Children Living in Poverty

Debate between Baroness Stedman-Scott and Lord McConnell of Glenscorrodale

Wednesday 15th July 2020 Lords Chamber

[Lord McConnell of Glenscorrodale (Lab)]

My Lords, on behalf of my noble friend Lord McNicol of West Kilbride and with his permission, I beg leave to ask the Question standing in his name on the Order Paper.

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department for Work and Pensions (Baroness Stedman-Scott) (Con)]

My Lords, our current focus is on supporting people financially through this crisis. Our long-term ambition, based on clear evidence about the importance of work in tackling poverty, remains to build an economy that gives everyone the opportunity to enter and progress in work. In 2018-19, only 3% of children in households where both parents worked full time were in absolute poverty before housing costs compared to 47% in households where one or more of the parents worked part time.

[Lord McConnell of Glenscorrodale]

My Lords, the mass unemployment of the 1980s did not leave just a generation of children—far too many children—living in poverty. It affected them, their children and their grandchildren for decades. Will the Government agree that in what is likely to be a very tough economic climate following this pandemic there is a need for targeted action to ensure that children not only escape the trap of poverty but have the educational opportunities to come out of poverty and have a better life thereafter?

Prosperity Fund: Sustainable Development Goals

Debate between Baroness Stedman-Scott and Lord McConnell of Glenscorrodale

Thursday 7th February 2019 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Stedman-Scott]

The noble Baroness raises a very important point. Nobody wants to see children starve, and our aid budget and the agencies that we work with—the NGOs—are doing everything they can to get food to these children to ensure they do not struggle in this way.

[Lord McConnell of Glenscorrodale (Lab)]

My Lords, that is one of the clearest answers we have had yet from Ministers on the link between these funds and the sustainable development goals, and I welcome it. But will the Government take the opportunity, during the UK’s voluntary national review to the United Nations this summer, to publish that detail in terms of monitoring and evaluation of these expenditures in relation to the goals? Will they do so not just for the prosperity fund but for the other funds that are being spent by departments outside of DfID?

[Baroness Stedman-Scott]

The noble Lord raises a very important point. Transparency is critical, and I do not believe there is any desire not to be transparent on these matters. The CSSF is working hard to increase transparency and has made major progress. Over the past 18 months, the CSSF has listened to feedback and worked on publishing more information on its programmes, its objectives and how its programmes are performing. I have no doubt that if the noble Lord still does not think we are up to scratch, he will let us know.

United Nations Sustainable Development Goals

Debate between Baroness Stedman-Scott and Lord McConnell of Glenscorrodale

Thursday 1st March 2018 Lords Chamber

[Lord McConnell of Glenscorrodale]

To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether the forthcoming Commonwealth Heads of Government meeting will discuss the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals; and what objectives they have for Commonwealth action on those goals.

[Baroness Stedman-Scott (Con)]

I thank the noble Lord for his Question. The last time he stood here, I think I promised him he would not get me again, so I am very sorry about that.

The agenda for the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting is developed in partnership with Commonwealth member states and the Commonwealth Secretariat. We anticipate that discussions will cover four key themes relevant to the sustainable development goals—fairness, sustainability, prosperity and security. The meeting will look to advance a number of issues relevant to the sustainable development goals, including promoting trade and inclusive economic growth, fostering sustainable development of the world’s oceans and tackling human trafficking.

--- Later in debate ---

[Lord McConnell of Glenscorrodale (Lab)]

My Lords, while we would all welcome the fact that the Gambia has rejoined the Commonwealth in recent weeks, as a country it is a place that reminds us of the importance of strong institutions and strong democracy as an underpinning for development. Will the leaders at CHOGM address the vital issues encompassed in goal 16 of the sustainable development goals—the objective of strong and stable institutions underpinning peace? Will the Commonwealth use its track record on human rights, justice and peacebuilding to try to reinvigorate the international effort on this particular goal?

[Baroness Stedman-Scott]

May I say that we are delighted that the Gambia has rejoined the Commonwealth, and delighted to see the flag flying outside Marlborough House?

The UK was at the forefront of pushing for goal 16 and is committed to delivering it at home and around the world. Peaceful, inclusive societies, access to justice for all and effective, accountable and inclusive institutions underpin the entire sustainable development agenda. We are working with member states and the Commonwealth Secretariat to develop an ambitious agenda for the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting, which we expect to include a range of discussions relevant to sustainable development goal 16. We also expect that the three-day people’s forum, which will take place prior to the ministerial discussions, will have a significant focus on the themes in SDG 16.

United Nations Sustainable Development Goals

Debate between Baroness Stedman-Scott and Lord McConnell of Glenscorrodale

Thursday 1st February 2018 Lords Chamber

[Lord McConnell of Glenscorrodale (Lab)]

My Lords, I beg leave to ask the Question standing in my name on the Order Paper and, in doing so, I welcome the noble Baroness, Lady Stedman-Scott, to her place to answer her first Question today—though I add that we are all delighted that the noble Lord, Lord Bates, will be back in his place soon, having withdrawn his resignation.

[Baroness Stedman-Scott (Con)]

My Lords, I thank the noble Lord. I am sorry that noble Lords have me today, but I am thrilled to say that it is not a permanent arrangement. I am sure that this is going to be the longest seven minutes of my life. Nobody more than me wishes to see my noble friend the Minister back in his usual place soon. However, I was able to take advice from him yesterday. He said two things: “Answer the Question, and don’t be late”.

The Government intend to present the UK’s voluntary national review of progress towards the sustainable development goals, or SDGs, in 2019. The Government are committed to delivering the goals, both at home and internationally, and departments are embedding them in their single departmental plans. High-level summaries of current plans were published on GOV.UK in December last year, together with examples of how government policies are contributing towards the SDGs.

[Lord McConnell of Glenscorrodale]

I thank the noble Baroness for that reply. Two of the key SDGs on which the Government will report next year are SDG 4 on quality education and SDG 17 on partnerships. Tomorrow in Dakar, Senegal, the Government will be represented at the financing conference for the Global Partnership for Education, where commitments will be made that will help to achieve these goals, particularly on quality education, over the coming years. Will the Government increase their contribution to the Global Partnership for Education? Will the noble Baroness take this opportunity from the Front Bench to join me in urging the Secretary of State to make a substantial contribution?

[Baroness Stedman-Scott]

I thank the noble Lord for his question. He is trying to lead me down the path of committing to provide extra money as I answer my first Question, but I am not going there. However, I will answer the question. The world has taken great strides forward in recent years on access to education: 89% of children are now in school. However, major problems remain with teaching quality, and in developing countries 90% of children are not learning even the basics of literacy and numeracy. We are proud to be a strong supporter of global education. Between 2011 and 2015, the UK supported 11.3 million children into primary and lower secondary education. The UK has been a strong supporter of the Global Partnership for Education from the outset. The Secretary of State for International Development will attend the replenishment conference tomorrow, and there will announce the size of the UK pledge as well as setting out DfID’s priorities for global education support.