Asked by: Lloyd Russell-Moyle (Labour (Co-op) - Brighton, Kemptown)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, what the Government's policy is on the territorial status of Western Sahara.
Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK regards the status of Western Sahara as undetermined and continues to support UN-led efforts to reach a just, lasting and mutually acceptable political solution, based on compromise, which will provide for the self-determination of the people of Western Sahara.
Asked by: Lloyd Russell-Moyle (Labour (Co-op) - Brighton, Kemptown)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, if he will hold discussions with his UN Security Council counterparts on ending the extraction of natural resources from Western Sahara.
Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
We do not consider commercial activity to be illegal in Western Sahara, providing it respects the interests of the Sahrawi people. The UK continues to support the UN-led efforts and the work of Staffan de Mistura as Personal Envoy of the UN Secretary-General to Western Sahara and we continue to encourage constructive engagement with the political process and monitor progress.
Asked by: Lloyd Russell-Moyle (Labour (Co-op) - Brighton, Kemptown)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, if he will make it his policy to support the establishment of a UN Council for Natural Resources in Western Sahara.
Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
We do not consider commercial activity to be illegal in Western Sahara, providing it respects the interests of the Sahrawi people. The UK continues to support the UN-led efforts and the work of Staffan de Mistura as Personal Envoy of the UN Secretary-General to Western Sahara and we continue to encourage constructive engagement with the political process and monitor progress.
Asked by: Lloyd Russell-Moyle (Labour (Co-op) - Brighton, Kemptown)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, what assessment he has made of the potential impact on development in the Maghreb of the breakdown of the ceasefire in Western Sahara.
Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Officials regularly discuss and consult on Western Sahara and the impact on the region with international partners, MINURSO (United Nations Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara), the UN, NGOs, and Civil Society Organisations (CSOs), up to and including at Ambassadorial level. We strongly support the work of Staffan de Mistura, Personal Envoy of the UN Secretary-General, and will continue to encourage constructive engagement with the political process and monitor progress.
Asked by: Lloyd Russell-Moyle (Labour (Co-op) - Brighton, Kemptown)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, whether he has made an assessment of the potential impact of the use of Western Sahara's natural resources by the occupying power on the indigenous Saharawi people.
Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
We do not consider commercial activity to be illegal in Western Sahara, providing it respects the interests of the Sahrawi people. The UK continues to support the UN-led efforts and the work of Staffan de Mistura as Personal Envoy of the UN-Secretary-Genera to Western Sahara and we continue to encourage constructive engagement with the political process and monitor progress.
Asked by: Lloyd Russell-Moyle (Labour (Co-op) - Brighton, Kemptown)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, whether he has had recent discussions with UNITAID on funding for that organisation.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
The UK has been a strong supporter and partner of Unitaid for over 17 years. We highly value Unitaid's work to drive access to life-saving new health technologies for those who need them most.
The UK has a 20-year donor arrangement with Unitaid from 2007-2026 and has contributed £588 million to date. We continue to collaborate closely with Unitaid as a trusted partner. Allocations for 2025-26 and beyond will form part of the next Spending Review process, and the UK will work closely with multilateral partners through this process.
Asked by: Lloyd Russell-Moyle (Labour (Co-op) - Brighton, Kemptown)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, if he will provide funding for Unitaid.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
The UK has been a strong supporter and partner of Unitaid for over 17 years. We continue to highly value Unitaid's work to drive access to life-saving new health technologies for those who need them most.
The UK has a 20-year donor arrangement with Unitaid from 2007-2026 and has contributed £588 million to date. Allocations for 2025-26 and beyond will form part of the next Spending Review process.
Asked by: Lloyd Russell-Moyle (Labour (Co-op) - Brighton, Kemptown)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment he has made of the implications for his policies of the outcome of the United Nations General Assembly assessment of progress towards the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
With only 15 per cent of Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) targets on track to be delivered by 2030, and 37 per cent stalled or in reverse, there is a clear need to go faster and further to accelerate progress. The Deputy Prime Minister reaffirmed the UK's strong commitment to the SDG and the actions needed to deliver them at the SDG Summit during UNGA High Level Week. By listening to the concerns of our partners, particularly in the developing world, we saw important progress made to accelerate delivery of the Sustainable Development Goals.
The UK's forthcoming International Development White Paper will set out our vision for global development that delivers on the Sustainable Development Goals, poverty reduction, economic growth and tackling climate change through to 2030. It will build on commitments outlined in the International Development Strategy and Integrated Review Refresh.
Asked by: Lloyd Russell-Moyle (Labour (Co-op) - Brighton, Kemptown)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment his Department has made of the implications for his policies of the Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria's proposal of the 18th of April 2023 for a solution to the Syrian crisis.
Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
We continue to review the Initiative to Solve the Syria Crisis, published by the Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria (AANES) on 18 April, and we recognise the importance of all voices, including Kurdish voices being included in the political dialogue about the future of Syria. Most recently, UK Government officials discussed the importance of all parties working together towards a peaceful solution to the Syria conflict with representatives from the Syrian Democratic Forces on 19 April. Ultimately, tackling the challenges in northeast Syria and across the whole country, without a political solution will be extremely difficult.
Asked by: Lloyd Russell-Moyle (Labour (Co-op) - Brighton, Kemptown)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent representations he has made to his counterparts in countries that have policies that discriminate against those who live with HIV to encourage them to cease this practice.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
Addressing stigma and discrimination and ensuring equality of access to HIV prevention, testing and treatment services is critical to the global HIV response. The UK is a champion for human rights. We support the strategy of the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, TB and Malaria with its focus on addressing inequities and structural drivers of HIV infection and AIDS-related deaths including barriers to services due to stigma, discrimination and criminalisation. Our funding to the Robert Carr Fund and to UNAIDS helps to combat stigma and discrimination and to improve access to HIV services for those most at risk.