Oral Answers to Questions

Paul Blomfield Excerpts

Tuesday 6th September 2022 Commons Chamber

[Amanda Milling]

I am grateful to my right hon. Friend for his question. I am afraid that I will not be able to talk about future sanction designations on the Floor of the House as that would undermine their role.

[Paul Blomfield (Sheffield Central) (Lab)]

13. What steps she is taking to support flood relief efforts in Pakistan.

[Afzal Khan (Manchester, Gorton) (Lab)]

19. What steps the Government are taking to help provide humanitarian support to Pakistan following recent floods. [R]

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs (Vicky Ford)]

I know that the whole House will want to join me in sending our deepest condolences to the people of Pakistan as they suffer the consequences of this devastating flooding. We in the UK stand shoulder to shoulder with our Pakistani friends and will continue to provide support as they respond to and recover from this disaster. We were one of the first countries to announce funding to respond to the humanitarian need, and we have now increased that to £16.5 million to support the flood relief efforts. The UK contribution is now 10% of the joint UN and Government of Pakistan emergency appeal.

[Paul Blomfield]

The Minister is certainly right about expressing the feelings of the whole House, but she will recognise that, in April, the International Development Committee reported that UK aid to Pakistan had been “reduced dramatically” after the Government’s overall reduction from 0.7% to 0.5% and has been cut by much more than we are now offering. Reports today suggest that a tragedy of already massive proportions appears to be worsening as attempts to stop Manchar lake overflowing have failed. What more will the Government do to help? Will she tell her new leader that tragic events such as this underline the need to prioritise action on climate change, not marginalise it?

[Vicky Ford]

We are one of the largest donors of international aid in the world and we focus on prioritising those most in need. As I said, we have already contributed over 10% of the joint UN-Government of Pakistan emergency appeal. We work with countries all across the world not only on immediate needs but on long-term strategy. The longer-term consequences of this terrible tragedy will become clear, but the World Bank, of which we are one of the largest shareholders, is already looking at a long-term needs assessment to help Pakistan to recover.