Children and Families Bill

Baroness Northover Excerpts

Wednesday 16th October 2013 Grand Committee

[Baroness Northover (LD)]

My Lords, we share the concerns of my noble friend Lord McColl for the victims of the terrible crime of child trafficking. I pay tribute to his determined and enduring commitment to these children. I am sorry if the noble and learned Baroness, Lady Butler-Sloss, and my noble friend Lord McColl feel that they are being batted away in any sense; they are not and will not be. These debates are extremely important in taking things forward.

At the previous session of this Committee, the failure of some local authorities to fulfil their statutory duties towards these child victims was discussed. We heard, as we have heard again today, some heartrending accounts. I start by emphasising that these failures are absolutely unacceptable. Local authorities should ensure that these very vulnerable children receive the care and support that they so desperately need. In fulfilling those duties, a looked-after child who has been trafficked should be allocated a social worker by the local authority, as noble Lords have heard. The social worker should be responsible for planning the care of the child, ensuring that they are safely accommodated and that their welfare is supported.

The social worker should plan to ensure that all the needs of the child are met. They should take particular account of the specific needs of a trafficked child, including planning to prevent the child going missing from care, as the noble and learned Baroness, Lady Butler-Sloss, said, providing safe and secure accommodation and ensuring that the child understands any procedures in which they are involved. Throughout this they should treat the child as a victim of crime.

The child should also be allocated an independent reviewing officer who would, among many responsibilities, ensure that the child is aware of the implications of their immigration and asylum status and that the local authority considers these as part of its plan to meet the child’s needs. Further, as noble Lords have said, the child would have the right of access to an independent advocate responsible for accurately representing the child’s wishes and feelings. Advocates can support children on all issues, not just their care plan. Social workers have a duty to tell all children about their right to an advocate. Advocates can and do support children of all ages, even the very young children to whom my noble friend referred. The child’s needs and interests are best protected when these professionals work well together and fulfil their statutory responsibilities.

Legal status, perhaps unfortunately, is not the point. Local authorities have a statutory duty to assess and meet the needs of trafficked children. The issue is one of practice and, as my noble friend Lady Hamwee pointed out, trying to ensure that what should happen legally actually does happen.

The noble Baroness, Lady Lister, and others mentioned Scotland, and I inquired as to whether this had solved the problem. I understand that the pilot of guardians in Scotland has, thus far, had mixed results. I can reassure the noble Baroness, Lady Jones, that we are keeping in touch with the Scottish Government to see what lessons we can learn from them, but it seems again to come back to practice; even setting the arrangements in place has not cracked it in Scotland.

I realise that my noble friend Lord McColl does not accept this point but we continue to feel that adding another person in the form of a child trafficking guardian to those already working in the interests of the child could add another layer of complexity. There could be a real danger of confusion about the role of social workers, independent reviewing officers and the new guardians. The current system is clear about who is responsible for taking decisions about how best to support the young person. However, we accept, as I said on Monday, that this is clearly not working out in practice as it should do. Noble Lords will know that the statutory framework includes specific duties to consider the particular needs of the trafficked child and, for example, keeping the child safe from their traffickers.

From November, every Ofsted inspection report must say how local authorities are doing in reducing the number of, and supporting, children who go missing. It is therefore vital to focus on the reasons for the failure of some local authorities to provide adequate support to trafficked children, rather than perhaps to conceal those failures below further operational layers.

Noble Lords have made reference to the Still at Risk report. They may have noted that several of its recommendations highlighted that all agencies need to implement properly statutory and practice guidance. The structures already exist to provide the support required by trafficked children if the relevant authorities put them into effect. The report showed that effective multi-agency working is an essential part of providing the right support.

I said on Monday that we have already put in place a major programme of reform to transform the care system. We want to see stable and permanent placements, high-quality education and health support, and better support for care leavers as they transition to adulthood. We will ensure that, as we implement these programmes, we will take account of the particular needs of trafficked children. As I said on Monday, we have already published revisions to the statutory guidance on missing children, which strengthen advice on meeting the needs of child victims of trafficking. However, I repeat that we recognise the strength of feeling and the strong arguments around this issue. As I said on that occasion, we would like to take this issue away and I invite further discussions to try to take this forward, drawing on every noble Lord’s expertise. In the light of that, I hope that my noble friend will be willing to withdraw his amendment.

[Baroness Massey of Darwen]

Perhaps I may ask two questions. First, I cannot accept that a guardian or advocate would add an extra layer to the system in supporting trafficked children. The guardian or advocate is supposed to link the layers together and support the child. Secondly, will the Government be talking to Barnardo’s, the NSPCC, the Children’s Society, the University of Bedfordshire and ECPAT in order to hear first hand the experiences of dealing with trafficked children?

[Baroness Northover]

I heard what noble Lords said about feeling that the guardian would cut through those layers; my noble friend Lord McColl put that case extremely cogently. I should like to reassure noble Lords that we are seeking to tackle this problem as effectively as possible. In some ways, it is perhaps slightly dispiriting to hear that it has not been cracked by the Scottish model. It looks to me as though we need to look further into why this is not working. That is why it is important that we meet up for a discussion, and it is vital that the organisations that the noble Baroness referred to feed in their expertise so that we can best take this forward.

[Lord McColl of Dulwich]

I thank the Minister very much for her very careful speech, and I am reassured that she is going to have a lot of discussions. I hope that we can all get together to talk about this issue in some detail. She mentioned that the social worker should be the key. If it was one social worker who was responsible for one child and stayed with that child, that would be fine, but the problem is that the children have umpteen social workers. They never know who is coming next and they then have to repeat their story over and over again.

I certainly do not accept that this proposal will add another layer of bureaucracy to the organisation. We have already had an 18-month delay over this and I can see that, with the existing bureaucracy, it will be another 18 months before something effective is done. Meanwhile, hundreds of children are going to be in jeopardy. Therefore, I welcome what the Minister says and look forward to meeting her and all those who have been speaking on this issue and who have done so much work in this field. I thank everyone for their contributions today. I beg leave to withdraw the amendment.

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[The Countess of Mar (CB)]

My Lords, I support my noble friend Lady Howarth of Breckland. For many years, I was a lay member of the immigration tribunal and I remember seeing a number of young people go through the awful process of asylum appeals when they got to the age of 18. They did not understand what was going on. In many cases, we allowed them because they had been here for so long and had become used to the country. It would have helped them enormously if they had had support earlier in their lives, as my noble friend is suggesting.

[Baroness Northover]

My Lords, here we are addressing another group of potentially vulnerable children, as the noble Baroness, Lady Howarth, pointed out. They are foreign-national children who are living in this country while their parents reside elsewhere. We recognise that the amendment seeks to improve safeguards for children privately fostered from abroad. We sympathise with that intention.

We fully accept that local authorities should check on private fostering arrangements when children are living apart from their close family, and current legislation provides for this. We recognise that it is sometimes difficult to establish if a family relationship is genuine, as the noble Baroness, Lady Howarth, made very clear, especially where a carer is falsely claiming to be a close relative to avoid the requirement to notify the local authority of a private fostering arrangement. This raises a potential safeguarding issue.

However, we are not convinced that the way forward is to apply the private fostering arrangements to all foreign national children who live here without their parents. This would extend the arrangements to a large number of cases where children are safely looked after by close relatives. However, we agree that this is an important issue, as children from abroad are in a particularly vulnerable position. It remains crucial that professionals who work with children from abroad, including border staff, schools, health professionals, housing officers, et cetera, can spot private fostering when they see it and notify the relevant local authority.

The current private fostering guidance asks local authorities to undertake awareness-raising activities with agencies, such as schools, to enable professionals to encourage private foster carers and parents to notify the local authority. Front-line professionals are also encouraged to notify the local authority of a private fostering arrangement that comes to their attention where they are not satisfied that the local authority has been, or will be, notified of the arrangement, so that the local authority can check that the arrangement is safe and suitable.

We are reviewing the school admissions guidance for children from abroad and are aiming to publish a revised version in January 2014. We will also shortly be publishing revised guidance on safeguarding in schools. The new guidance will specify schools’ statutory duties in respect of safeguarding, provide guidance on roles and responsibilities, including making referrals to child protection services, and indicate where to find up-to-date guidance on particular issues.

