Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab – The NEN

MPs to grill Foreign Secretary over Afghanistan evacuation

Westminster’s Foreign Affairs Committee is to hold an evidence session on the UK’s evacuation of people from Afghanistan, following the Taliban’s seizure of power. MPs will have the opportunity to question Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab at the session which takes place on Wednesday (1 September) at 2.00pm.

The Taliban took control of Kabul on 15 August.

The Foreign Secretary has said that: “Afghanistan must never again be used as a base for terrorist attacks against the West or any other country.

“We will have to address the looming humanitarian crisis in the country, which would also threaten regional stability, and strive to secure a more inclusive Afghan government that can maintain stability and avoid the kind of human rights abuses that the Taliban have committed before, particularly against women.

“We will use all of the levers at our disposal, including sanctions, aid and access to the international finance system, and we are rallying our international partners around these shared priorities.”

Members of the Committee are likely to question the Foreign Secretary on issues such as:

Progress on the effort to evacuate UK nationals and others eligible for relocation;
The security, humanitarian and human rights impacts of the Taliban takeover;
The use of levers such as sanctions and aid to pressure the Taliban.

Announcing the evidence session, Chair of the Foreign Affairs Committee Tom Tugendhat MP, said: “The last two weeks have been tough for so many of us: anger, shame, even incredulity.

“We never thought we would see the day NATO forces, led by the US, would turn their backs on the people of Afghanistan. It is the biggest foreign policy failure since Suez and highlights once again the importance of building up networks of allies, not having a single partner.

“Many of those raw emotions have now turned to questions on the future of UK foreign policy. How will we deal with the Taliban? How will Afghanistan shape our regional strategy? How will the Government hold the Taliban to account for reverses in human rights?

“These questions, and so many others, will be put to the Foreign Secretary this week.”

Kabul attack: Foreign Secretary’s statement

Ninety people have been killed and hundreds injured following two bomb attacks in Kabul yesterday.

Thursday’s blasts took place outside the Abbey Gate, where British and US soldiers have been stationed to assist with evacuations, and at a nearby hotel which has been used to process evacuees. the terrorist attacks. Thirteen US military personnel were killed in the terrorist attacks, which are believed to have been carried out by ISIS.

Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab gave a statement following his call with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken after the attack in Kabul yesterday:

Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab said: “This evening I called US Secretary of State, Antony Blinken, to express our sorrow that US troops lost their lives in Kabul today and that more have been injured. They paid the ultimate sacrifice while helping others reach safety.

“I also want to extend my condolences to the families of all those Afghans killed or injured. It is tragic that as they sought safety they have suffered at the hands of terrorists.

“Today’s attack is a stark reminder of the dangerous situation in which UK military and civilian personnel have been working so hard to evacuate people and we should be proud of their bravery and what they have achieved.

“The UK and US remain resolute in our mission to get as many people out as possible. It is testament to the remarkable courage of our personnel that they continue to do so while under fire. We will not let the cowardly acts of terrorists stop us.”

Defence Minister Ben Wallace conceded again this morning that, while 15,0000 people have been rescued, some will be left behind as the UK’s evacuation operation comes to an end.

Foreign Secretary under pressure over Afghanistan failures

Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab is coming under increasing pressure over the UK Government’s response to the crisis unfolding in Afghanistan.

Mr Raab was on holiday in Crete as the crisis was developing. Even politicians are allowed to take holidays, of course, but the Foreign Secretary has been accused of dereliction of duty following revelations by the Daily Mail and the BBC that Mr Raab failed to return a call from his Afghani counterpart as Taliban militants advanced on the capital Kabul.

It was claimed that a junior minister was delegated to make the call, but it was revealed on Friday that this was nonsense: THE CALL WAS NEVER MADE.

The UK Parliament was recalled yesterday to discuss the Afghanistan crisis. This is Mr Raab’s statement to the House:

Mr Speaker, in any crisis it is how you respond that is critical, and the government has two overriding priorities.

First, we must evacuate our own people, the British nationals, the dual nationals in Afghanistan who now want to leave, those who served our country so loyally.

