals.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment he has made of the merits of the security and counter-terrorism partnership between the UK and India.

The UK and India have a long-standing security relationship, including on counter-terrorism and we work together both bilaterally and through multilateral mechanisms.We continue to strengthen counter-terrorism cooperation to take decisive and concerted action against globally proscribed terrorists and terror entities. India hosted the sixteenth meeting of the UK-India Counter Terrorism Joint Working Group in New Delhi in May 2024. We look forward to hosting the seventeenth Joint Working Group this year in London.Ensuring the utmost safety of British nationals - and the protection of British interests - in India will continue to inform our deepening relationship with the Government of India.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether his Department has made an estimate of the number of terrorist organisations impacted by India's Operation Sindoor.

The UK condemns all forms of terrorism and both the Prime Minister and Foreign Secretary have expressed their outrage at the horrific attack in Pahalgam on 22 April. We are aware of India's actions under Operation Sindoor and the UK, along with our international partners, urged both India and Pakistan to de-escalate from military confrontation. The UK has not assessed the material impact of India's Operation Sindoor or Pakistan's Operation Bunyaan Marsous.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps he is taking to help secure the release of Peter and Barbie Reynolds from Afghan authorities.

We are supporting the family of two British nationals who are detained in Afghanistan. I met their family on 2 April and I am closely monitoring this case. We are unable to provide comment on the detail of individual consular cases in line with relevant UK data protection legislation: https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/foreign-commonwealth-development-office/about/personal-information-charter.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what discussions he has had with his Spanish counterpart on increasing the number of days British citizens with property can stay in Spain without a residence permit.

Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office officials and Ministers regularly engage Spanish counterparts on a range of issues affecting UK nationals, including on visa matters. The UK and the EU allow for visa-free short-term travel in line with their respective arrangements for third country nationals. The UK allows EU citizens short-term visa-free travel for up to six months. Meanwhile, the EU allows for travel within the Schengen Area for up to 90 days in any rolling 180-day period; this is standard for third countries travelling visa-free to the EU. Applications for visas to visit or stay for longer periods of time would be processed according to the rules of individual Member States.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether they have made an estimate of the potential impact of abolishing diversity, equity and inclusion roles in their Department on annual staffing costs.

Equality, diversity, and Inclusion (EDI) in the Civil Service is an important lever to support the delivery of the Government's Plan for Change and wider Civil Service reform. The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office's (FCDO) total staff headcount is approximately 17,500 employees and the full time equivalent (FTE) of staff hired in EDI roles is currently 2.9 (reflected as FTE as these staff also have other responsibilities). These roles sit within HR as required by the Civil Service Equality, Diversity & Inclusion Expenditure guidance published in May 2024. There are no plans to abolish these roles as they are crucial to ensuring the FCDO meets Public Sector Equality Duty obligations.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether his Department is using AI software in responding to written parliamentary questions.

The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office has made Microsoft Copilot available to staff as part of a trial. It is therefore possible that officials have used Copilot to assist them when drafting replies to written parliamentary questions. All responses are reviewed by policy officials to ensure accuracy and consistency with government policy, and are signed off by Ministers.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, if he will review the Government's funding to UNRWA.

The UK has committed £41 million for the United Nations Relief and Work Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) this financial year to support the humanitarian response in Gaza and deliver essential services to Palestine refugees in the Occupied Palestinian Territories (OPT) and the region. The E3 statement of 31 January sets out the UK's position, alongside France and Germany. We continue to urge the Government of Israel to work with international partners, including the UN, to ensure continuity of operations in the OPTs. No other entity currently has the capacity or infrastructure to replace UNRWA's mandate and experience. £1 million of our funding to UNRWA this year is supporting the implementation of the Colonna Report's recommendations to ensure UNRWA commits to its neutrality obligations.