In addition, we have a project under way looking at the requirements on local authorities and the role of other agencies and services with a view to focusing efforts and strengthening the response to children most at risk. We will be talking to relevant partners and agencies, such as the Home Office, the British Association for Adoption and Fostering, Children and Families Across Borders, Ofsted and local authorities, to identify what targeted action might be taken to improve practice in local areas. There are a number of issues that we are looking at, and I am happy to share them with the noble Baroness.

An important issue is whether it is better to resolve the immigration status of children and return them to their home country as soon as possible after their arrival in the UK, rather than leave it until they reach the age of 18, by which time their ties with their home country have been greatly reduced. The current practice is to consider the needs of each child on a case-by-case basis and carry out an assessment of what is in the child’s best interests. The child and their social worker have a central role in this assessment, and contributions are usually also sought from other relevant agencies.

We have some sympathy with the argument about early return but, referring to other debates we have had, we need to be aware that many of these children may be vulnerable and have arrived in the United Kingdom having suffered very difficult and sometimes traumatic experiences. It is often the case that their parents cannot be traced or that the reception arrangements in the country to which they would be returning might be inadequate. This has meant that in practice, with the exception of transfers to other European Union countries, the UK rarely enforces the return of unaccompanied children to any country. The important issue is to try to work out what is in the best interests of the child.

I would be happy to provide any more details on this to the noble Baroness. I welcome her expertise feeding in as we consider this. I hope that in the mean time she will be content to withdraw her amendment.

[Baroness Howarth of Breckland]

My Lords, I am grateful for the noble Baroness’s full reply. The only point that I would pick up is that sometimes social workers will decide to allow children to remain indefinitely without taking action, simply because the social worker is anxious that if they do anything the child will immediately be deported. It is that working together between all the agencies and organisations, including education and the Home Office, and making sure that the child’s welfare is at the centre of any decision, that needs to be taken forward. Otherwise, people make decisions that they think are in the best interests of the child but, in the long term, turn out to be disastrous for their growth. I beg leave to withdraw the amendment.

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[Lord Ponsonby of Shulbrede (Lab)]

My Lords, I wanted to speak briefly in support of these amendments. My noble friend Lady Massey has set out the framework and how important it is statistically, but I was sitting as a family magistrate only last week and I thought it might be interesting for the Committee to hear the decisions that we were invited to make as a court. The scenario was of a two year-old boy in a successful fostering arrangement. His uncle had come forward with his wife. They already had three children and they were willing to take on the boy. That would put them in the situation of having four children under the age of six in a two-bedroom flat in London. All parties supported the arrangement that was to be made by the court and the decisions that we were invited to make as a court were to finalise the financial arrangements between the local authority and the carers. There was a bit of brokering and toing and froing on what those payments were to be. As far as I know, they were discretionary but nevertheless they were offered. As I say, it was a bit of a haggle but a figure was agreed for the kinship arrangements to go ahead.

The second decision we were asked to make was whether to put in place a special guardianship order. This was opposed by the local authority but we decided to put it in place in any case, very much for the reasons that my noble friend has said. We believed that it would help the carers to have the support of the local authority for the first 12 months. That was no reflection on their ability to be good parents—in fact, we were sure they would be—but we wanted to help them. So we went against the local authority’s wishes on that particular decision. The other decision we made was to put in place the contact arrangements for the mother. The mother was a recovering drug addict. She was in court and we wished her well. We arranged that she would have contact on a yearly basis and that can be reviewed in due course.

Another issue that we were invited to address was the housing arrangements of this family. As I said, they would have four children in a two-bedroom flat. There was really very little we could do about that other than include a sympathetic paragraph in the judgment, urging local authorities to review their situation sympathetically. Realistically, they were looking at a two or three-year wait for a transfer. Nevertheless, that was something we put in the judgment. The final thing we put in, which we thought about very carefully, were the transfer arrangements. As I said, this particular little boy had been in a successful fostering arrangement where he had blossomed for two years and now he was moving to another arrangement. Obviously, however well-meaning everyone was, it would be a difficult transition arrangement for the boy.

The point that I wanted to make is that all the parties supported this. The local authorities put extra money in and the mother agreed to the arrangement, even though she was losing her boy and the kinship carers would have to take the child on. This is a good solution for all concerned, and if it can be put on a more statutorily substantial footing, I think that that will be to the benefit of all concerned.

[Baroness Northover]

My Lords, I thank the noble Baroness, Lady Massey, for her amendments, which cover support and services for family and friends carers. I commend her for the motivation behind the amendments.

We fully recognise the valuable contribution made by family and friends in caring for children who cannot live with their parents. We owe them a great deal, as the noble Baroness so eloquently showed. We have heard a great deal about the potential benefits of family and friends carers not only from the noble Baroness, Lady Massey, but from the noble and learned Baroness, Lady Butler-Sloss, the noble Lord, Lord Northbourne, the noble Baroness, Lady Drake, and the noble Lord, Lord Ponsonby.

I found myself thinking that sometimes women like me are described as the “sandwich generation”. We look after our children and our parents, but if our children then come back and bring their children for us to look after, that perhaps makes us a double-decker sandwich generation. I hope that my children do not do that.

Noble Lords will be aware that family and friends care, or kinship care, covers a wide range of legal arrangements and, where appropriate, as we have heard, assessments are already in place for putting in the appropriate financial or practical supports. The Children and Young Persons Act 2008 amended Section 17 of the Children Act 1989 so that local authorities could provide regular and long-term financial payments to families caring for children where they judged this to be appropriate. This provision, passed under the previous Government and made discretionary, came into force in April 2011.

In order to clarify the role of local authorities, the Government released statutory guidance on family and friends care, and this also came into force in April 2011. It aims to ensure that children and young people receive the support that they and their carers need to safeguard and promote their welfare.

We are aware that family and friends carers often struggle, as we have heard, to obtain information that will assist them in their caring role, particularly when they have taken on the care of a child in an emergency. That is why the family and friends statutory guidance makes it clear that local authorities have a duty to ensure that their family and friends policy supports the promotion of good information about the full range of services for children, young people and families in the area and highlights the availability of advice from independent organisations.

However, we are aware that the quality and quantity of local authority policies in this area are not at the level they should be. That is why we currently have a programme of work to reduce the variation in practice within and across local authorities. This includes sector learning days for local authorities that will support the development of local policies and guidance as well as clarify the primary legislation and how it is being implemented.

I thank the noble Earl, Lord Listowel, for commending this Government and the previous Government for their support for the vital social work profession.

It is also very important that family and friends carers understand what support services they are entitled to, so the department will be developing an information resource containing the basic facts, entitlements, services and advice that are available to them. This resource will not only increase the knowledge base of carers but will raise awareness of front-line practitioners, such as GPs, and those in education and childcare settings, who are often the first point of contact for new family and friends carers.

--- Later in debate ---

Clause 11 agreed.

[Baroness Northover]

My Lords, this may be a convenient moment for the Committee to adjourn.

Committee adjourned at 7.51 pm.

International Day of the Girl

Baroness Northover Excerpts

Wednesday 9th October 2013 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Hussein-Ece]

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what action they are taking to promote the education of girls around the world ahead of International Day of the Girl on 11 October.

[Baroness Northover (LD)]

My Lords, the UK Government place a high priority on girls’ education. In 2012-13 UK aid supported 2.8 million girls in primary education and helped 270,000 to go to lower secondary school. In addition, the UK’s flagship Girls’ Education Challenge will help a further 1 million of the world’s most marginalised girls to receive an education.

[Baroness Hussein-Ece (LD)]

I thank my noble friend for the informative Answer. However, she will be aware that 67% of illiterate people in the world are women and girls. Many have been denied access to education due to forced child marriage. This is a violation of girls’ basic rights and can lead to terrible consequences, such as death in childbirth. What is being done to ensure that Governments, particularly those in the Commonwealth and those in receipt of aid, are working to eliminate this appalling practice?

[Baroness Northover]

My noble friend is right in what she says about child marriage. It is of course a reflection of the low status of women and girls, which is why investing in education and the long-term cultural changes that result from it is so important. Evidence shows that education may be the single most important factor in reducing child marriage. We address this explicitly, for example in our programme in Ethiopia, and we have other programmes in development in the DRC, Yemen and Zambia, because we recognise the importance of this issue.

[Baroness Crawley (Lab)]

What is the Government’s ongoing policy on ensuring equal treatment of girls and boys a little nearer home, in our own state-funded free schools in this country?

--- Later in debate ---

[Baroness Northover]

As the noble Baroness knows, we have the Equality Act, by which the law protects the equal status of girls and boys in the United Kingdom.