And allied to this, we must live up to the best traditions of this country in playing our part in offering safe haven to those Afghans who are now fleeing persecution from the Taliban as refugees.

I want to pay tribute to those leading this work. I have already mentioned Sir Laurie Bristow, our Ambassador. There is a phenomenal cross-Whitehall team of military personnel – I pay tribute to the Defence Secretary – Home Office officials – I pay tribute to the Home Secretary – and they are working hand-in-glove, with gunfire overhead, to save others before they get out themselves.

And I want to pay tribute also to the Rapid Deployment Team that flew into Kabul last night to support that effort, and to the troops that went in to protect them and secure the airport so that we could prosecute this evacuation effort.

Mr Speaker, we are straining every sinew on that evacuation effort and it is supported by the crisis team in King Charles Street, with Home Office experts, military planners, and they are working around the clock. I pay tribute to them, having visited them yesterday.

The evacuation effort has three strands. And by the way, it’s been, Mr Speaker, in place for four months.

First, it is worth recalling that we advised all UK nationals to leave Afghanistan back in April and many hundreds did so on commercial flights, with the benefit of consular support and advice from our team.

Since the security situation deteriorated last weekend, we switched to chartered flights to get nationals out, as well as those under the ARAP scheme.

The first flight left Kabul on Sunday with around 150 UK nationals and their dependents on board. They have arrived back in this country safe and sound.

In the last 24 hours, 646 people have been evacuated, a combination of nationals, Afghans who worked for us and UK allies, and there will be eight flights following today.

The crucial point was that in order to secure the airport, we had to inject 600 British forces, we had thousands come in from the Americans. Without that we wouldn’t be able to get any of those to the airport, indeed out of them, or process them in the way we need to.

The second strand of the evacuation, beyond British nationals, is the ARAP programme, also set up by the Defence Secretary back in April, to help those who worked for us, and who now face the risk of retribution precisely because of the loyalty that they showed to our country.

And to date, Mr Speaker, we have settled over 3,300 Afghan staff and their families. That includes 2,000 since April, the most generous scheme of its kind offered anywhere in the world, and rightly so.

The third strand of the evacuation scheme is, as my Right Honourable Friend the Prime Minister and the Home Secretary announced today, our plan to provide a bespoke asylum offer to settle 20,000 Afghan refugees over five years.

And like the Home Secretary herself, let me just say as the son of a refugee I am deeply proud that this government is continuing the big-hearted tradition of the British people in offering safe haven to those fleeing persecution.

So we are getting our nationals out, those that work for us out, and we are providing a lifeline to the most vulnerable.

I can also tell the House today that we have contacted all of the Chevening Scholars in Afghanistan, not just to tell them that they can come, but to actively make arrangements for the upcoming flights to the UK.

Mr Speaker, at a time of crisis we also need to look to the longer term, and there are four areas that need particular focus.

Counter terrorism: we must never again allow Afghanistan to be a haven for terrorists, we will work very closely with all of our partners within the parameters that the current situation allows.

Secondly, the international community must be prepared to respond to the humanitarian plight caused by the Taliban’s campaign.

The UK is already using our convening power, our aid budget to galvanise the global response.

Thirdly, we must work to safeguard regional stability, and that will require us to work with different partners and it will require engagement with key regional players, including India, China, Russia, Pakistan, the Central Asian states, however difficult or complex that may prove and outside of our comfort zone.

And we will be fully supporting the efforts of the Secretary General of the UN’s Special Envoy for Afghanistan, Jean Arnault.

The fourth area is human rights and accountability. We will hold both through our domestic sanctions regime, but also working with the Indians who chair the UN sanctions regime for Afghanistan, to make sure we can exercise a moderating influence on the Taliban regime.

We will pursue each of these areas with vigour. As the Prime Minister has already made clear, we will be convening a special meeting of G7 leaders to consider a concerted and co-ordinated response.

We will be looking at the question of a contact group of international partners on Afghanistan and we plan an event at the UN General Assembly next month to focus minds and raise funds for the humanitarian response.

