Millennium Development Goals

Lord Crisp Excerpts

Wednesday 23rd October 2013 Lords Chamber

[Lord Crisp (CB)]

My Lords, I congratulate the noble Lady, Baroness Jenkin, on setting out so well the background against which we all speak. I want to make two points in two minutes. First, leaving no one behind, or the UN Secretary-General’s version of it, a life of dignity for all, are absolutely wonderful ambitions. I draw attention to how this applies to disabled people. I do so in part as chair of Sightsavers, which deals with blind people. I am very well aware that too often disabled children and blind children in particular are left behind in our current MDGs. The crucial point here is not just the political will. It is also about the data and about gathering the data so that we know how these things are being applied not just to disabled people but to other minorities. What is the Government’s assessment of how these data can be collected and how well they can be collected over the next period?

My second point, following others, is that the MDGs in health have not been fully met. HIV/AIDS is not yet beaten. Child mortality is too high and maternal mortality is absolutely appalling in too many places. I ask the Government two things. First, what are they going to do to ensure the implementation of the recommendations of the independent expert review group chaired by Joy Phumaphi and Richard Horton which is arguing for greater acceleration on progress to the health MDGs, particularly MDGs four and five at the moment? Secondly, how can the Governments of the world collectively ensure that the current MDGs are carried forward and progress continues to be made after 2015, as it will need to be?