Asked by: Anne Main (Conservative - St Albans)
Question to the Department for International Development:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what steps he is taking to support (a) the removal of plastic waste and (b) increase plastic recycling internationally.
Answered by Harriett Baldwin
The Department for International Development is supporting developing countries address problems around marine litter and has committed £39 million over the last year to tackle the problem of plastic pollution. We are supporting governments to consider what practical steps they can take to reduce the pollution of our oceans, such as restricting the use of plastic bags. We are starting to work with businesses and NGOs in Africa and Asia to trial new approaches to increase plastic recycling rates, thereby helping the environment while creating new jobs. This includes our work in Bangladesh where we will work with industry to increase the quality and volume of local plastic recycled and the percentage of locally recycled plastic used, particularly in garment manufacturing.
Through UK Aid Match, we are supporting the Tearfund plastics appeal (up to £3m) to set up recycling hubs across Pakistan. We are also investing in research to find ways in which manufacturing processes can help reduce plastic pollution.
In addition, the UK provides considerable funding to multilateral organisations who are working with countries to tackle this problem, including some major investments in waste management services.
Asked by: Anne Main (Conservative - St Albans)
Question to the Department for International Development:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what projects his Department supports in Bangladesh that remove plastic waste from (a) rivers and (b) the sea.
Answered by Harriett Baldwin
The Department for International Development is committed to helping developing countries tackle the problem of marine plastic pollution. We developed the Tackling Waste and Plastic Pollution programme as part of wider UK Government efforts to address this. The programme provides up to £13 million, plus technical assistance and practical support to a number of Commonwealth countries to improve waste management, and to reduce marine plastic pollution. Bangladesh is one of the beneficiary countries. A pilot project is now being developed in Dhaka to understand what works to reduce and manage plastic waste in low income city contexts, including reducing the impact on rivers and oceans.
Asked by: Anne Main (Conservative - St Albans)
Question to the Department for International Development:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, whether her Department funds aid programmes that support female garment factory workers in Bangladesh.
Answered by Alistair Burt
The UK supports garment factory workers, more than 70% of whom are female, by improving building safety and working conditions, empowering workers, and urging buyers to take responsibility for their supply chains.
DFID provided £7.4m (2013-2017) to the International Labour Organisation (ILO) to improve factory conditions post Rana Plaza collapse. The subsequent ‘Better Jobs in Bangladesh’ programme provides £6.6m (2017-2023) for sustainable inspection and remediation. The UK is also providing £22.43m (2014-2021) to enhance the provision of skills training in the RMG and Construction sectors. This is helping female workers enter higher paid jobs in the sector.
Asked by: Anne Main (Conservative - St Albans)
Question to the Department for International Development:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, pursuant to the Answer of 21 November 2018 to Question 190838, how much UK funding will be used to fund local observation of the upcoming general election in Bangladesh.
Answered by Alistair Burt
The UK is providing £542,703 through the Department for International Development (DFID) to a coalition of 23 Bangladeshi civil society organisations (Election Working Group) to observe the upcoming general election in Bangladesh. The grant is managed by The Asia Foundation and observers are all drawn from organisations with considerable experience in observing elections in Bangladesh. Combined with complementary support from USAID and the Swiss Development Cooperation, we will cover all constituencies and will deploy both short and long term observers.
Asked by: Anne Main (Conservative - St Albans)
Question to the Department for International Development:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, how much funding the Government has allocated to promote (a) freedom of expression, (b) rights to peaceful protest and (c) democratic engagement in Bangladesh in each of the last five years.
Answered by Alistair Burt
DFID Bangladesh has allocated GBP 8.38 million on democratic engagement over the last five years (2014-2018) through phases 1 and 2 of the Strengthening Political Participation Programme. The annual expenditure is as follows:
Year | Amount in GBP |
2014 (SPP I) | 16,456.33 |
2015 (SPP I) | 2,132,855.88 |
2016 (SPP I) | 1,062,532.94 |
2017 (SPP II) | 1,817,969.83 |
2018 (SPP II) | 3,357,854.96 |
Total | 8,387,669.94 |
FCO Funding to the organisation Article 19 Bangladesh has supported freedom of expression. This included: £64,284 2014-15 to support freedom of expression; £10,000 in 2016 to support freedom of expression for sexual minorities; and £199,964 to support protection of freedom of expression for journalists and social media commentators 2016 – 2018.
