Oral Answers to Questions

Munira Wilson Excerpts

Tuesday 25th February 2025 Commons Chamber

[Kate Osamor (Edmonton and Winchmore Hill) (Lab/Co-op)]

14. What steps he is taking to help tackle the humanitarian situation in Sudan.

[Munira Wilson (Twickenham) (LD)]

16. What steps his Department is taking to support people affected by the humanitarian situation in Sudan.

[Afzal Khan (Manchester Rusholme) (Lab)]

21. What steps his Department is taking to help tackle food insecurity in Sudan.

--- Later in debate ---

[Anneliese Dodds]

I thank my hon. Friend for raising that issue, because the situation she has described is intolerable. I was grateful to the international counterparts who attended a discussion on these subjects, in which we took part, at the Munich security conference. My hon. Friend referred to the famine designation. We regret the fact that the Sudanese armed forces have said that they will not co-operate with that assessment, but we have seen both the RSF and the SAF restricting aid and using it as a weapon of war, and that must end.

[Munira Wilson]

The Genocide80Twenty campaign group at Hampton school in my constituency recently met members of the Darfur diaspora who have fled the atrocities in Sudan, and they would like to know what the UK Government are doing to help those targeted simply for who they are. With a staggering 16 million children desperately needing food, shelter, healthcare and education, could I ask the Minister for assurances that we will not see any cuts to UK aid to the region, and what assessment has she has made of the impact of the Trump Administration’s cuts to US aid?

[Anneliese Dodds]

The hon. Member is right to raise the disturbing accounts of atrocities that we have heard. She will be pleased to know that the UK led efforts to renew the UN Human Rights Council fact-finding mission mandate last October, and I was very pleased to see additional African countries coming on board with that. We have doubled our aid to Sudan, so that commitment is not in doubt.