Asked by: David Mundell (Conservative - Dumfriesshire, Clydesdale and Tweeddale)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, if she will set out the Government's negotiating priorities will be at the UN High-Level Meeting on HIV/AIDS in June 2026; and whether the Government plans to ensure that the new Global AIDS Strategy 2026-2031 includes measurable commitments to (a) reduce stigma and discrimination, and (b) increase funding for community-led responses in low and middle-income countries.
Answered by Chris Elmore - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The High-Level Meeting comes at a critical moment for the global HIV response and offers an opportunity to reaffirm international commitments to end AIDS for good. The UK has endorsed the Global AIDS Strategy 2026-2031 and will work to ensure the political declaration upholds its ambitions, particularly on human rights, and harnesses the opportunity presented by long-acting injectable HIV prevention and treatment.
Asked by: David Mundell (Conservative - Dumfriesshire, Clydesdale and Tweeddale)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether the Government plans to raise access to long-acting injectable HIV prevention and treatment technologies in low and middle-income countries at the UN High-Level Meeting on HIV/AIDS in June 2026.
Answered by Chris Elmore - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The High-Level Meeting comes at a critical moment for the global HIV response and offers an opportunity to reaffirm international commitments to end AIDS for good. The UK has endorsed the Global AIDS Strategy 2026-2031 and will work to ensure the political declaration upholds its ambitions, particularly on human rights, and harnesses the opportunity presented by long-acting injectable HIV prevention and treatment.
Asked by: David Mundell (Conservative - Dumfriesshire, Clydesdale and Tweeddale)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what representations the UK plans to make at the UN High-Level Meeting on HIV/AIDS in June 2026.
Answered by Chris Elmore - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The High-Level Meeting comes at a critical moment for the global HIV response and offers an opportunity to reaffirm international commitments to end AIDS for good. The UK has endorsed the Global AIDS Strategy 2026-2031 and will work to ensure the political declaration upholds its ambitions, particularly on human rights, and harnesses the opportunity presented by long-acting injectable HIV prevention and treatment.
Asked by: David Mundell (Conservative - Dumfriesshire, Clydesdale and Tweeddale)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what plans he has to address the potential impact of HIV stigma on women, particularly Black African women and menopausal women.
Answered by Sharon Hodgson - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
On World AIDS Day, 1 December 2025, the Department published the new HIV Action Plan, which was developed in collaboration with UK Health Security Agency and NHS England. The plan is backed by over £170 million in funding and sets out five core priorities needed to reach our ambition to end new HIV transmissions within England by 2030. One of these priorities is to address stigma and improve the quality of life for people living with HIV, including an action to ensure the needs of women living with HIV are considered and addressed in future work, and the role of care for menopausal women living with HIV is included in women’s health hubs best practice.
The Department is also investing £4.8 million from 2026 to 2029 in the newly procured National HIV Prevention England Programme, which will be delivered by a consortium of the Terrence Higgins Trust and the Africa Advocacy Foundation. This programme includes an aim to reduce levels of HIV related stigma, particularly self-stigma and stigma within different communities, including Black African women.
In high and very high prevalence areas, routine HIV testing is normalised within emergency departments, through the Blood Borne Virus (BBV) emergency department opt-out testing programme. This helps to reduce stigma, avoids singling out individuals, and improves early diagnoses, including among people from Black African heritage who are less likely to access traditional sexual health services.
NHS England promotes and funds HIV peer support services in the BBV emergency department opt-out testing programme, recognising the role of lived-experience facilitators in reducing isolation and stigma. Case studies, including for women in their 50s diagnosed via emergency department testing, highlight how peer-led support fosters empowerment and combats stigma-related barriers.
Asked by: David Mundell (Conservative - Dumfriesshire, Clydesdale and Tweeddale)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment her Department has made of the potential merits of running buses from Qatar to Oman for the purposes of repatriation.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The safety and security of British nationals is our top priority. On 3 March, the Foreign Secretary spoke to the House about the consular support available to individuals in the Middle East, and assisted departures have now taken place from both Oman and Dubai. We will provide further updates on a regular basis, including details of our ongoing evacuation flights, as well as our efforts to secure an end to Iran's attacks on countries in the region, and the full resumption of normal commercial flights.