[Baroness Deech (CB)]

Will the Minister tell us what measures are being taken in this country to make sure that girls under 16 are not removed from school and sent abroad during the summer vacation for arranged or forced marriages? Will there be check-ups on girls to see who has not returned to school in the autumn term after such a practice?

[Baroness Northover]

The noble Baroness is right to highlight this issue. This is something that has come increasingly to our attention. There have been programmes of engagement with schools—she may know of the one in Bristol—and there is engagement elsewhere. Teachers have been asked to look out for girls who travel in the holidays and may not return, because it is extremely important that this issue is tackled.

[Baroness Jenkin of Kennington (Con)]

My Lords, perhaps the House would consider it appropriate to congratulate Malala on her extraordinary contribution to this debate. I would be grateful if my noble friend could update the House on the Girls’ Education Challenge, which is designed to help up to 1 million of the world’s poorest girls access education.

[Baroness Northover]

I echo the support for Malala. Friday is the International Day of the Girl Child. That is the day when the Nobel prize in question may be announced. Of course, many of us hope that Malala’s contribution will be recognised. She has been extremely brave in maintaining her position, and has done so very eloquently. My noble friend mentioned the Girls’ Education Challenge. In the United Kingdom we have the world’s largest global fund dedicated to girls’ education, which will reach more than 1 million girls in the world’s poorest countries. That is extremely welcome and shows that we recognise the importance of investing in girls’ education.

[Baroness Uddin (Non-Afl)]

My Lords, the noble Baroness will accept that no one will have been unmoved by Malala’s address to the UN. Malala talked about the fact that she was not the only young girl who lacked education or who was campaigning for education. How far is the noble Baroness’s department working to ensure that Malala’s and other girls’ dreams are realised, particularly in Afghanistan? Is her department supporting two of the girls who were attacked at the same time as Malala Yousafzai?

[Baroness Northover]

Malala has, indeed, emphasised that there are many others in her situation. It is those girls whom we wish to help. The noble Baroness will be well aware of the investment by DfID in both Pakistan and Afghanistan, particularly in education and especially in girls’ education. Often in poor families it is the sons who are sent to school first, if anyone is sent at all. One of the areas that DfID has been working on is ensuring that girls, too, go to school; that there are bursaries; that girls are safe in school and on their way to school; and that their education is then supported.

[Lord Loomba (LD)]

My Lords, thousands of young girls are the victims of trafficking in south Asian countries. They miss out on school and never get the education that is their birthright. How can the UK Government help these poor and helpless girls?

[Baroness Northover]

I pay tribute to my noble friend Lord Loomba for his work in this area. He will know that DfID works particularly in fragile states where girls are most likely to be in marginal communities. Those countries are very much recipients of our assistance.

[Baroness Afshar (CB)]

My Lords, is the noble Baroness aware that in England, as well as elsewhere in the world, girl pupils are not choosing science and mathematics for further studies? This is a new turn, and what is extraordinary is that it is usually girls from minority communities who prefer these options. Is there something about attitudes in the classroom and of those teaching science and mathematics that discourages girls?

[Baroness Northover]

We are very much encouraging girls to go into the so-called STEM subjects. It is extremely important both for them and for the future of the country that those subjects are supported. If there is a particular problem in terms of particular groups not heading in that direction, I will look into that and get back to the noble Baroness.

Overseas Aid: Post-2015 Development Agenda

Baroness Northover Excerpts

Thursday 25th July 2013 Lords Chamber

[Lord McConnell of Glenscorrodale]

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they will take to follow up the report of the United Nations High-level Panel on the Post-2015 Development Agenda.

[Baroness Northover]

My Lords, the Government welcome the high-level panel’s report as an ambitious and practical starting point for negotiations on the post-2015 development framework. Over the next two years we will work internationally to seek to build momentum behind the panel’s recommendations and to ensure that the final framework is equally strong.

[Lord McConnell of Glenscorrodale]

I thank the Minister for that Answer. Everyone in this House who has taken part in debates on this matter will welcome the very strong analysis and recommendations made in the report of the high-level panel on the issues of conflict, security and development. In fact, the recommendations are perhaps surprising given the hostility that there may be elsewhere in the United Nations system towards these issues. What action will the Government take to build a broad coalition in the United Nations and elsewhere to secure these recommendations and to make sure that the final report for the post-2015 development framework tackles the crucial issues of peacebuilding and post-conflict reconstruction?

[Baroness Northover]

This report is remarkable. Many people felt that it would be very difficult to secure something as focused, streamlined and effective as this one is, following on as it does from the previous one, which was negotiated almost in isolation. Many different groups and organisations from countries across the globe have been involved, which is a good omen for taking this forward. However, the noble Lord is absolutely right to say that it is going to need a lot of work, and this Government will be putting that work in to ensure that what is finally proposed is as strong as this initial report.

[Lord Low of Dalston]

My Lords, the Prime Minister is much to be congratulated on the report of the high-level panel, which he co-chaired, given its emphasis on no one being left behind and the recommendation that targets should be considered achieved only if they are met for all the relevant income and stakeholder groups. Given all of that and the fact that progress towards the current millennium development goals has been limited by the great increase in global inequalities, will the UK Government press for a stand-alone goal on equality in the post-2015 framework?

[Baroness Northover]

The noble Lord is right about how this proposal emphasises leaving no one behind and that targets can be considered achieved only when they are met across all social and income groups. That is essential in tackling inequality. It seems to us that challenging inequality runs as a thread through the whole report.

[Baroness Jenkin of Kennington]

My Lords, I returned this morning from Myanmar which—although it was a fascinating week—is still in a very fragile state. It is one of the states that has failed to achieve any of the MDGs. It is still a very poor country where one in four people lives below $1.25 a day, and it has terrible capacity issues. Given the feeling of hope in that country now, what does DfID plan to do to support the Burmese people in the run-up to the 2015 elections?

[Baroness Northover]

DfID is a strong supporter of Myanmar and we recognise that it is a very fragile state. I think that my noble friend went with an all-party group, and we are delighted that such a group has been able to visit. We recently announced £10 million in funding to help with the 2014 Myanmar population and housing census which will help to underpin the information required for the elections. We will continue to help the Government and other organisations in other ways as well.

[Baroness Kinnock of Holyhead]

My Lords, the managing director of the IMF, Christine Lagarde, recently said:

“Rising income inequality is a growing concern for policymakers around the world”.

Why, then, has the high-level panel omitted any reference to this issue, and why does it talk only about equality of opportunity? Does the Minister agree that Madame Lagarde’s evidence-based statement that,

“more equal societies are more likely to achieve lasting growth”,

should be considered in any future discussions?

[Baroness Northover]

If the noble Baroness looks at the 12 goals, and I am sure that she has, she will see that they include the issues that need to be addressed. For example, goal 8 is to,

“create jobs, sustainable livelihoods and equitable growth”.

I think that that addresses the problems that she highlights.

[The Lord Bishop of Birmingham]

Like other noble Lords, I applaud the Prime Minister’s initiative and leadership in this area and encourage him to press on. In view of the importance that the report attaches to gender equality and empowerment, can the Minister confirm that the Government will look to next year’s UN Commission on the Status of Women, which starts in March, to build consensus among UN member states on this matter, ahead of any final negotiations on the post-2015 development agenda?

[Baroness Northover]

I can assure the right reverend Prelate that we are already doing that. A great deal of work went into ensuring that this year’s CSW could reach agreement. It required a lot of work but we were delighted that that agreement was reached. We are already working on the next one and are delighted that the second of the 12 goals is on gender equality.

[Lord Chidgey]

My Lords, according to a report on EurActiv.com under the headline “Brussels proposes pooling world aid development funding”, the EU’s Development Commissioner, Andris Piebalgs, issued a statement on 16 July proposing that, post-2015,

“all types of development aid … be considered as ‘a whole’”,

including ODA for low-income countries. He described the statement as,

“another big step towards putting in place the … post-2015 framework”.

How can Mr Piebalgs’ initiative apparently to place world aid under a European Commission social development agenda be compatible with DfID’s vision of using ODA as a means of growing economies so that they can trade out of poverty? Will the Government be seeking clarification?

[Baroness Northover]

I have seen a copy of what Commissioner Piebalgs said and he was talking about all financing sources, which includes private finance flows, domestic resources and ODA. We quite agree that all those things can contribute to the relief of poverty. We work very closely with the Commissioner. I have certainly found, after meeting him many times, that he and DfID very much agree about how best to take this forward.

