United Nations
This page highlights some of the current parliamentary material available on the United Nations (UN). This includes select committee reports, briefing papers on current legislation and other subjects produced by the parliamentary research services, and the latest Early Day Motions put down by MPs.
Standard Notes
| Date | Description |
|---|---|
| 09.05.2012 | The Syrian Crisis: Update May 2012 |
| On 21 March, the UN Security Council supported a peace plan devised by Kofi Annan that called for a ceasefire, humanitarian access to Syria and the withdrawal of forces from urban areas. All sides declared their willingness to adhere to the plan. The Annan plan is at present the only hope of ending the accelerating violence in Syria, which has now caused more than 9,000 deaths, according to UN estimates. | |
| 12.04.2012 | In brief: The Arms Trade Treaty - the moment of truth approaches |
| This note surveys the state of the UN-based negotiations on an Arms Trade Treaty, which are due to be completed at a conference in New York in July 2012 | |
| 05.03.2012 | The Rio+20 UN conference on sustainable development |
| From 20-22 June 2012 the UN will hold a conference on sustainable development in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, twenty years on from the 'Earth Summit' of 1992, also held in Rio. This note sets out the likely agenda for the conference and some surrounding political issues. | |
| 28.02.2012 | Preventing and prosecuting piracy at sea: legal issues |
| The resurgence in piracy at sea, particularly hijackings off the coast of Somalia, has prompted a range of efforts to tackle it. These throw up a series of legal issues including the use of force by governments and private armed security guards, and transferring of suspects for trial or imprisonment. Library Standard Notes covering related issues include: Piracy at sea: overview and policy responses; Somalia: recent political, security and humanitarian developments; and Does Somali piracy have any 'developmental effects'?. | |
| 15.11.2011 | Nepal: An Update |
| This note covers events in Nepal since 2006, where a painful and protracted peace process has been underway. A November 2011 agreement amongst the main political parties has raised hopes, after a long period of stalemate, that progress might finally be made towards a new Constitution and the demobilisation and reintegration of Maoist fighters. |
Research Papers
| Date | Description |
|---|---|
| 20.03.2009 | Geneva Conventions and United Nations Personnel (Protocols) Bill [HL] (Bill 69 of 2008-09) |
| This short Bill is intended to amend two UK Acts to enable the Government to ratify two international agreements protecting military medical personnel and humanitarian workers. In line with the protocols, the Bill would firstly sanction and protect the 'red crystal' as a new symbol to protect humanitarian personnel in armed conflict instead of (or in addition to) the existing red cross or red crescent; and secondly extend the definition of protected UN workers to include those delivering humanitarian, political or development assistance in peacebuilding operations and those delivering emergency humanitarian protection. | |
| 17.06.2008 | Reinventing humanitarian intervention: Two cheers for the Responsibility to Protect? |
| Reinventing humanitarian intervention: Two cheers for the Responsibility to Protect? House of Commons Library Research Paper 08/55. | |
| 13.03.2003 | Iraq: Developments since UN Security Council Resolution 1441 |
| Iraq: developments since UN Security Council Resolution 1441. House of Commons Library Research Paper 03/22 | |
| 21.11.2002 | Iraq and UN Security Council Resolution 1441 |
| Iraq and UN Security Council Resolution 1441. House of Commons Library Research Paper 02/64. |
Early Day Motions
| Date | Description |
|---|---|
| 01.11.2011 | PALESTINIAN MEMBERSHIP OF UNESCO |
| That this House welcomes the admission of Palestine to full membership of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation. | |
| 15.09.2011 | UN SUMMIT ON NON-COMMUNICABLE DISEASES |
| That this House notes the UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon's statement that non-communicable diseases (NCD) represent a `public health emergency in slow motion'; welcomes the decision ... | |
| 06.09.2011 | UN REPORT ON GAZA FLOTILLA ATTACK |
| That this House registers its condemnation of Israel following the publication on 1 September of a United Nations report which declared that the death of nine people on a Turkish vessel, ... | |
| 05.09.2011 | PALESTINIAN MEMBERSHIP OF THE UNITED NATIONS |
| That this House recalls the target set by President Obama last year of welcoming `a new member of the United Nations - an independent sovereign state of Palestine' by September 2011, ... | |
| 25.01.2011 | RECOGNITION OF BANGLA AS AN OFFICIAL LANGUAGE OF THE UNITED NATIONS |
| That this House welcomes the ongoing campaign initiated by Bangladeshis in the United Kingdom to have Bangla, which is the fifth most spoken language in the world, recognised as an ... |
Lords Library Notes
| Date | Description |
|---|---|
| 23.01.2009 | Geneva Conventions and United Nations Personnel (Protocols) Bill [HL]. LLN 2009/001 |
| Geneva Conventions and United Nations Personnel (Protocols) Bill [HL]. House of Lords Library Note 2009/001 |
