Written questions by Patel.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, for what reason his Department notified the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government about the resubmission of the planning application for the Chinese Embassy in Tower Hamlets; and whether that notification included material planning grounds for requesting that the Secretary of State exercise powers under the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 to determine the planning application.

In the anticipation of press interest in the application, FCDO officials notified colleagues in the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) of the resubmission of the planning application for the Chinese Embassy in Tower Hamlets. This notification did not express any views on the exercise of the powers that the Secretary of State, MHCLG, has under the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 to call in and determine the planning application. The decision to call in the planning application was a decision of the Deputy Prime Minister in her capacity as Secretary of State, MHCLG, and was made in line with current policy on call-in.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, if he will publish all (a) correspondence and (b) representations his Department (i) has made and (ii) received on the planning application for the proposed Chinese Embassy since July 2024.

The planning application has been called in by the Secretary of State for the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government and she will make this decision independent from the rest of Government corresponding to her quasi-judicial role. As you would expect, the FCDO has received correspondence relating to the planning application. We have no plans to publish this information. The Foreign Secretary and Home Secretary's written representations to the Planning Inquiry are publicly available.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what verbal discussions his Department has had with representatives of the Chinese government on the planning application for a new Chinese Embassy in London since July 2024.

The planning application has been called in by the Secretary of State for the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government and she will make this decision independent from the rest of Government corresponding to her quasi-judicial role.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what representations he has received from his Mauritian counterpart on the length of the proposed lease of the military base on Diego Garcia since 3 October 2024.

The agreement will have a duration of 99 years from entry into force, extendable with the agreement of both parties.

Pursuant to the Answer of 13 January 2025 to Question 21589 on Military Bases: Diego Garcia, when she plans to publish the costs of the (a) proposed economic partnership and (b) Chagossian Trust Fund; and whether she plans to frontload payments for the proposed lease of the military base.

The UK-Mauritius treaty, which will enable the continued operation of the base on Diego Garcia, alongside the structure of any associated financial obligations, still remains subject to finalisation and signature. It is not normal practice for the UK to confirm the value of its payments for military bases anywhere across the globe. Any financial obligations arising from this agreement will be managed responsibly within the government’s fiscal framework, including through the upcoming Spending Review.

What estimate she has made of the potential impact of closer economic ties with China on (a) the UK economy and (b) public finances.

The Chancellor visited Beijing and Shanghai for the 2025 UK-China Economic and Financial Dialogue. The government published a press statement and policy outcomes paper on Saturday 11 January which lists the outcomes for British businesses and the UK economy. The press release and paper can be found here. The Chancellor also published a written ministerial statement about her visit to China on the morning of Monday 13 January (found here) and delivered an oral statement to the House of Commons on Tuesday 14 January.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment he has made of recent trends in the prevalence of human right abuses in China; and if he will make an assessment of the potential impact of such instances on civilians.

People across China face widespread restrictions and violations of human rights and fundamental freedoms. China continues to persecute and arbitrarily detain Uyghurs and Tibetans, restrict civil society and independent media, and target human rights defenders and lawyers. We provided this assessment at the UN General Assembly last October, and the Human Rights Council in September. In addition, we joined a statement led by Australia on Xinjiang and Tibet at the UN General Assembly and a statement led by the USA on Xinjiang at the Human Rights Council, both of which provided further assessments of the human rights situations in the respective geographies.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment he has made of recent trends in the prevalence of human right abuses in Hong Kong] and if he will make an assessment of the potential impact of such instances on civilians.

China's imposition of the National Security Law on Hong Kong has seen opposition stifled and dissent criminalised. The UK continues to call for the National Security Law to be repealed and for an end to the prosecution of all individuals charged under it, including Jimmy Lai.The UK will continue to stand up for the rights of the people of Hong Kong. The Foreign Secretary has raised human rights in every meeting with his Chinese counterpart Foreign Minister Wang Yi, including during his recent visit to China on 18 October. I again raised these concerns with the Chinese and Hong Kong authorities on my visit to Hong Kong on 14-15 November.On Christmas Eve, the Foreign Secretary strongly condemned the Hong Kong police's targeting of individuals for exercising their right to freedom of expression and called on Beijing to repeal the National Security Law. Officials have raised concerns directly with the Chinese and Hong Kong authorities.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 20 December 2024 to Question 18362 on Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office: Cost Effectiveness, when he expects to be in a position to provide details of departmental budget savings.

The Department expects to have finalised savings plans by April 2025.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether his Department plans to provide humanitarian (a) assistance and (b) aid to Afghanistan.

The UK is taking a leading role in the humanitarian response to the people of Afghanistan and has provided over 2.7 million people with humanitarian assistance in financial year 2023/24. The FCDO is planning £161 million of funding to Afghanistan this financial year (2024/25) which includes both humanitarian aid and support for essential services. All funding is provided directly to implementing partners such as UN organisations, the Red Cross and NGOs, and we remain committed that at least 50 percent of people reached are women and girls. We are focused on supporting both emergency relief and strengthening the capacity of Afghan communities.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment he has made of the potential implications for his policies of the decision by the Taliban to prohibit women and girls from undertaking midwifery and nursing courses in Afghanistan; and if he will make a statement.