[The Earl of Sandwich]

My Lords, given the huge success of the water, sanitation and hygiene programme, would the Minister not prefer to see it higher in the priorities for the post-millennium period, and is she surprised that it is not?

[Baroness Northover]

There are 12 goals, as the noble Earl will know, and I am very pleased that achieving universal access to water and sanitation is among them. I do not think that he should regard them as being in order of priority. The ones that are in there are very significant.

Overseas Aid: GDP Target

Baroness Northover Excerpts

Thursday 25th July 2013 Lords Chamber

[Lord Bates]

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what discussions they had at the G8 summit on members’ individual progress towards the 0.7 per cent of gross domestic product target for spending on overseas aid.

[Baroness Northover]

My Lords, individual progress towards the 0.7% of gross national income target for spending on overseas aid was discussed by the G8 as part of the production of the Loch Erne G8 Accountability Report, which was endorsed by leaders at the G8 summit.

[Lord Bates]

I am grateful to my noble friend for that Answer. While we can take immense pride in being the first Government of a major G8 country actually to deliver on the pledge made 23 years ago to provide 0.7% of our gross national income to the poorest, Germany is still at 0.38%, Canada at 0.32%, the US at 0.19% and Japan at 0.17%. Does my noble friend accept that the entire point of us increasing our responsibility and taking our responsibility to the world’s poor seriously was never meant to enable other countries, which are now cutting their aid budgets, to shirk their responsibility to the poorest?

[Baroness Northover]

My Lords, I thank the noble Lord for his tribute to our leadership on this. By meeting our commitments, we are better able to seek to influence others, and that is what we are indeed seeking to do. I note his example and pay tribute to him because, as I understand it, on Saturday he will be starting a 500-mile walk on behalf of Save the Children’s work in Syria.

[Noble Lords]

Hear, hear.

[Baroness Symons of Vernham Dean]

My Lords, the noble Baroness may be aware that shortly after the main G8 summit there was also a G8 conference on women, based on the Deauville Partnership. Given the question raised earlier by the right reverend Prelate, can the noble Baroness tell us what part of our budget is currently directed towards projects that specifically deal with developmental issues for women, many of which will be very well known to her?

[Baroness Northover]

I will write to the noble Baroness with a more precise answer on that. I know that I have issued Written Answers but I cannot, I am afraid, give her the figure off the top of my head.

[Lord Howell of Guildford]

My Lords, I think we all applaud the dedication and enthusiasm of my noble friend Lord Bates, but does the Minister accept that while these great global targets may bring satisfaction to some, the actual aim is development, not merely volumes of aid, and the real drivers of development are entrepreneurship and ownership raising the prosperity of the peoples and the countries concerned and eradicating poverty? As has been set out very clearly by great experts such as Hernando de Soto, these are the things that will make development work. Will she assure us that her colleagues are fully aware of this view about how aid can lead to development rather than in some cases actually block it?

[Baroness Northover]

I assure my noble friend that DfID is very seized of that and is well aware of the importance of entrepreneurship and ownership. We are also, of course, aware that the stories of China and India show that trade and economic development have powered those countries.

[Lord Judd]

My Lords, whatever happens about the commendable 0.7% target, does the noble Baroness agree that to be effective, we must support the strengthening of governance, effective and fair tax systems, and sustainable development programmes in the third world that take into account the challenge of climate change? Does she also agree that if we are to be effective in achieving this, we must not preach at the third world about its responsibilities but have to demonstrate, in tax and in our sustainable development policies in this country, that we are doing what we are asking it to do?

[Baroness Northover]

The noble Lord will be aware that in the previous Question we talked about the MDGs. Their environmental goals are clearly extremely important and need to be agreed by developed and developing countries. He is right about the burden on us in terms of taking this forward. He will also know that there was a major emphasis on tax at the G8 and the G20. The United Kingdom is leading with regard to addressing the issues that he has highlighted.

[Baroness Nicholson of Winterbourne]

My Lords, I welcome the Minister’s robust response. None the less, it is how the money is spent, rather than the amount of money, that actually tackles poverty effectively. With that in mind, how does her department intend to respond to the continuing challenges posed to it by the further report of the Select Committee on International Development in another place, published this morning, on accountability and transparency?

[Baroness Northover]

I saw the press coverage of the International Development Select Committee’s report this morning. I was then astonished to look at the report itself, and wondered how on earth the press came to the conclusions that they did. They were reviewing DfID’s multilateral aid review. They pointed out that it was extraordinarily important for DfID to review how its aid is given, and suggested that there were strengths, but also some areas where DfID might want to investigate further, including—to pick up the noble Baroness’s question earlier—ensuring that multilateral organisations focus on gender. I welcome the Select Committee’s report; it helps keep us on our toes, and it does not match up with this morning’s press reports.

[The Earl of Listowel]

My Lords, I join noble Lords in praising the coalition Government for their global leadership in meeting our responsibilities to those in the developing world. Does the Minister agree that it is helpful to bear in mind the difference that this is making to children’s lives, to think of particular instances—such as the boy who was brought up by his grandmother in a marginal area of Tanzania far from hospitals and schools, who experienced kwashiorkor, and who came to speak to Members of the House about his struggles—and to think that other children will not suffer that undernourishment or the life-damaging results of hunger at such an early age because of the leadership of the coalition Government?

[Baroness Northover]

I thank the noble Earl for his tribute. He is absolutely right. Anybody who works in this area and anybody who visits the countries that he has visited will understand why we are doing this. He will also be aware of the focus on nutrition that we had just before the G8 and the emphasis on ensuring that children are not stunted both physically and mentally.

Arts: Contribution to Education, Health and Emotional Well-being

Baroness Northover Excerpts

Thursday 25th July 2013 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Northover]

My Lords, I am delighted to be answering this Question for Short Debate on the contribution of the arts to the nation’s education, health and well-being. I thank the noble Baroness, Lady Jones, for opening the debate so ably. We have had an inspiring and wide-ranging series of speeches. As the noble Baroness, Lady Bakewell, said, involvement in the arts is quite simply part of what makes us human.

From the earliest times, even with problems of survival that must have seemed far more pressing than those that we face today, humans have created art, as we saw from the fantastic Ice Age exhibition at the British Museum. I am sure that they created music too; the earliest of drawings indicate both music and dancing. Of course, every culture shines in different ways, and our own culture has been and remains distinctive and outstanding. We have world-class theatres, artists, galleries, heritage sites and music. As I heard my noble friend Lord Cormack, I was transported to Lincoln Cathedral and could hear the music. I could see the art in Middlesbrough and the unique hospital in Bodmin.

We fully recognise that engagement and participation in the arts generates a range of social benefits to individuals and society. It is not simply what makes us civilised. It goes beyond that; it is, indeed, what makes us human. The noble Lord, Lord Winston, went to the heart of this when he spoke so movingly of music in Theresienstadt and Auschwitz. It was as others sought to strip people of their humanity and indeed their lives that they found they could not quell that human spirit, expressed through music, plays and art.

That the arts also generate income is a wonderful bonus, and we are delighted that they do. I answered a QSD from my noble friend Lord Storey the other day in which we drew out the economic contribution made by music, which clearly is significant. As the noble Baroness, Lady Jones, said, there was a debate in the House in the name of my noble friend Lady Wheatcroft which looked at the economic contribution the arts can make. The importance of this, in my view, is the recognition that the arts are significant economically but I can assure the noble Baroness, Lady Jones, that we have always understood their cultural and human significance and of course, as the noble Baroness, Lady Bakewell, said, you cannot cost joy.

Clearly, interest in the arts starts from the earliest point in life, as Kate and William will find. Their little prince—that descendant of a Durham miner as the noble Lord, Lord Sawyer, pointed out—will soon be sticking together cereal boxes and making things and drawing lines on paper and calling others to admire those lines. I would not be surprised if it is not long before he starts to bash saucepan lids together or sing “The Wheels on the Bus”. To silence him or prevent him doing these things would distress him. It is part of his emotional well-being that he can thus express himself.

