Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether the Prime Minister raised the issue of the succession of the Dalai Lama with a) President Xi and b) Premier Li during his visit to China in January 2026.

Answered by Seema Malhotra - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)

On 2 July 2025, the UK hosted an event in Geneva to champion the universal right to freedom of religion or belief (FoRB), including for Tibetan Buddhists, and reaffirmed that Tibetans should be free choose their own religious leaders. We continue to raise FoRB and human rights concerns in relation to Tibet with the Chinese authorities, and the Prime Minister raised Tibet with President Xi during their meeting in January.

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether she has put in place contingency plans that may result in increased ODA spend by her department in response to unforeseen conflicts or crisis situations that require a humanitarian response by the UK over the next three financial years.

Answered by Chris Elmore - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)

I refer the Hon Member to the statement made to the House by the Foreign Secretary on 19 March outlining the UK's Official Development Assistance (ODA) allocations for the period up to 2028-29, and to the accompanying documents setting out the detail of those allocations. I also refer him to the evidence provided by the Foreign Secretary and the Minister of State for International Development at the International Development Committee on 24 March, where they addressed questions at length about the Government's ODA policies and allocation decisions.

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of allocations for the Official Development Assistance allocations for the next three financial years on the ability of affected partner countries to meet the Sustainable Development Goals.

Answered by Chris Elmore - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)

I refer the Hon Member to the statement made to the House by the Foreign Secretary on 19 March outlining the UK's Official Development Assistance (ODA) allocations for the period up to 2028-29, and to the accompanying documents setting out the detail of those allocations. I also refer him to the evidence provided by the Foreign Secretary and the Minister of State for International Development at the International Development Committee on 24 March, where they addressed questions at length about the Government's ODA policies and allocation decisions.

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, if she will publish a country-by-country breakdown of ODA programme allocations for a) Africa and b) Middle East & North Africa over the next three financial years.

Answered by Chris Elmore - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)

I refer the Hon Member to the statement made to the House by the Foreign Secretary on 19 March outlining the UK's Official Development Assistance (ODA) allocations for the period up to 2028-29, and to the accompanying documents setting out the detail of those allocations. I also refer him to the evidence provided by the Foreign Secretary and the Minister of State for International Development at the International Development Committee on 24 March, where they addressed questions at length about the Government's ODA policies and allocation decisions.

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what advice she is providing to FCDO country offices about managing the closure of programmes and projects following the reduction in Overseas Development Assistance spending.

Answered by Chris Elmore - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)

I refer the Hon Member to the statement made to the House by the Foreign Secretary on 19 March outlining the UK's Official Development Assistance (ODA) allocations for the period up to 2028-29, and to the accompanying documents setting out the detail of those allocations. I also refer him to the evidence provided by the Foreign Secretary and the Minister of State for International Development at the International Development Committee on 24 March, where they addressed questions at length about the Government's ODA policies and allocation decisions.

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent discussions she has had about the impact of the UK Government’s cuts to ODA with counterparts in Commonwealth countries affected by those cuts.

Answered by Chris Elmore - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)

I refer the Hon Member to the statement made to the House by the Foreign Secretary on 19 March outlining the UK's Official Development Assistance (ODA) allocations for the period up to 2028-29, and to the accompanying documents setting out the detail of those allocations. I also refer him to the evidence provided by the Foreign Secretary and the Minister of State for International Development at the International Development Committee on 24 March, where they addressed questions at length about the Government's ODA policies and allocation decisions.

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, when she expects FCDO country offices to make decisions on disbursement of allocated programme funding for each of the next three financial years.

Answered by Chris Elmore - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)

I refer the Hon Member to the statement made to the House by the Foreign Secretary on 19 March outlining the UK's Official Development Assistance (ODA) allocations for the period up to 2028-29, and to the accompanying documents setting out the detail of those allocations. I also refer him to the evidence provided by the Foreign Secretary and the Minister of State for International Development at the International Development Committee on 24 March, where they addressed questions at length about the Government's ODA policies and allocation decisions.

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent discussions she has had with colleagues in the Chancellor of the Exchequer on the potential impact of developing country debt held by financial institutions based in the UK on the ability of those countries to meet the Sustainable Development Goals.

Answered by Chris Elmore - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)

Supporting developing countries to tackle unsustainable debt is a key development priority of this government. The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) works closely with the Treasury to support countries facing high debt burdens and struggling to finance their development priorities.

The UK plays a leading role in mobilising private finance for development, leveraging the City of London's global strengths and our track record on innovative financial instruments. We are committed to ensuring finance is sustainable, which is why the Chancellor established the London Coalition on Sustainable Sovereign Debt last year. The Chancellor and the Minister for International Development will attend the World Bank/International Monetary Fund (IMF) Spring Meetings and the Minister for International Development will join discussions with borrowing countries on how the London Coalition can help them tackle their debt challenges.

Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, which dedicated funding lines for women and girls have been a) protected; b) had funding been reduced; c) had funding delayed; and d) had funding discontinued in the ODA allocations for 2026/27 to 2028/29.

Answered by Chris Elmore - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)

I refer the Hon Member to the statement made to the House by the Foreign Secretary on 19 March outlining the UK's Official Development Assistance (ODA) allocations for the period up to 2028-29, and to the accompanying documents setting out the detail of those allocations. I also refer him to the evidence provided by the Foreign Secretary and the Minister of State for International Development at the International Development Committee on 24 March, where they addressed questions at length about the Government's ODA policies and allocation decisions.

DD8 Music and BonFest's 20th anniversary

13th anniversary of the Rana Plaza collapse in Bangladesh

New US sanctions on Cuba

King's Guard's ceremonial bearskin caps

Closure of Al-Aqsa Mosque during Ramadan