The UK is deeply concerned at reports of a ban on women accessing medical training in Afghanistan, including midwifery education. We have released a statement strongly condemning the decision and officials from the Doha-based UK Mission to Afghanistan have met with Taliban leaders to urge them to reverse this decision. We have made clear that this is yet another affront to girls' right to education and will threaten the lives of countless women and girls who will be denied critical medical care, as well as their children. Officials are working closely with partners to assess the mid to long-term effects. We continue to press the Taliban on all human rights abuses in Afghanistan.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps he is taking with his international counterparts to promote the rights of women and girls in Afghanistan.

We have repeatedly condemned Taliban restrictions on women and girls' rights, including through UN Security Council and Human Rights Council resolutions and, most recently, at a G7+ meeting of Special Representatives in Geneva on 16 December. As the Foreign Secretary has said, exclusion of women from all aspects of public life is a tragic setback for Afghanistan. Officials from the Doha-based UK Mission to Afghanistan continue to press Taliban acting ministers and Afghan officials on human rights abuses in Afghanistan, including the most recent ban on female medical education. We are committed that at least 50 percent of people reached by our £161 million aid programme in Afghanistan will be women and girls.

Pursuant to the Answer of 22 November 2024 to Question 14333 on Diego Garcia: Military Bases, which Departments will incur the costs of the (a) lease of the military base, (b) economic partnership and (c) Chagossian trust fund; with which Departments her Department has reached agreement; whether the financial elements are included in the (i) 2025-26 budget allocations and (ii) spending envelope to 2029-30; and whether she has received representations to increase the cost envelope since 3 October 2024.

The UK-Mauritius treaty enabling the continued operation of the base on Diego Garcia is still subject to finalisation and signature. Financial obligations arising from this agreement, including departmental budgetary responsibilities, will be managed responsibly within the government’s fiscal framework, including through the upcoming spending review.

What the funding level of the Integrated Security Fund will be in (a) 2025/26 and (b) each of the following five years.

The ISF funding level in 2025/26 will be published shortly. Funding levels for future years will be considered as part of the second phase of the Spending Review.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps his Department has taken to implement the measures agreed in the Leaders’ Statement and Samoa Communique at the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting on 26 October 2024.

The Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting Leaders' Statement and Communique focused on the need to build societal, democratic, environmental and economic resilience across the Commonwealth. The UK is taking these commitments forward, including by working with partners to bolster human rights and democratic governance. We have pledged further support to the Commonwealth Climate Finance Access Hub, which helps vulnerable member states access funding to tackle the impacts of climate change. We are taking forward the establishment of the UK Trade Centre for Expertise, as well as the Commonwealth Investment Plan of Action to mobilise increased trade and investment across the Commonwealth.

Media and Sport, who the recipients were of grants from the Listed Places of Worship Scheme in Essex since 2001; and how much each recipient received.

Due to a change in the grant administrator, the Department only has such data from August 2022, since then, the Department has paid 351 grants to 135 individual listed places of worship in Essex to a total value of £1,129,393.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of the progress on delivery of each of the Sustainable Development Goals by (a) the UK and (b) other governments.

Despite significant international development gains over the last 40 years, the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) 2024 Report found that globally only 17 per cent of the SDG targets with assessable data were on track to be achieved by 2030.As the Prime Minister and Foreign Secretary set out at the UN General Assembly in September, the UK is committed to working with partners at home and internationally to accelerate progress towards the SDGs by 2030. Relevant UK government departments report their contribution to the domestic delivery of the SDGs in their Annual Reports and Accounts published on gov.uk.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what representations his Department has received from the Government of Mauritius on the UK and Mauritius Joint Statement on the exercise of sovereignty over the Chagos Archipelago dated 3 October 2024; and whether the Government of Mauritius has proposed changes to the terms agreed.

The Governments of the UK and Mauritius issued a joint statement on 20 December setting out their continued commitment to finalising a treaty as quickly as possible, which will ensure the long-term, secure and effective operation of the existing base on Diego Garcia. The precise terms of the agreement continue to be the subject of discussions between both Governments.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, pursuant to the Answers of 6 December 2024 to Question 16721 and of 9 December 2024 to Question 16720 on British Indian Ocean Territory: Sovereignty, for what reason he was unable to provide the information requested; and when he plans to make a decision on publishing such details associated with that appointment.

Discussions between the UK and Mauritius on the future exercise of sovereignty over the British Indian Ocean Territory remain ongoing. It is not appropriate to provide a running commentary on engagement between UK and Mauritian officials. As set out in the joint statements on 20 December and 13 January, we will continue to work closely with Mauritius to conclude a deal that is in both sides' shared interests. It remains our intention to decide on publication of costs associated with Jonathan Powell's role as the PM's BIOT Envoy at a later date.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what representations he has made to the (a) Chinese Government and (b) authorities in Hong Kong on reports of the Hong Kong Police offering rewards for the arrests of pro-democracy activists residing in the UK and Canada; what discussions he has had with his Canadian counterpart on such reports; and what steps he is taking to protect people affected living in the UK.

The Foreign Secretary issued a statement on 24 December condemning the Hong Kong police's latest arrest warrants and calling on Beijing to repeal the National Security Law. Senior British diplomats have raised these concerns directly with the Hong Kong and Beijing authorities. FCDO officials have discussed the matter with the Canadian government at working level.The UK Government will not tolerate any attempts by foreign governments to coerce, intimidate, harass, or harm their critics overseas, especially in the UK. The Government will continue to stand with and support members of the Hong Kong community who have relocated to the UK.