Of course, once children go to school part of their wider education will include the arts. Anyone seeing children spinning out of school with their paintings and creations can see their enthusiasm. Who has not had a painted egg box pinned on the wall or given pride of place to an uncertain-shaped mug, or relished receiving a wonderful handmade card? We fully accept that cultural education forms an important part of a broad and balanced curriculum. I can assure the noble Baronesses, Lady Jones and Lady Bakewell, and the noble Lords, Lord Howarth and Lord Storey, that the Government have confirmed that art and design, music, English, including drama, PE, including dance, and history all remain statutory subjects for all pupils aged five to 14, wherever they live and whatever their social origins. I agree with the noble Lord, Lord Winston, that schools should indeed introduce pupils to various types of music, including classical. I also assure him of our wholehearted support for the work of our conservatoires.

A high-quality cultural education should ensure that all pupils have the chance to read books, sing, make music, film or animation, dance, draw, design, perform, be given opportunities to attend art galleries and museums, see films, including world cinema and go to theatre and concert performances. We see the wonderful sight of large groups of children, excitedly making their way on school trips with their amazingly patient teachers.

Noble Lords will, I hope, be pleased to know that we are setting up a new film academy to help train talented film makers; developing a heritage schools programme, helping schools to make effective use of their local environment; funding a museums and schools programme, and setting up a new National Youth Dance Company, managed by Sadler’s Wells. We are also funding 10 teaching school alliances to help develop continuing professional development and, following on from Darren Henley’s review of music education, we are investing £196 million in music education hubs and we continue to invest in the music and dance scheme.

Schools can and should give children the opportunity to engage in arts they may have no knowledge of at home which may whet their appetite for arts as they go through life. Nothing is more satisfying for a parent who has dragged an unwilling child round a museum or gallery to discover, as they reach adulthood, that they wish to continue to weave this into their lives. We need to ensure that adults too can access those arts they wish to, and I commend the previous Government for ensuring that museums are free. We need to ensure that the disabled can access buildings and, in later life when people may be less mobile or even in care homes, we need to recognise that the importance of the arts remains.

As the Arts Council chairman, Sir Peter Bazalgette said:

“The arts are a demonstrable source of health and happiness, no matter what age we are”.

Thus the Arts Council has jointly funded an arts and older people in care programme with the Baring Foundation to provide access to quality arts experiences for older people in residential care, as both participants and audiences. It funds the London Arts in Health Forum to develop the role of culture in well-being and to promote and support arts in health activity across London and nationally. With Routledge and other foundations, the Arts Council supported the Culture, Health & Wellbeing International Conference held in June, at which the noble Lord, Lord Howarth of Newport, gave the keynote address, which I found very interesting.

Engagement and participation in the arts can have significant impact on well-being and happiness. In recognition of this, the Office for National Statistics has included engagement with arts and culture within its measurements of national well-being, as the noble Baroness, Lady Jones, mentioned. We ensure that the widest possible range of people can enjoy this engagement with the arts. For example, the Arts Council-funded Youth Music supports music projects in the youth justice system and several other organisations work with young offenders. The noble Baroness, Lady Bakewell, points to the importance of plays and the understanding of those plays, within prisons.

Of course, a number of factors may well make up a person’s well-being, whether it is through their relationships, their work, their living situation and their general health, as the noble Lord, Lord Rea, pointed out. However, we know that well-being is more than simply physical, and that mental and physical health are inextricably intertwined, as the noble Lord, Lord Rea, again made clear. In addressing physical health, it is important to address mental health and that sense of well-being, which is why we emphasise that healthcare must be person-centred. We have given mental health a new priority, enshrining it in law for the first time as having equal importance with physical health.

Public Health England is looking closely at well-being, and we recognise that arts activities can promote that well-being. Since 2010, a group of organisations across England has been working on a new national voice for arts and health, as the noble Lord, Lord Howarth, has said. Supported by Arts Council England, this work has involved the development of a charter for arts, health and well-being, and the establishment of a new organisation, the National Alliance for Arts Health and Wellbeing, which was launched last autumn. Of course, many hospitals include artworks, and there are participatory arts programmes. Some doctors have an arts aspect to their training; I know that because I used to teach the intercalated BSc in the History of Medicine at University College London.

The National Institute for Health Research welcomes funding applications in this area. However, as the noble Earl, Lord Clancarty, was perhaps right in saying, we should need no justification for supporting the arts. He also asked a number of specific questions, which I will quickly address. He asked about the leafleting Bill of my noble friend Lord Clement-Jones. As I said in the music debate, my noble friend Lord De Mauley has agreed to look at guidance to local authorities. Both the noble Earl and the noble Lord, Lord Sawyer, flagged some wonderful places, and I can assure them that DCMS is concerned for them and watches this with great care. I can also tell the noble Earl that the GREAT campaign is indeed well placed to showcase our national and regional assets abroad, and is doing so. We will flag his points up with the campaign.

As I have said, enjoyment of the arts in all their wide variety is part of what it means to be human. One only has to see young people with their earphones in, listening to music—perhaps even if it is One Direction—to recognise that. That was why, of course, music played such a key part, along with the Lowry-esque landscapes and the NHS, in the opening ceremony of the Olympics. It is all part of who we are. We celebrate its diversity and creativity.

House adjourned at 6.38 pm.

International Development: Diseases of Poverty

Baroness Northover Excerpts

Wednesday 24th July 2013 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Jolly]

To ask Her Majesty’s Government how much of the £30 million allocated to fund the development of new technologies to impact on diseases of poverty, announced in March 2012, has been awarded to date.

[Baroness Northover]

My Lords, DfID is committed to tackling diseases of poverty through supporting the development of new technologies. Business cases for product development partnerships have been prepared and allocated funding is expected to begin this year, as planned.

[Baroness Jolly]

I thank my noble friend for her response, but how much has been spent in the past five years on biomedical and scientific research into HIV/AIDS and TB, and how much is planned to be spent in the next five years? I have tried to find this information; perhaps she can also tell the House where DfID’s 2013 onward research strategy is to be found.

[Baroness Northover]

DfID has provided approximately £60 million for biomedical and scientific research into HIV/AIDS and £39 million for TB research over the past five years. Spending for the next five years is dependent on the results of the ongoing product development partnerships competition. If my noble friend looks online, she will find DfID’s research strategy priorities and commissioning practices, which were published earlier this year as part of the International Development Committee’s annual accounts inquiry. This information is also in the Library.

[Baroness Kinnock of Holyhead]

My Lords, while a malaria vaccine is the biggest need at this time, it receives virtually no research funding. Currently, 10 times more is spent on a cure for male baldness than on a cure for malaria. Does the Minister agree that the research conducted by pharmaceutical companies focuses, as Bill Gates has said, on what is most lucrative and not on what is most needed? Does she agree with him that it is unlikely that the global poor will ever be profitable enough to attract the interest of the pharmaceutical industry?

[Baroness Northover]

The noble Baroness gets to the nub of the problem. This is why special effort must go into supporting research in these areas because it is, of course, the poorest who suffer from these diseases and cannot pay the prices for the drugs. I think about 1% of any investment went into this area of neglected tropical diseases, which is of course why Gates took it up. At the moment, he funds 49% of the research being taken forward. That is a template for what we are doing and why we are supporting it.

[Lord Chidgey]

My Lords, with DfID’s support, health organisations have been successful in developing a wide range of new health technologies to address the diseases that we are clearly aware of in developing countries, including TB and malaria. Can my noble friend tell us how successful the outcomes have been, and how confident she is in the results, given that countries such as the DRC and Nigeria together account for some 40% of the deaths from malaria, yet they have the most inadequate data of any country?

[Baroness Northover]

DfID’s research investments have helped to develop a range of treatments plus tests across these areas. For example, there is a diagnostic test for TB which is now available in 29 countries and a child-friendly, life-saving anti-malarial is now available in 39 countries—just to give my noble friend an indication of positive outcomes. We are also working very hard at country level to improve the quality of data to strengthen accountability because he is quite right: if we are to measure this properly, it is very important to have such data coming in.

[Baroness O’Neill of Bengarve]

Is the Minister aware that in addition to the money that is going through DfID for these purposes, the Medical Research Council—I declare an interest as the chair of its ethics committee—supports a great deal of research into tropical diseases and has two research centres in Africa?

[Baroness Northover]

Indeed, the United Kingdom is extremely strong in this field. The Wellcome Trust is a major player in this regard and we have the strengths of the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine and the Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine, so we contribute significantly in this area. I pay tribute to what the MRC does.

