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Written question asked by Lord Judd (Labour) on Tuesday, 10 February 2015, in the House of Lords. It was due for an answer on Tuesday, 24 February 2015. It was answered by Lord Bates (Conservative) on Monday, 23 February 2015 on behalf of the Home Office.

Asylum: Iraq

Question

To ask Her Majesty’s Government, following their policy of prioritising survivors of sexual violence for their Syrian refugee resettlement programme, what similar action they are taking in respect of the situation of Yazidi women and girls.

Answer

The Government is deeply concerned about the crises in Syria and Iraq and the suffering and hardship they are causing for millions of people, particularly those who have endured appalling violence, persecution and abuse. We are committed to helping those in need and have so far provided £39.5 million to help the 2.2 million displaced Iraqis, many of whom were victims of ISIL’s persecution. These funds provide food, shelter, water and medical care to thousands of vulnerable families.

Tackling violence against women and girls is a priority for the Government. The action we are taking includes providing funding to support the UN Population Fund in the coordination and information management of the international response to support victims of sexual and gender based violence. The UK has also specifically committed funding to help establish community outreach teams that are providing psychosocial support and referrals to appropriate services for survivors of sexual and gender based violence.

We will continue to be actively involved in the region and will closely monitor developments but we have no current plans to expand the Syrian Vulnerable Persons Relocation (VPR) scheme, or implement a similar scheme specifically for Iraq.

Secondary information

Type
Written question
Reference
HL4912
Session
2014-15
Subjects
Asylum Women Iraq Sexual offences Victims
Link
View this Written question on www.parliament.uk