Official Development Assistance
Debate between Lord Bruce of Bennachie and Baroness Chapman of Darlington
Baroness Chapman of Darlington (Lab)
It is vital, particularly at the moment, when many of our ideas and values regarding women are being challenged internationally, but we are determined that our work to support women will continue. We want to see this reflected through everything we do, and we are working on the detail of how we responsibly mainstream our work on gender throughout our programming. That is part of the story, but the other thing we need to do is to use our voice and influence internationally to make it clear that our position on these issues remains constant, even though others may change.
Lord Bruce of Bennachie (LD)
My Lords, given the impact of cuts in aid and the advance of Russia and China as funders in developing countries, will the Government seek an urgent initiative to promote public and private debt relief to ease the burden in those countries? Will they also do more aid matching to engage the British public, and work with the private sector to encourage development-led partnerships between the public and private sectors?
Baroness Chapman of Darlington (Lab)
The private sector has an enormous role to play, and we have a responsibility to enable that to happen in a far larger way than it has in the past. I am leading an emerging markets and developing economies task force with the City of London; we have big players around the table, including the ratings agencies, HSBC and Aviva. We are seeing real success in breaking down the barriers to get that investment into developing economies.
The noble Lord is right to raise the issue of debt. Some countries spend far more on debt repayment than they do on health and education public services. That is not sustainable and we need a solution. Various options are available, and we support all of them to find which are most appropriate for the different nature of debt, to which the noble Lord alluded, in 2025.
Sudan: Protection of Civilians
Debate between Lord Bruce of Bennachie and Baroness Chapman of Darlington
Baroness Chapman of Darlington (Lab)
I am slightly surprised to hear the noble Baroness pronounce genocide, when she knows, and has supported our position, that we do not do that. That is for a competent court to do. Tom Fletcher is an outstanding leader of OCHA. He clarified what he said, as he needed to, on the occasion that she alludes to. He did the right thing, and I think that speaks well of him. The way that he is leading his organisation and drawing attention to what is happening in Sudan, and putting the resources at his disposal in the right place, speak very highly of him. He has our complete support.
Lord Bruce of Bennachie (LD)
My Lords, following my noble friend’s question, after the massacre in Rwanda the United Nations adopted the responsibility to protect resolution. It does not seem to have had any meaningful impact. I understand the Minister’s position, but the question is this: what on earth is the practical measure that can happen? People are desperate and trapped—we do not know how many tens of thousands of people—hoping that somebody is going to come and relieve them, but there is no sign of international action. What can we do to get forces actually on the ground to ease the siege and release the suffering before it becomes a total disaster?
Baroness Chapman of Darlington (Lab)
The politics at the UN have evolved in an unhelpful way, I think, since the genocide in Rwanda and the initiatives that followed. I do not think that that is where we will see what the noble Lord wants, which is troops on the ground keeping the peace. We do not have peace. We need everybody who has any kind of influence over either warring party to get those leaders in a room and get them to negotiate. We support all current efforts being taken to bring that about, not least through the United States and the Qataris, but they have so far been unsuccessful. Given what has happened in recent days, the prospects for that seem dimmer, not brighter, but we keep going. All I can say is that this Government will get behind any initiatives designed to bring about a ceasefire.
Corruption: Low and Middle-income Countries
Debate between Lord Bruce of Bennachie and Baroness Chapman of Darlington
Baroness Chapman of Darlington (Lab)
We have had a great deal of success in seizing assets and returning them to those Governments. I remind the House that most people in positions of leadership across Africa are not corrupt and are working incredibly hard for the benefit of their populations. I know the noble Lord agrees with that. We returned millions of pounds recently to Nigeria, where that money has been reinvested into public services for the benefit of those people. That is the work that we will continue to do.
Lord Bruce of Bennachie (LD)
My Lords, over 20 years, I saw how development was being undermined by corruption in too many low-income countries. What will the Government do through the international anti-corruption unit to ensure that funds that are being laundered through British administrations are prosecuted, with the funds seized and returned to the people who need them, rather than disappearing into the morass of illegal looting?
Baroness Chapman of Darlington (Lab)
We are working through the unit, but, importantly, we are also working on prevention. We have a great deal of work taking place, alongside the African Development Bank, to strengthen systems in-country so that countries are able to take measures themselves to deal with this and prevent these kinds of practices, which, as the noble Lord said, so badly disadvantage countries that really need to keep that money in-country so they can spend it well for the benefit of their people.
Western Sahara Conflict
Debate between Lord Bruce of Bennachie and Baroness Chapman of Darlington
Lord Bruce of Bennachie (LD)
My Lords, I welcome the Minister’s Answer and explanation about the position on Morocco, a position which the Government have recently moved on. Is it not important, with a conflict that has been going on this long, that we do not just take sides but try to resolve the conflict before it degenerates into what could be a proxy war if malign parties choose to intervene? What can the UK do to try to ensure that the support Morocco is getting is turned into a practical result that the international community can support?
Baroness Chapman of Darlington (Lab)
I could not agree more with what the noble Lord has just said—he is absolutely right. The way that the UK is conducting itself as we move on is with pragmatism and in accordance with the things we have signed up to and the commitments we have made, alongside Morocco. Importantly, we do this with full transparency.