[Baroness Masham of Ilton]

My Lords, is the Minister aware of the organisation here in London called Find and Treat? It has a mobile X-ray unit and goes out to homeless people in hostels and other places to X-ray them for TB. Its X-ray unit is now on its last legs and it desperately needs a new one. Could she ensure that money is available here because TB is just as bad here as it is in third-world countries?

[Baroness Northover]

I remember colleagues being tested in one of those centres locally. I will take this back to the Department of Health and get an answer for the noble Baroness. It is obviously important to address TB here, where it is an increasing problem, as well as in developing countries.

[Lord Hunt of Kings Heath]

My Lords, I refer noble Lords to my health interests in the register. Does the noble Baroness think that the introduction of value-based pricing for pharmaceuticals in this country will lead to more research in those areas where at the moment there clearly is not a return for the pharmaceutical companies? They are often called orphan drugs. If they were incentivised it could lead to greater help for these diseases in poorer countries that noble Lords have been discussing.

[Baroness Northover]

I know that the noble Lord is very concerned about value-based pricing in the United Kingdom. We have to take a few steps back in terms of the support that needs to be given for the development of these treatments overseas. This is on a totally different scale. There is, in effect, no market, as the noble Lord’s colleague said, and we need to ensure that there is support for research and development before even the prospect of a market is taken forward.

[Lord Hughes of Woodside]

My Lords, great damage is being done to vaccination programmes by religious fanatics who preach that vaccination is in some way an imperialist plot. Is a lot of money being spent on education to disabuse people of that idea?

[Baroness Northover]

Again, the noble Lord highlights an important area. Polio is on the edge of being eradicated but in Pakistan and northern Nigeria, as the noble Lord will know, religious fanatics have killed some of those trying to roll out the programmes there. The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation is working extremely hard to tackle this but, obviously, it is a very delicate problem.

[The Countess of Mar]

My Lords, does the noble Baroness agree that prevention is better than cure and that a vital component of this is clean water and good nutrition? What is DfID doing from that point of view?

[Baroness Northover]

DfID fully recognises that malnutrition goes with diseases of poverty and is therefore trying to tackle both poverty and malnutrition. As the noble Countess says, clean water and sanitation are vital in ensuring that children, in particular, manage to survive these diseases.

Air Pollution

Baroness Northover Excerpts

Monday 22nd July 2013 Lords Chamber

[Lord Winston]

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what measures they are taking to mitigate the health risk caused by air pollution in London.

[Baroness Northover]

The Government have invested more than £1 billion in measures that will help to improve air quality, including incentives for low-emission vehicles and sustainable transport. In London, the mayor is responsible for working towards national air quality objectives. The Government work with the mayor and London boroughs to improve air quality and help support the health needs of people across the capital.

[Lord Winston]

My Lords, I am sure we are grateful to the Mayor of London for the initiatives he has taken, even though their implementation seems to be rather slow. However, is the noble Baroness aware that the WHO has calculated that there have been something like 29,000 premature deaths due to air pollution in the United Kingdom? Will she be kind enough to let me have details of the like-for-like figures, by region, for people dying as a result of air pollution compared with those dying as a result of obesity, alcohol or smoking?

[Baroness Northover]

The noble Lord is quite right to give the figure of 29,000 premature deaths per year because of pollution. I will get him the information that he requires from the department.

[Baroness Gardner of Parkes]

My Lords, the area in which I live in London is considered one of the worst in the UK. Is it not a fact that we have been in breach of the European Union directives for many years and that the EU keeps extending the time before we have to pay the penalty? Does that not seem to be a very unsatisfactory position?

[Baroness Northover]

The noble Baroness is not quite right. There are a number of measures and the United Kingdom has worked incredibly hard to try to meet these; for example, on particulate matter, which is very significant, the UK met EU requirements for the PM10 measure in 2011. In addition, 22 out of 27 states are struggling to meet the nitrogen dioxide directive, largely because of problems with diesel vehicles. So across the board countries are finding this a challenge. We are working very hard to ensure that we comply, aiming for later this decade.

[The Earl of Listowel]

My Lords, is there particular concern about the welfare of cyclists, and are they being given advice, particularly about wearing masks?

[Baroness Northover]

My brief tells me that cycling is actually a safer means of transport and that the risks from pollution highlighted by the noble Earl are not of major significance. However, clearly it would depend which roads those cyclists are cycling along. We want to do our very best to encourage people to cycle and walk, for the general benefit to themselves and the wider public, but it is true that there are greater risks in certain areas than in others.

[Lord Berkeley]

My Lords, could the Minister explain how we are to know whether or not this reduction in pollution is correct, when the Government no longer require local authorities to measure pollution officially? We had this last year, before the Olympics, when it was reported that many measuring stations around London were covered with plastic bags so that we did not know that the pollution in London was actually worse than in Beijing before its Olympics.

[Baroness Northover]

In fact, pollution levels were and are carefully monitored. The challenge is to tackle that and we are trying to tackle that at all levels: national, across London and in the boroughs. The noble Lord will note also that Public Health England, which has recently been set up, is taking this forward, working with local public health specialists. He may also wish to contribute to the local air quality management review, which is occurring at the moment and is looking at what is being done locally and consulting on how best to take this forward.

[Lord Tope]

My Lords, do the Government accept that the biggest public health risk after smoking is air pollution? Is the Minister aware that the House of Commons Environmental Audit Committee concluded that,

“a public awareness campaign would be the single most important tool in improving air quality”?

What plans do the Government have for such a public awareness campaign?

[Baroness Northover]

I noted the reports from The Lancet which cited air pollution as being the second greatest cause of lung cancer after passive smoking, so the noble Lord is right to flag its risks. The Government are working very closely to raise awareness. We are providing funding for this to local authorities. The public health outcomes framework includes an indicator on air pollution which enables public health professionals to address this. We are providing a forecasting service on levels of air pollution and information to vulnerable groups. There are some trials at Barts on how best to get information to vulnerable groups.

[Lord Knight of Weymouth]

My Lords, in reply to the noble Lord, Lord Berkeley, the Minister, referred to the consultation Local Air Quality Management in England. In that consultation, the Government’s preferred option is to remove the requirement for local authorities to report and declare air quality management areas. How then do the Government propose to monitor air quality if their preferred option is chosen—or are the Minister’s warm words just hot air?

[Baroness Northover]

The noble Lord refers to hot air on a day like this. The consultation is a genuinely open one, and I am sure the noble Lord’s views will be taken into consideration. Many of these Acts date back a long way, including of course the Clean Air Act which had a fantastic effect in earlier decades. We need to make sure that these Acts are brought up to date, and I am sure the noble Lord will feed in his very cogent views.

Global Partnership for Aid Effectiveness

Baroness Northover Excerpts

Tuesday 16th July 2013 Lords Chamber

[Lord Chidgey]

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what progress they have made, as part of the Global Partnership for Aid Effectiveness, in developing and specifying the aid effectiveness indicators outlined in the global agreement reached at the High Level Forum in Busan.

[Baroness Northover]

My Lords, 10 indicators and associated targets for a framework to track global development effectiveness were agreed internationally in June 2012. The UK has provided detailed feedback on proposed data to be used for each indicator. These data will be collected until mid-September and published in time for a major meeting on development effectiveness in early 2014.

[Lord Chidgey]

My Lords, I thank my noble friend for that reply. The Busan agreement includes the commitment to strengthen the role of Parliaments in the oversight of the development process by monitoring to ensure that aid is on budget lines that are subject to parliamentary scrutiny. What measures are the Government taking to ensure that the Busan parliamentary scrutiny includes democratic accountability, challenging the view of some that there is no relationship between democracy and development? What plans do the Government have to compensate for the drain on parliamentary capacity in developing countries caused by the high percentage of parliamentary staff trained under aid programmes leaving for more attractive posts elsewhere?

[Baroness Northover]

As my noble friend will know, parliamentarians are represented in the global partnership steering committee meetings, and DfID certainly believes that democratic government helps to promote sustainable development in the way which he has indicated. That is why we are supporting democratic elections through various programmes and other work, which we will be supporting in 13 countries by 2015. As for his point about the drain in staff, between 2011 and 2012 DfID invested £181 million in public sector reform, which includes improvement of staff performance and retention. We very much understand my noble friend’s point.

[Lord Judd]

My Lords, is it not very important to realise that if development is to be sustained, it is necessary to have stability and security? Can the Minister give us an assurance that, whatever happens, we will continue to give priority to the security sector reform programme, which tries to ensure that there are effective security arrangements that are also based on transparency and human rights?