We are raising our aid budget in response to the crisis, channelling it via third parties on the ground.

And we will no longer provide funding to Afghan security institutions, redirecting this to humanitarian efforts which benefit the Afghan people.

Mr Speaker, we will get our people out of Afghanistan, we will provide a lifeline for the most vulnerable, and, with our partners, we will forge a new international strategy for Afghanistan.

We will not allow the hard-won gains of the last 20 years to be lost.

And we will continue to stand with the Afghan people, and support their aspiration for a better life.

NOTE – The last four paragraphs of the speech are as drafted, but were not delivered in the House due to time constraints.

STAND WITH THE AFGHAN PEOPLE? When it was clearly too much to ask to return a desperate phone call? What’s Afghani for ‘Aye, right’?

Coronavirus: ‘Risk of second wave is very real’

Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab gave the 29 April 2020 press briefing on the government’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic:

Welcome to today’s Downing Street Press Conference. I’m pleased to be joined by Professor Jonathan Van Tam, Deputy Chief Medical Officer, and also Professor Yvonne Doyle, Medical Director at Public Health England.

Let me just start by saying, I think on behalf of us all, huge congratulations to the Prime Minister and to Carrie on the wonderful news of the birth of their baby boy. I’ve spoken to the Prime Minister and I can tell you that both mum and son are doing really well.

Next, let me give an update on the latest data on coronavirus from our COBR data file.

I can report that, through the Government’s ongoing monitoring and testing programme, as of today, there have now been:

818,539 tests for the virus across the UK, including 52,429 tests that took place yesterday.

165,221 people have tested positive, and that’s an increase of 4,076 cases on yesterday’s number.

As the Health Secretary announced yesterday, from today, we are moving to an improved daily reporting system for deaths, so that deaths in all settings are included, wherever the individual has tested positive for COVID-19, rather than just those in hospitals.

And those figures show that, up to yesterday, on the new measure, we have recorded an additional 3,811 deaths in total and I think it is just important to say that those additional deaths were spread over the period from the 2nd March to 28th April, so they don’t represent a sudden surge in the number of deaths.

Sadly today’s figures show an additional 765 deaths compared to yesterday. I will let Professor Doyle talk us through the data in detail. I think we must never lose sight of the fact that behind every statistic, there are many human lives that have been tragically lost before their time.

We also pay tribute, of course, to those caring for the sick, and yesterday at 11am the whole country observed a minute’s silence, a moment to reflect on the sacrifice of all of our frontline workers who have died whilst dedicating themselves to caring for others and serving others.

On 16 April, I set out five principles that would guide our approach to the transition away from the current set of social distancing measures in place, and into a second phase.

We continue to see evidence in the data of a flattening of the peak of the virus, which is only happening because we have delivered on two of the central pillars of our strategic approach to defeating coronavirus.

First, we reinforced our NHS capacity, through the Nightingale hospitals, extra critical care capacity, more ventilator beds and extra doctors and nurses on the frontline.

And, second, we introduced social distancing measures, at the right time, guided by the scientific and medical evidence.

The public’s overwhelming support for those rules has helped to save lives and protect the NHS from becoming overwhelmed.

We are still coming through the peak, and this, as I have said before, is a delicate and dangerous moment in this crisis.

So, I know that a lot of people have made a lot of sacrifices, which is why it is so important that we don’t let up now and risk undoing all of that hard work.

So as we look to the future, our 5 tests remain key.

First, we must continue to boost NHS capacity, preventing it from being overwhelmed.

Second, we need to see a sustained and consistent fall in the number of deaths.

Thirdly, we must see further reductions in the rate of infection to manageable levels, across all the relevant areas and settings.

Fourth, we must be confident that the NHS will be able to cope with future demands, including as a result of any changes to existing measures or new measures we need to take.

Fifth, and this is probably the most critical of all, we need to be confident that any adjustments to the current measures will not risk a second peak of infections that could overwhelm the NHS.

