Written questions by Obese-Jecty.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what security measures his Department has put in place to prevent incursions by hostile states into the proposed buffer zone around Diego Garcia.

There will be robust security provisions to protect the base, including full UK control over Diego Garcia, control over the electromagnetic spectrum and unrestricted access to and use of the base by the UK and US; a buffer zone around Diego Garcia in which nothing can be built or put in place without UK consent; a robust mechanism and review process to ensure no activity in the other islands can impinge upon base operations; and a prohibition on the presence of foreign security forces on the outer islands, either civilian or military.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether his Department is taking steps to safeguard British claims in Antarctica from foreign state actors.

British sovereignty over the area of Antarctica now called British Antarctic Territory (BAT) dates back to 1908. This is the oldest claim to Antarctica. The UK has maintained a permanent presence in Antarctica since 1944. The UK has no doubt about its sovereignty over the British Antarctic Territory. Our overarching objective is to support the security and the good governance of the Territory. UK presence is provided by the British Antarctic Survey, who operate three scientific stations, the UK Antarctic Heritage Trust, who manage the historical base at Port Lockroy, and the Royal Navy's Ice Patrol Ship HMS Protector. Article IV of the Antarctic Treaty 1959 effectively places in abeyance all territorial sovereignty claims to Antarctica, recognition, and non-recognition of claims, and precludes any activity to assert any new claim or enlarge any existing claim to territorial sovereignty in Antarctica. The UK remains a foremost advocate of the Antarctic Treaty and its essential principles of peace and scientific exploration.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, with reference to the Prime Minister's Oral Statement of 25 February 2025 on Defence and Security, Official Report, from which financial year will the proposed cuts to official development assistance be implemented.

The Prime Minister announced in Parliament on 25 February that he is bringing forward the UK commitment to reach 2.5 per cent of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) on defence spending by 2027. On top of the 2.5 per cent, an extra 0.1 per cent in security services support, taking the total to 2.6 per cent.Doing so demands the difficult but necessary decision to reduce our Official Development Assistance (ODA) spending from 0.5 per cent of Gross National Income (GNI) to 0.3 per cent of GNI by 2027 to respond to pressing security challenges.Detailed decisions on ODA spending will be worked through as part of the ongoing Spending Review.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, with reference to the Prime Minister's Oral Statement of 25 February 2025 on Defence and Security, Official Report, how the proposed cut in official development assistance will be split across countries that receive aid from the UK.

Official Development Assistance (ODA) allocations for future years are being worked through given the Prime Minister's announcement on 25 February 2025 regarding a reduction in UK ODA.This Government remains fully committed to a globally significant role on development. Our mission remains to help create a world free from poverty on a liveable planet.We report all ODA spending on a calendar year basis in the Statistics on International Development publication.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 14 February 2025 to Question 30375 on Undocumented Migrants: Organised Crime, when the new irregular migration sanctions regime will come into effect.

The Government is required to lay secondary legislation before Parliament to introduce a new sanctions regime, which is expected to come into force within the year.Given that the proposed regime will be the first of its kind, it is vital that we take the time to make sure the legislation that underpins it is lawful and operates effectively to disrupt the gangs' business model.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 14 February 2025 to Question 30375 on Undocumented Migrants: Organised Crime, how he plans to enforce the new irregular migration sanctions regime.

The new Irregular Migration sanctions regime will be enforced by the UK sanctions enforcement architecture. A range of Departments have responsibility for the enforcement of UK sanctions, including the Home Office, Department for Business and Trade, Department for Transport and HM Treasury. I launched a cross-Government review of sanctions at the first Small Ministerial Group on enforcement in October 2024.  The review is examining whether we have the right powers, approach, capacity and resourcing on policy, implementation and enforcement, with an urgent focus on strengthening the latter. It is being led by the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office in collaboration with key sanctions Departments.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 14 February 2025 to Question 30375 on Undocumented Migrants: Organised Crime, what the the new irregular migration sanctions regime will consist of.

Our new sanctions regime will target the gangs profiting from the vile trade in people smuggling, human trafficking and organised immigration crime. It will boost our ability to prevent, combat, deter and disrupt dangerous irregular migration and hold the perpetrators accountable. This will be a global regime - expanding our reach so we can target individuals and entities that enable and facilitate these dangerous journeys.The regime will enable us to impose asset freezes and travel bans on individuals and entities, preventing any UK citizen, or any business in the UK, from dealing with any funds or economic resources which are owned, held or controlled by the designated person, and refusing the designated person leave to enter or to remain in the United Kingdom, providing the individual is an excluded person under the Immigration Act.We use sanctions when they complement other tools as part of a wider strategy. The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) will continue to work closely with the Home Office, Border Security Command and National Crime Agency to support law enforcement operations to counter and disrupt organised immigration crime threats.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what the closest island to the Chagos archipelago is that is not part of the UK deal with Mauritius.

The closest land to the Chagos group is the Maldives islands with Gan, part of Addu atoll (also known as Seenu Atoll) as the most southerly point.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, with reference to his Department's press release entitled UK and Mauritius joint statement, 3 October 2024, published on 3 October 2024, from whom will the United States lease the Diego Garcia military base; and over what period of time will the new lease cover.

With respect to Diego Garcia, there is no lease. US presence and operations in the British Indian Ocean Territory are governed by a series of international agreements, beginning with a 1966 Exchange of Notes between the US and UK, which set out that the whole Territory should be made available for UK and US defence purposes. Under the proposed Treaty between the UK and Mauritius, the UK will exercise all rights and authorities which the UK requires for the long-term, secure and effective operation of the military base. The agreement will have a duration of 99 years from entry into force, extendable with the agreement of both parties.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, with reference to the Joint Statement by the UK and Mauritius, published on 3 October 2024, what the (a) annual and (b) total projected cost is of the indexed annual payment.

The Agreement between the UK and Mauritius on 3 October will, for the first time in 50 years, secure the important UK-US military base on Diego Garcia. The base plays a crucial role in regional and international security. It is not normal practice for the...

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, with reference to the Joint Statement by the UK and Mauritius, published on 3 October 2024, what the transformational infrastructure partnership covers; and how much funding

The Agreement between the UK and Mauritius on 3 October will, for the first time in 50 years, secure the important UK-US military base on Diego Garcia. The base plays a crucial role in regional and international security. It is not normal practice for the...

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether he was made aware that nine staff of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) may have been involved in the attack on Israel of 7 October 2023 (a) during his discussion with UN Secretary-General Guterres and (b) prior to his decision to reinstate funding to UNRWA.

In January, the UK paused funding for the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) following allegations that 19 staff were involved in the 7 October Hamas attack.Catherine Colonna conducted an independent review that found the existing UNRWA framework was "robust", but neutrality issues persisted. UNRWA committed to implementing all recommendations. The Foreign Secretary was subsequently reassured that UNRWA is committed to the highest standards of neutrality. The Foreign Secretary called the UN Secretary-General on 18 July to discuss funding to UNRWA. He then announced resumption of funding to UNRWA on 19 July. The UN's Office of Internal Services Oversight (OIOS) led an investigation into the specific allegations against individual staff members. On 5 August, OIOS findings concluded that nine members of UNRWA may have been involved in the atrocities. We welcome UNRWA's action to terminate the contracts of these individuals.