[Baroness Northover]

I can give the noble Lord that assurance. He will note that it is a crucial part of the arrangements in the new deal for fragile states, and it also underlies and is an extremely important part of our principles regarding where we are willing to give budget support.

[Baroness Hayman]

My Lords, although I fully support the development of technical indicators for aid effectiveness, will the Minister confirm that there is manifold evidence that the most effective form of aid is that which concentrates on the social, economic and educational development of women?

[Baroness Northover]

The noble Baroness is absolutely right, which is why we have put women and girls very much at the centre of what DfID does. Education is part of that. As for the stages of development of various countries, I note that the countries that are most developed have the highest levels of educational enrolment and adult literacy.

[Baroness Jenkin of Kennington]

My Lords, does my noble friend agree that many of the aid-effectiveness indicators agreed at Busan—for example, the governance indicator which features so heavily at the G8—are already part of the Government’s development strategy?

[Baroness Northover]

My noble friend is quite right, and if she looks—as I am sure she has—at the recent DfID annual report, she will see that evidence there. It is extremely important that both aid givers, such as the United Kingdom, and aid recipients make sure that they address the requirements laid down in Busan. Only by doing so will we ensure that aid is most effectively delivered and has its greatest effect.

[Lord Anderson of Swansea]

My Lords, on the drain of staff, how does one seek to resolve the problem of staff of talent being attracted into the private sector, and also into the international organisation sector, with salaries that are perhaps four or five times more than they can get in their own Administrations? That only encourages corruption.

[Baroness Northover]

The noble Lord might look at the United Kingdom, too, and wonder whether that is a challenge that we also face. Of course it is a challenge, and it is one that we are well aware of. It is encouraging to see that there are very talented people working within, for example, the sovereign wealth funds, which can be useful instruments in the economic development of some of those countries.

[Baroness Tonge]

My Lords, have the Government made an assessment of the effectiveness of aid to the Palestinians? Can the Minister also tell us whether the Government have made any attempt to recoup the cost of that aid from the Government of Israel, who are, after all, responsible under Geneva conventions for the welfare of the people whose land they occupy?

[Baroness Northover]

The noble Baroness has made this point before. We constantly monitor the situation with the Palestinians. We are very concerned about their situation and frequently make the case about it to the Government of Israel. I would also point out, as I have before, that we need to see peacebuilding measures between the Israelis and the Palestinians, which will be in the interests of both sides.

[Lord Ashdown of Norton-sub-Hamdon]

My Lords, my driver in Bosnia and Herzegovina earned more than the local Prime Minister. Does my noble friend not realise that unless something serious is done about this problem of the internal brain drain to the international organisations, steps to try to help failed states recover after conflict will be seriously hog-tied?

[Baroness Northover]

My noble friend has enormous experience, of course. It is lessons such as those which he derives from Bosnia that we carry over when trying to rebuild in fragile states elsewhere, for example in Afghanistan. We are aware of these challenges, which is why the United Nations and the international bodies seek to address them.

[The Earl of Sandwich]

My Lords, when the Government have discovered which of their programmes are effective, will they make more effort to communicate this to the general public, who are still largely in ignorance of the aid programme?

[Baroness Northover]

There is sometimes a disconnect between what comes over in Comic Relief programmes, which people sign up to and understand—for example, linking back to the question from the noble Baroness, Lady Hayman, the importance of education and its transformative effect, especially for girls—and the news that sometimes comes out via some of our newspapers. We all need to continue to emphasise how effective and transformative aid can be.

Tourism: Music

Baroness Northover Excerpts

Thursday 11th July 2013 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Northover]

My Lords, I, too, would like to thank my noble friend Lord Storey for securing this debate, and I pay tribute to all noble Lords for their contributions. Once again, noble Lords have demonstrated remarkable expertise. Mentally, we have travelled to Glastonbury, Liverpool, Northern Ireland, Fife, Aldeburgh, Buxton, Hyde Park and wider.

Noble Lords are right to emphasise the importance of both music and tourism. This morning, I see that the new inbound tourism figures from VisitBritain show that the tourism spend in Britain was 5% higher than in May last year, which is very encouraging. The ONS tourism satellite account shows that in 2009 tourism direct gross value added—and I asked my son, who does economics, what that meant—was £45 billion. Thus the tourism sector is approximately five times larger than the agricultural sector and about half the size of the construction sector. Further work by Deloitte suggests that, if the indirect economic effects of tourism are also included, gross value added could be as high as £115 billion. Domestic tourism is also hugely important, worth some 80% of tourism receipts.

Our rich culture marks us apart in the world, as the noble Baroness, Lady Liddell, and others have emphasised. Music from classical to rock is a crucial part of Britain’s tourism appeal, both in terms of attracting visitors to the UK and encouraging spend while they are here. It forms a major theme of the GREAT campaign, which is the Government’s most ambitious international marketing campaign ever, to which the noble Baroness referred.

The music, visual and performing arts industry is undoubtedly one of our most successful creative industries. Our artists’ share of global album sales in 2012 was the highest on record, and British acts have now claimed the world’s top-selling album for five of the past six years. The industry estimates that it generates over £4 billion every year for our economy and helps to keep 300,000 people in work.

We have heard how Liverpool produced the Beatles, Manchester Oasis and London more recently Adele. As we see, we remain very much at the forefront—and when our nation celebrates, we celebrate with live music. Some 1.4 million people applied for one of 10,000 tickets to attend the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee concert in 2012. My noble friends Lord Storey and Lord Clement-Jones and the noble Lord, Lord Aberdare, noted the Olympics and Paralympics. The BBC reported that the opening and closing ceremonies of London 2012, which were absolutely stunning, sparked a big surge in music sales worth a retail value of over £2 million.

We are a nation of music lovers and festival goers. In 2011, the O2 Arena sold more tickets than any other arena in the world, making it the most popular music venue for five years running. As my noble friends Lord Storey and Lord Clement-Jones noted, Glastonbury is the biggest music festival in the world in terms of attendance by day, and contributes over £100 million annually to the economy. Even in times of austerity, I note that this year Glastonbury sold out in less than two hours.

Many noble Lords have paid tribute to UK Music and so do I. The UK Music report, Destination Music, published in May 2011—the first study of its kind—highlighted the important economic contribution of music festivals and major concerts to tourism throughout the United Kingdom. The study revealed that they attract nearly 8 million visits from those defined as music tourists who spend £1.4 billion during the course of their trip. While domestic tourists make up the majority of these audiences, the contribution of overseas visitors, who spend up to four times as much per capita during their visits, is also very important.

I read that report with great interest and noted the regional differences in the types of music that attract tourists in. It is not surprising that in London, as my noble friend Lord Black emphasised, classical music and musicals play a key part. Elsewhere, it may be festivals but in the north-east, for example, it is concerts rather than festivals. The noble Lord, Lord Aberdare, noted many across Wales and elsewhere and the need to study this further. UK Music has contributed to our understanding of this. The noble Lord, Lord Black, spoke of the need to support music teaching in the conservatoires which underpin our orchestras. It is important to recognise not only their cultural contribution but also the contribution that they make to the economy generally, and I can assure him of our continued commitment to the conservatoires. It is because of the need to understand the impact of music on tourism and the economy that we look forward to UK Music’s new report which will be issued shortly.

We are supporting these sectors. According to UK Music, many festival organisers credit the Government’s Licensing Act, which assisted in streamlining the local authority licensing process for big events, with helping to double numbers of music festivals over the past decade. My noble friend Lord Clement-Jones’s Live Music Act extended the range of live music performances that can take place without a licence and we are committed to doing more. My noble friend Lord Clement-Jones noted that we will extend the audience limit for some events at small venues from 200 to 500. He also asked me about his leafleting Bill. I was here at Second Reading and he made a very cogent case but he will also have noted the assurance from my noble friend Lord De Mauley that while we are still seeking to reduce litter—the purpose of the original legislation—we will also consider guidance issued to local authorities. I look forward to further debates.

The industry can also benefit from business funding schemes established by Government and is well represented on the Creative Industries Council which proposes ways of overcoming barriers to growth. We provide funding for music through the Arts Council England which will invest over £70 million a year in music organisations up to 2015.