Sanctions Implementation and Enforcement
Debate between Lord Bruce of Bennachie and Baroness Chapman of Darlington(5 months, 3 weeks ago)
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Baroness Chapman of Darlington (Lab)
I hear my noble friend, who also wants us to move on frozen assets. It is something on which we all agree. Along with our partners, we have managed to release the $50 billion in the ERA, but I completely hear that noble Lords want us to do more.
Lord Bruce of Bennachie (LD)
My Lords, I very much welcome what the Minister said and I am glad that we have cross-party support for this. I wonder whether I could inject a question relating to some of the comments that have been made by the American Administration about the possibility of easing sanctions against Russia, which President Trump has said on more than one occasion. Can I seek clarification and assurance from the Minister that our sanctions regime is under our control and subject to Parliament’s approval or disapproval for any change?
Baroness Chapman of Darlington (Lab)
Our sanctions regime is the UK’s and we make our decisions in accordance with our laws. Although we do not comment on future designations or lifting designations, I have no reason to think that it is the UK Government’s intention or that we have any plans, until there is peace between Ukraine and Russia, and Putin withdraws his troops—as he could today—and stops this illegal war, to change our general approach to the use of sanctions on Russia.
Official Development Assistance
Debate between Lord Bruce of Bennachie and Baroness Chapman of Darlington(8 months ago)
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Lord Bruce of Bennachie
To ask His Majesty’s Government how aid priorities will change following the decision to reduce the Official Development Assistance budget to 0.3 per cent of gross national income (GNI), and whether they intend to restore the commitment of spending 0.7 per cent of GNI in future.
The Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (Baroness Chapman of Darlington) (Lab)
My Lords, as the Prime Minister made clear, increasing our security and defence spending has demanded the difficult but necessary decision to temporarily reduce our ODA budget from 0.5% to 0.3% of GNI from 2027. This Government remain fully committed to the UK playing a globally significant role on development; it is both in our national interest and in the interest of our partners. We remain committed to return to spending 0.7% of GNI on ODA when fiscal circumstances allow.
Lord Bruce of Bennachie (LD)
First, I congratulate the Minister on her promotion, albeit in somewhat difficult and unexpected circumstances. I will seek to work with her to try to ensure that aid, in its reduced capacity, gets to where it matters most. Nevertheless, I believe that the cut in ODA is a strategic error, which not only gives a terrible signal but is a mistake that threatens our security. Anneliese Dodds, in her resignation letter, said that the scale of the cuts would make it virtually impossible for the Government to deliver their continuing commitments. So may I ask, in particular, how the UK will maintain engagement in conflict prevention, reducing migration pressure and building resilience? On top of the cuts inflicted by the previous Government, how can we prevent Russia and China supercharging their presence within the vacuum left by the US and the UK, pulling most of Africa and south Asia into their sphere of influence, undermining democracy and what is left of the rule of law, and seriously compromising our security? I am glad that she said this was temporary, but how temporary is it? When will we get back to 0.7%?
Baroness Chapman of Darlington (Lab)
We will get back to 0.7% when we no longer use debt for day-to-day spending and our overall debt starts to decline. We have not done this because of values or a wish to turn away development; we believe in international development, and we are proud of the record of the United Kingdom on international development. However, I should not have to remind anyone in Parliament that the first responsibility of any Government is the safety and security of our citizens, and we have committed to and will spend 2.5% on defence. That is the decision that the Prime Minister took, and it will not change; it was taken for reasons that I think we can all understand. We do not wish to turn away from our global commitments to development. I am glad that the noble Lord has reached out and offered to work with me on this, and I accept that offer. Undoubtedly, some choices will have to be made, and spending will have to be reprioritised; I will embark on that process today and I look forward to working alongside the noble Lord on it.
Sub-Saharan Africa: Diplomatic Relationships
Debate between Lord Bruce of Bennachie and Baroness Chapman of Darlington(9 months, 3 weeks ago)
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The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (Baroness Chapman of Darlington) (Lab)
My Lords, in line with our manifesto commitment, the Foreign Secretary launched a five-month consultation to inform the UK’s new approach to the African continent during his visit to Nigeria and South Africa in November. Our goal is fundamentally a transformed partnership that engages with African countries as equals. This will promote our economic growth ambitions, including trade and investment, address our migration priorities and draw on our shared cultural and people-to-people links.
Lord Bruce of Bennachie (LD)
While I welcome that Answer, the UK has disengaged drastically from Africa in the last few years—aid has been slashed, trade and investment have been halved, the investment summit was cancelled, and the World Service and the British Council are struggling to maintain their services. Russia and China have come exponentially into this vacuum, so what are the Government going to do specifically and practically across all sectors to engage with sub-Saharan Africa? Will they follow the example of Japan, China, India and the EU and set up a UK- Africa partnership?
Baroness Chapman of Darlington (Lab)
My Lords, I could not have put that better myself. It was a very helpful summary of where we are. On aid, we are committed to the 0.5%. We have an ambition to get back to where we ought to have been at 0.7%, but noble Lords will understand the inheritance we received—I do not need to mention the £22 billion black hole as my noble friend is here beside me.
The noble Lord is completely right to highlight the World Service and the British Council. He will notice the financial support we were able to provide the World Service in the recent Budget, and we are working closely with the British Council to make sure it is put on a stable footing because it is essential as one of the finest soft power assets this country possesses. He referred to Russia and China, and clearly it is for African nations to decide their own international partnerships, but many have expressed the view that they wish to work more closely with the United Kingdom and we are very open to that as part of our new approach.