Asked by: David Mundell (Conservative - Dumfriesshire, Clydesdale and Tweeddale)
Question
To ask the Right hon. Member for Kenilworth and Southam, representing the Speaker's Committee on the Electoral Commission, what discussions he has had with the Royal Mail's on its ability to deliver outgoing and returned postal votes.
Answered by Jeremy Wright
The Electoral Commission regularly engages with Royal Mail to consider the logistics and operational pressures of postal vote delivery, particularly in the run up to elections. This engagement informs the support the Commission provides to Returning Officers, who are responsible for issuing postal votes, and Royal Mail, who are responsible for delivery.
The Commission provides guidance to electoral administrators on how to plan and manage postal votes. The guidance recommends Returning Officers liaise early and regularly with their Royal Mail contact about postal vote pack delivery and returns.
The Commission has recommended the postal vote system should be reformed to improve the service for voters and strengthen resilience. Key areas for improvement include the information given to postal voters, considering whether the current deadline to return a postal vote should be extended and more flexibility for reissuing postal votes.
The Commission responded to Ofcom's consultation on the universal post service in 2025 highlighting the implications of postal service reforms for the management and funding of UK elections. The Commission's view is that reform proposals must ensure that electoral processes can continue to depend on an agile, flexible and reliable universal postal service.
Asked by: David Mundell (Conservative - Dumfriesshire, Clydesdale and Tweeddale)
Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what discussions he has had with the Royal Mail's on its ability to deliver outgoing and returned postal votes.
Answered by Samantha Dixon - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Housing, Communities and Local Government)
Officials in the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government meet regularly with the Royal Mail to discuss matters relating to elections including capacity, capability and contingency planning.
As part of the usual engagement ahead of the significant electoral events, Ministers and senior government officials have met with the Chief Executive and other senior representatives from Royal Mail and it is intended to do so again ahead of the May elections.
Asked by: David Mundell (Conservative - Dumfriesshire, Clydesdale and Tweeddale)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps she is taking to help tackle hunger and malnutrition across Africa through the Africa Strategy.
Answered by Chris Elmore - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK's new Approach to Africa sets out how we are building respectful long-term partnerships with African countries to deliver shared priorities. Through our support for the Global Compact on Nutrition Integration, the Child Nutrition Fund, and other initiatives, the UK is continuing to play a leading role in tackling hunger and malnutrition in Africa and beyond, as set out in the answers previously provided to Questions 89032 (18 November 2025), 35685 (14 March 2025) and 28246 (11 February 2025).
Asked by: David Mundell (Conservative - Dumfriesshire, Clydesdale and Tweeddale)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps her Department is taking to deliver the UK’s financial commitments from the Nutrition for Growth Summit 2021.
Answered by Stephen Doughty - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK’s longstanding commitment to addressing malnutrition was reaffirmed earlier this year at the Nutrition for Growth Summit.
During that summit, we launched the Global Compact on Nutrition Integration and committed to continue integrating nutrition across our development programmes.
We are also continuing to support the Child Nutrition Fund to tackle acute malnutrition, and providing Technical Assistance to help developing countries improve their own nutrition responses.
Asked by: David Mundell (Conservative - Dumfriesshire, Clydesdale and Tweeddale)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of protecting authorised sales of debenture tickets above face value in proposed legislation on ticket sales.
Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The government response to our consultation on the resale of live events tickets recognised that debenture schemes operate differently from one-off events tickets and allow venues to generate secure, up-front revenue that can be invested in bringing world-class sporting, music and other live events to the public.
As the response set out, we believe there is a good case for a narrow exemption to allow event organisers to authorise debenture holders to resell tickets in excess of the price cap. We will continue to explore how this exemption should be defined so that it does not undermine the overall effectiveness of the price cap.