We do not currently fund any programmes specifically addressing the right to Freedom of Assembly or peaceful protest.
Asked by: Anne Main (Conservative - St Albans)
Question to the Department for International Development:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what the terms and conditions are for the provision of aid to Bangladesh to promote human rights and freedom of expression; and what steps the Government is taking to ensure compliance with those terms and conditions.
Answered by Alistair Burt
DFID Bangladesh funds programmes that support civil society to hold the government to account, protect civic space and promote rights, particularly for marginalised or vulnerable groups. These programmes comply with DFID programme management requirements, including thorough due diligence assessments and robust monitoring and evaluation.
Where appropriate, programmes that provide funding directly through government systems or work in the security and justices sectors are assessed against DFID Partnership Principles or Overseas Justice and Security Assessment (OSJA) criteria respectively. These ensure programming is human rights compliant. DFID programmes complement FCO Magna Carta human rights funding and FCO diplomatic engagement.
Details of DFID Bangladesh programmes are available on the Devtracker website.
I was deeply concerned by the violence in Dhaka in response to peaceful road safety protests by students and the subsequent arrest of journalist Shahidul Alam. I expressed UK concern regarding the response to the road safety protests, and raised Dr Alam's case, with the Government of Bangladesh, during my visit to Bangladesh 28-31 August. The Foreign Secretary also raised Dr Alam’s case with Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina when they met on 24 September in New York.
Asked by: Anne Main (Conservative - St Albans)
Question to the Department for International Development:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what recent assessment she has made of the value for money of the provision of development assistance to Bangladesh for freedom of expression and political engagement.
Answered by Alistair Burt
The Strengthening Political Participation phase 2 (SPP2) programme works to track, mitigate and prevent violence in politics and elections. The social and economic costs to families and communities are very high - before and after the 2014 elections, almost 900 people were killed and over 38,000 were injured across Bangladesh. Whilst the SPP2 programme cannot guarantee an end to violence in politics, it makes an important contribution to this aim.
The SPP2 programme is subject to annual review which includes an annual Value for Money (VfM) assessment. The first and most recent annual review of SPP2 was conducted in April 2018 and is published online via DFID’s web portal for Bangladesh. Overall the VfM propositions made in the business case remain on track.
Asked by: Anne Main (Conservative - St Albans)
Question to the Department for International Development:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what assessment she has made of the progress of the strengthening political participation phase two aid project in Bangladesh.
Answered by Alistair Burt
The last annual review of the Strengthening Political Participation phase 2 (SPP2) Programme was carried out in April 2018. In the first year the project scored an ‘A’ and all programme components were under implementation. The annual review is published on DFID’s web portal and contains recommendations on how to maximise the impact of the programme in an election year. The next review is due by April 2019.
Diplomatic engagement also supports SPP2 goals and activities pushing for inclusive and peaceful elections in Bangladesh and increased tolerance for open debate and dialogue. DFID is still confident that the SPP2 Programme provides critical support to democratic governance in the country and is more relevant than ever in an election year.
Asked by: Anne Main (Conservative - St Albans)
Question to the Department for International Development:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what funding her Department provides to help prevent children from being forced into the mining of conflict minerals in the Democratic Republic of Congo.
Answered by Harriett Baldwin
The UK is working to promote socially responsible practices, including eliminating child labour, in the mining sector in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Through funding of the EU European Partnership for Responsible Minerals, DFID helps promote responsible sourcing of minerals; and also funds the Carter Center to improve transparency and governance of the sector.
Asked by: Anne Main (Conservative - St Albans)
Question to the Department for International Development:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, whether she has made representations to the Bangladeshi Government on its proposed transfer of Rohingya refugees to Bhasan Char island.
Answered by Alistair Burt
My officials and I have made clear to the Government of Bangladesh that any relocation of refugees must be safe, dignified and in accordance with international humanitarian principles, standards and laws. We have concerns and questions about the island’s fitness for this purpose and have raised those with the Government of Bangladesh. The UK Government has not been involved in plans for the proposed relocation of refugees to the island. We continue to work with our humanitarian partners to further understand this proposal and its suitability.