Music also forms an integral part of our major cultural events. My noble friend Lord Storey should be extraordinarily proud of the success of Liverpool 2008 which was, arguably, the most successful European Capital of Culture for many years. That clearly continues in Liverpool and I look forward to hearing more about the band The Stopouts. So successful was Liverpool 2008, generating over £800 million for the local economy and an extra 3.5 million new visitors, that the Government launched the UK City of Culture programme. Derry/Londonderry, the current title holder, has carried on this cultural torch, and is cited by the international Rough Guides as one of the must-see destinations in the world for 2013.

The right reverend Prelate is right to emphasise the unique contribution this country has made to church and cathedral music. In this debate—a music fest, as the noble Lord, Lord Haskel, put it—we have seen how diverse our music heritage and current activities are. I can assure noble Lords of our awareness of this. In answer to the noble Lord, Lord Haskel, the Arts Council has invested more than £1.25 million in the Benjamin Britten centenary celebrations. I note that several noble Lords mentioned Aldeburgh.

Noble Lords have flagged up one or two key issues and I shall do my best to cover them as rapidly as possible. I thank the noble Baroness, Lady Liddell, for recognising the good settlements that DCMS managed to secure in very difficult circumstances. However, I hear what noble Lords say about the pressure on budgets.

I heard what the noble Lord, Lord Aberdare, said about VAT, and I can assure him that the Government have considered that matter. The Treasury could not see a causal link between VAT rates and tourism levels, so I am afraid that the Treasury is thus far not persuaded. No doubt, it will note what the noble Lord has said.

I was asked about visas. We are of course continually seeking to improve our visa system to balance the need to protect the UK with a strong desire to ensure that requirements are as clear and straightforward as possible. I thank the noble Lord, Lord Berkeley, for recognising the efforts that we are making. I should point out that we are looking at improving the pre-entry visa experience as part of our tourism strategy. Our visa applications are now translated for the first time into the local languages of our key markets—namely, into Arabic, Chinese, Hindi, Russian, Turkish and Thai. I am astonished that that was not the case previously. We had a target of delivering 90% of online applications by December 2012, which has been exceeded. At present, more than 95% of applications are carried out online. I can assure noble Lords that we are very much aware of the importance of this area.

My noble friends Lord Clement-Jones and Lord Storey, and the noble Lord, Lord Stevenson, asked about a national strategy for music. I can assure my noble friends that music is a key part of the strategies in a number of organisations that work closely together to further the interests of our music sectors. The Arts Council’s strategy, set out in Achieving Great Art for Everyone, includes music as an integral part of our creative industries. It is also well represented on the Creative Industries Council. We also have our national plan for music education, which delivers £196 million for music education hubs. In February this year, the Arts Council and VisitEngland announced a strategic partnership outlining priority areas on which the two organisations will work together. Music is integral to our GREAT campaign whereby the issues facing the promotion of music can be considered. A strategy is indeed being brought together.

My noble friend Lord Clement-Jones emphasised the importance of the promotion of music abroad by trade envoys. He will know that my noble friend Lady Bonham-Carter is newly appointed by the Prime Minister as a trade envoy for the creative industries. I know that she regards this work as very important. I gently point out to the noble Lord, Lord Berkeley, that this is not a Conservative but a coalition Government and that I happen to be from the other part of that coalition, as is my noble friend Lady Bonham-Carter, who was appointed by another part of the coalition, the Prime Minister. We achieve most by working together. I can also assure the noble Lord, Lord Berkeley, of our great support for the BBC, which was echoed in the Chamber when he spoke today. We have confidence that the issues that he has raised will be addressed by the BBC. The noble Lord asked me to look into guidelines on fees, and I will do so.

I realise that my time has run out. If there are any other issues that I have not addressed, I will answer those by letter. It has been an extremely interesting and enlightening debate. Noble Lords have made extremely clear the contribution of music both to our culture, not least as expressed by Plato, and to our economy, and how music plays its part in contributing to tourism, and we welcome that enormously.

Africa: Development

Baroness Northover Excerpts

Thursday 27th June 2013 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Kinnock of Holyhead]

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of Africa’s development prospects as set out in the African Economic Outlook 2013 report.

[Baroness Northover]

My Lords, we recognise the importance of economic growth and we support such growth across Africa to hasten poverty reduction. As the latest African Economic Outlook report says, sustaining economic growth requires capable, accountable government, well balanced tax systems, new and growing businesses, investment, for example in infrastructure and education, and freer trade across African borders.

[Baroness Kinnock of Holyhead]

I thank the noble Baroness for her response. Is she aware that the chair of the Africa Panel, Kofi Annan, has pointed out that some companies are using unethical tax avoidance, transfer pricing and anonymous company ownership to maximise their profits while at the same time millions of Africans suffer inadequate nutrition, health and education? NGOs, civil society and responsible businesses, such as Rio Tinto, are therefore calling for mandatory transparency rules. Why, then, did the Government not take an active lead in pursuit of the same objectives by pressing for the inclusion of mandatory rules in the G8 communiqué?

[Baroness Northover]

My Lords, as my noble friend Lord Ahmad said on an earlier Question, the previous Government and this one have taken this matter forward. As the noble Baroness recognises, it was very actively addressed at the G8. She will also appreciate from her time in government the difficulties of taking it forward. I hope she will pay tribute to the progress that was made in this regard because we all recognise that this is extremely important. We need to ensure that companies operating in Africa contribute to the development of African countries.

[Lord Chidgey]

My Lords, in relation to elections in Africa, the AEO report notes that aspects of democratic change, such as the institutionalisation of state structures that respect citizens, social and political rights and foster political and economic transparency and accountability, have not yet taken root in many African countries. What measures are the Government taking to address that in their search for aid effectiveness across the DfID programme?

[Baroness Northover]

As my noble friend will be aware, this is clearly a major concern and it is also flagged up in the report. I note with some interest the greater success and prosperity among those countries in Africa that are making progress in this regard. Those countries should very quickly be able to see that it is in their self-interest to take this forward for their greater prosperity.

[Baroness Meacher]

I applaud the Government’s continuing commitment to the 0.7% figure for the aid budget. In view of the growing risk of weak countries, particularly in west Africa, being caught up in the trafficking of drugs, can the Minister give me some assurance about the priority being given to those very weak states to help them build up and develop governance institutions, the police, justice systems and so on in order to prevent them becoming narco states?

[Baroness Northover]

The noble Baroness is right and she will be aware that DfID’s priority is fragile states for those very reasons. I know that DfID has great concern about all the issues that she has flagged up and is doing its best to try to improve the governance and justice systems within those countries. Looking at the report mentioned in the Question, I note that half of African countries still depend on aid and the other half do not. Of the half that do, those are the ones that suffer the kind of fragility that she referred to.

[Lord Lea of Crondall]

China is obviously now making a bigger contribution to investment in Africa. China was not invited to the G8 and in some respects that might be a pity because China is now claiming that it is observing all international norms and that it is not an exceptional country, as it was thought to be. Is there some way in which the Government are encouraging dialogue with China to ensure that this is the case and that it is observing international norms with regard to investment in Africa?

[Baroness Northover]

The noble Lord flags up an area that has caused some concern. One of the reasons why Africa has been particularly resilient in the last period is because of trade with China and other developing countries whereas trade with the EU and the US has been dropping off. There is clearly a benefit for Africa. It is important to try to convey to those who are involved in trade in Africa that it is in their long-term interests to follow the kind of rules referred to by the noble Lord.

[Baroness Berridge]

My Lords, my noble friend the Minister commented on the half of the countries that depend on trade rather than aid. Can she comment on recent reports that there is a growing risk of piracy in the Gulf of Guinea and that there are more reports of piracy there than off the coast of Somalia? That, of course, is the massive trade route for all goods out of west Africa.

[Baroness Northover]

There are a number of challenges and my noble friend has referred to just one. There are many challenges in terms of trade out of Africa and within Africa. The international community and the African countries themselves are trying to take forward better inter-country trade and more effective trade out of Africa.

[Lord McConnell of Glenscorrodale]

Last week, Members of both Houses had the opportunity to have a very interesting dialogue with the new chairperson of the African Union Commission, who outlined very clearly her priorities and the priorities of the commission for the next few years. Is it now time for the UK, other European donors and the European Union to put in place a long-term strategy to build up the capacity of the African Union and its institutions to help the continent to support its own development rather than it always being done through bilateral relationships with ourselves and others?

[Baroness Northover]

The AU and African countries are building that kind of experience and are doing so in a way that might lead one to be cautiously optimistic. According to the report, more progress has been made where there is better gender equality, and I note that that is also represented in the AU.