Overseas Aid: Famine Relief

Baroness Kinnock of Holyhead Excerpts

Wednesday 6th July 2011 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Verma]

My noble friend raises an important question. While we are world leaders, we are pressing Governments, not just from developed donor countries, but also from regional donor countries, to ensure that they are playing their part in responding to this crisis.

[Baroness Kinnock of Holyhead]

Will the Minister comment on the fact that we knew full well that the Horn of Africa was experiencing the driest year in six decades and the worst regional food crisis in this century, so it need not have been such a surprise to donors? Does she agree that, yet again, the response to what is clearly a desperately serious food crisis has come too late—indeed, only after disaster has struck and thousands of desperate people have been forced to seek food and refuge in refugee camps?

[Baroness Verma]

The noble Baroness is right: this was forecast. However, we in the UK are playing our part and pressing other donor countries to play theirs. We know that there is a shortfall and we are pressing other Governments to ensure that they respond. We are working very hard with agencies across the globe. Ultimately, it is about ensuring that we are putting long-term resilience plans into place, which take time to build up. At the same time, we will press for short-term responses from other Governments.