A second spike would be harmful to public health, resulting in many more deaths from Covid-19.

That itself would lead to a second lockdown, inflicting further prolonged economic pain on the country.

And, as the Governor of the Bank of England, Andrew Bailey, said last week, that would not just be economically dangerous, it would inflict a serious blow to public confidence.

This issue of a second spike and the need to avoid it – it’s not a theoretical risk, and it is not confined to the UK.

Having relaxed restrictions in Germany over the past week, they have seen a rise in the transmission rate of coronavirus. And Chancellor Merkel has said publically, and she has made it clear, that they might need a second lockdown in Germany if the infection rate continues to rise.

So, this risk is very real, and it is vital that we proceed carefully, guided by the scientific advice, so that our next step through this crisis is a sure-footed one.

We mustn’t gamble away the sacrifices and progress we’ve made.

We must continue to follow the scientific evidence,

And we must continue to take the right decisions at the right moment in time.

We are working on all of the potential options for a second phase.

There is light at the end of the tunnel – whether you are an NHS worker on the front line working tirelessly shift after shift, or a parent at home with young children.

But we need to be patient and careful as we come through this moment of maximum risk.

So, we will wait for SAGE’s next review of the data in early May.

We’re ramping up the testing, with capacity now at over 73,000 per day, and 52,429 tests carried out per day, and eligibility for those tests has now been expanded further, to include anybody who needs to go to work and can’t work remotely, and who has symptoms.

It also includes anyone over 65 with symptoms and all care home residents, as well as care home staff.

And at the same time as we ramp up the testing capacity, we’ll keep working on our tracking and tracing capability which will be a key component in the next phase of the crisis.

We will continue to source ventilators and personal protective equipment at home and abroad.

Paul Deighton is leading the national effort to increase domestic production and supply.

We continue to source PPE from abroad setting ourselves out as the international buyer of choice. In the last 10 days, we have secured over 5 million masks from China, we’ve had three flights with gowns from Turkey – because we know that every single one of those items of PPE is needed by those working so hard on the front line.

Both in the NHS and also in our care homes.

Our international effort is not confined to procurement. I can tell you we have also made huge progress in returning UK nationals, who otherwise would have been at risk of being stranded abroad.

Since the outbreak in Wuhan, we have helped and estimated 1,3million Britons return on commercial flights.

And we have done that by working with the airlines and with those governments to make sure that the flights can run and that the airspace is kept open.

And we have brought back over 200,000 Brits back from Spain, 50,000 back from Australia, and over 11,000 from Pakistan. To name but just three countries.

As well as those commercial flights, we have also chartered flights, where commercial options weren’t possible,

And we have now reached the stage where we have brought back over 20,000 British nationals on 99 flights from 21 countries and territories

That includes over 9,000 UK nationals back from India, 2,000 home from South Africa, and 1,200 from Peru.

In terms of repatriations it is worth also just bearing in mind that on the 17th March, when we changed our travel advice for those travelling on cruise ships, there were something like 19,000 British passengers on 60 cruise ships sailing around the world.

And as border restrictions were put in place by country after country, we faced a daunting task in getting our people home.

But, we stuck at it, and 6 weeks later, we have now got all 19,000 British passengers back home safe and sound.

That was an enormous effort, and we recognise that the job is not done yet.

And we will continue this unprecedented effort, with further charter flights from New Zealand, Pakistan and Bangladesh, amongst others, over the next week or so.

So, I must pay tribute to the outstanding work of the consular teams working night and day at the FCO in London and at our Embassies and High Commissions around the world.

Finally, the Health Secretary announced last week that UK trials have started, as we draw on the incredible scientific talent we have in this country to pursue a vaccine.

And that effort too has an international dimension to it.

So, today, we announced that the UK will provide GAVI the international vaccine alliance with the equivalent of £330 million each year over the next 5 years as we seek to develop a vaccine both to protect the British people, but also to help immunise millions of the poorest and most vulnerable people around the world,

Combining the depth of our innovative know-how, with the big-hearted determination that has characterised our national effort to defeat the coronavirus.