Oral Answers to Questions

Bambos Charalambous Excerpts

Tuesday 30th June 2020 Commons Chamber

[Nigel Adams]

It is great to answer a question from my predecessor, who did such a fantastic job as Minister for Asia. It is great to see her live this morning, albeit digitally. The UK Government take their responsibility to protect the safety and security of the people of the overseas territories very seriously. The Ministry of Defence and the Home Office have provided in-territory support to the Turks and Caicos Islands through a security assistance team of military personnel and police liaison officers. Twenty-nine additional military personnel supported Turks and Caicos to counter illegal migration from Haiti, which risks undermining the covid-19 response. Another team is in the Cayman Islands providing reassurance, security and logistics planning for covid-19, and we must also be conscious of the potential for hurricane responses in those areas.

[Bambos Charalambous (Enfield, Southgate) (Lab)]

Whether the Government plan to ring-fence the budget for official development assistance in the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office.

[Ruth Cadbury (Brentford and Isleworth) (Lab)]

Whether the Government plan to ring-fence the budget for official development assistance in the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office.

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs (James Duddridge)]

We continue to spend 0.7% of our gross national income on aid, and that is enshrined in law. We will continue to be guided by the International Development (Official Development Assistance Target) Act 2015, including a commitment to spending on reducing poverty, and we believe we will be stronger in that aim as one Department.

[Bambos Charalambous]

The Secretary of State will soon be responsible for a sizeable amount of official development aid, so can the Minister confirm that the Secretary of State for the future FCDO will be bound by the same rules for aid spending as the current International Development Secretary, including the four key Acts of Parliament that currently govern international development?