Asked by: Liz McInnes (Labour - Heywood and Middleton)
Question to the Department for International Development:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what assessment he has made of the decision to move Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh to the island of Bhasan Charan, which is at risk of severe flooding and cyclones.
Answered by Andrew Stephenson - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
We have made clear to the Government of Bangladesh that any relocation of refugees must be safe, dignified and meet international humanitarian principles and standards.
The UK fully supports the UN’s position that full and detailed technical and protection assessments should be conducted of Bhasan Char before any relocations of Rohingya are considered. We welcome the Government of Bangladesh’s commitment to ensure any relocations are voluntary and are conducted in coordination with UN agencies.
Asked by: Liz McInnes (Labour - Heywood and Middleton)
Question to the Department for International Development:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what further steps his Department is taking to stop the spread of Ebola in the Democratic Republic of the Congo since the World Health Organization declared the crisis a public health emergency of international concern.
Answered by Andrew Stephenson - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The UK has been one of the major supporters of the response to the Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) since it began in August 2018. This has included providing significant funding and technical expertise. Two days before the declaration of a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC), on 15 July, DFID announced additional financial and technical support of up to £50 million – recognising the seriousness of the situation in DRC and the high risk of regional spread.
Following the PHEIC declaration, the UK has echoed the WHO Director-General, Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, in encouraging countries, companies and individuals to avoid measures that could undermine the response and further fuel insecurity, notably the closure of borders.
Asked by: Liz McInnes (Labour - Heywood and Middleton)
Question to the Department for International Development:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what support his Department provides to Mali to tackle the increasing number of internally displaced persons.
Answered by Harriett Baldwin
The UK is deeply concerned by the increasing levels of violence in Mali. The number of displaced people across Mali has more than tripled in the past year. Through the Sahel Humanitarian Emergency Response Programme (SHERP), the UK is providing Mali with £11.1m of humanitarian aid this year, providing emergency food aid, emergency nutrition activities, and protection assistance to conflict-affected and displaced people across Mali.
Asked by: Liz McInnes (Labour - Heywood and Middleton)
Question to the Department for International Development:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what recent assessment he has made of the potential risk of the Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo spreading to South Sudan.
Answered by Harriett Baldwin
The risk of spread to countries neighbouring eastern DRC remains high, including to South Sudan. This is why the UK is the leading donor to regional preparedness efforts in neighbouring countries, helping support a range of activities, including screening at border crossings and the vaccination of health workers. The recent confirmed Ebola case in Ariwara, DRC, 70km from South Sudan, has further encouraged the international community to step up preparedness activities, particularly in high-risk areas along the border, in the support of the Government of South Sudan.
Asked by: Liz McInnes (Labour - Heywood and Middleton)
Question to the Department for International Development:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what support his Department provides to the Ugandan Government to help with refugees in that country.
Answered by Harriett Baldwin
The UK is the second largest bilateral donor responding to the refugee situation in Uganda, through UN agencies and international NGOs, and in coordination with the Government of Uganda. Between March 2015 and April 2019 UKAid provided extensive support that has enabled the delivery of a range of life-saving assistance and protection services. These include providing 1.2 million people with food assistance, 130,000 people with access to clean water, and 342,000 women and children with nutritional support. We have also led efforts to prevent the spread of Ebola into refugee settlements in Uganda.
The UK’s response in Uganda will continue to protect people in crisis and invest in long-term livelihood and self-reliance options. It will capitalise on the fact that Uganda’s refugee policy, which allows freedom of movement and the right to work, means that it is well placed to deliver commitments made at the 2016 World Humanitarian Summit under the Grand Bargain and is a pilot country for implementing the 2018 Global Refugee Compact.
Asked by: Liz McInnes (Labour - Heywood and Middleton)
Question to the Department for International Development:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what assessment he has made the accuracy of reports of Kenyan authorities teargassing and attacking peaceful demonstrators in Nairobi on 19 June.
Answered by Harriett Baldwin
We are aware that a demonstration in central Nairobi was dispersed by police on 19th June in Nairobi using tear gas. We have not had reports of protesters being attacked.
We continue to support the Government of Kenya and civil society to improve police professionalism and accountability, such as through supporting independent police oversight institutions. In 2018 we assisted the Inspector General of Police to re-structure the National Police Service to make it more integrated, efficient and accountable.
The UK-Kenya partnership is documented in the Renewed Security Compact, signed during the Prime Minister’s visit to Kenya in August 2018.
Asked by: Liz McInnes (Labour - Heywood and Middleton)
Question to the Department for International Development:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what recent assessment he has made of the potential effect of state development plans on indigenous populations in the lower Omo valley in Ethiopia.
Answered by Harriett Baldwin
We are aware of concerns raised about the impacts of development projects on the Omo people in southern Ethiopia. The UK makes regular assessments of the development context in Ethiopia. We are currently funding research which considers the impact of development on income inequality, conflict, and the environment in South Omo. The research is currently being finalised.
Asked by: Liz McInnes (Labour - Heywood and Middleton)
Question to the Department for International Development:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what recent assessment he has made of the level of risk of Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo spreading to other countries in Africa.
Answered by Harriett Baldwin
On 11 June, the first cross-border cases of Ebola since this outbreak began in August 2018 were confirmed in Uganda. Although these were quickly contained, the risk of further spread to countries neighbouring eastern DRC remains high. This is why the UK has been the leading donor to regional preparedness efforts, helping support a range of activities, including the construction of screening facilities at border crossings and the vaccination of health workers.
Asked by: Liz McInnes (Labour - Heywood and Middleton)
Question to the Department for International Development:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what recent assessment he has made of the humanitarian effect of the drought in Somalia; and what steps his Department is taking to support those at risk of starvation.
Answered by Harriett Baldwin
The drought in Somalia and subsequent widespread crop failure and decline in livestock productivity has resulted in a projected increase in people experiencing acute food insecurity, from 1.7 million to 2.2 million by August 2019. The UK is a leading donor to the ongoing humanitarian crisis in Somalia and my Department has recently allocated £8 million to support both emergency, life-saving interventions, and longer-term resilience actions focusing on sustainable water supply and the protection of livelihoods. This brings our total humanitarian spend in Somalia in 2019 to £40 million. We continue to actively monitor the situation and are considering what further support might be required.
Asked by: Liz McInnes (Labour - Heywood and Middleton)
Question to the Department for International Development:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what assessment he has made of the recent HIV outbreak among children in Pakistan.
Answered by Harriett Baldwin
We are closely tracking reports of an outbreak of just over 600 new cases of HIV, 75% of them among children, in a town called Ratto Dero in Sindh province. The UK government invests significantly in the Global Fund to fight AIDS, TB and Malaria (GF), which works closely with the provincial government in Sindh.
There has been an intensive effort to test the population for HIV to establish the extent of the outbreak. Over 20,000 people have been tested to date. We are in close contact with the Global Fund and will work with them to ascertain whether any further assistance is needed, for example to make treatment available for those who need it and prevent onward transmission.