12 APPG memberships (as of 17 Nov 2021)
Banning Trophy Hunting, Catalonia, Cayman Islands, Critical Minerals, Global Tuberculosis, Malaria and Neglected Tropical Diseases, Population, Development and Reproductive Health, Qatar, Safeguarding in Faith Communities, Ukraine, United Nations Global Goals for Sustainable Development, War Crimes17 Former APPG memberships
Adult Survivors of Childhood Sexual Abuse, Afghanistan, Africa, African Great Lakes Region, Agriculture and Food for Development, Brain Tumours, Corruption, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Endangered Species, Headache Disorders, International Mining, Kenya, Safeguarding in Faith Settings, Tanzania, Tuberculosis, Uganda, Zambia and Malawi14:00
Subject: The philosophy and culture of aid
30 Nov 2021, 2 p.m.
At 2.30pm: Oral evidence
Mr Tom Wein - Founder at The Dignity Project
Nabila Saddiq Tayub - Development and Network Manager at STOPAIDS
Sanjayan Srikanthan - Board Chair, The Start Network and Chief Executive Officer, Shelterbox
View calendar
voted No - in line with the party majority
One of 302 Conservative No votes vs 1 Conservative Aye votes
Tally: Ayes - 240 Noes - 304
Does my hon. Friend agree that the headquarters of the Great British Railways needs to be at the centre of …
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the cost to the public purse is to date of the …
A Bill to make provision about the minimum age for marriage and civil partnership; and for connected purposes.
12:00
27 July 2021, payment of £275 from Ipsos MORI, 3 Thomas More Square, London E1W 1YW, for a survey. Hours: …
That this House recognises the important role played by the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture in …
The Bill failed to complete its passage through Parliament before the end of the session. This means the Bill will …
Division Voting information
Pauline Latham voted No - against a party majority and against the House
One of 35 Conservative No votes vs 305 Conservative Aye votes
Tally: Ayes - 484 Noes - 76
Pauline Latham voted No - against a party majority and against the House
One of 33 Conservative No votes vs 320 Conservative Aye votes
Tally: Ayes - 322 Noes - 253
Pauline Latham voted No - against a party majority and against the House
One of 24 Conservative No votes vs 327 Conservative Aye votes
Tally: Ayes - 526 Noes - 24
Pauline Latham voted No - against a party majority and against the House
One of 31 Conservative No votes vs 318 Conservative Aye votes
Tally: Ayes - 318 Noes - 303
Pauline Latham voted No - against a party majority and against the House
One of 34 Conservative No votes vs 319 Conservative Aye votes
Tally: Ayes - 319 Noes - 308
Pauline Latham voted No - against a party majority and against the House
One of 53 Conservative No votes vs 290 Conservative Aye votes
Tally: Ayes - 291 Noes - 78
Pauline Latham voted No - against a party majority and against the House
One of 42 Conservative No votes vs 298 Conservative Aye votes
Tally: Ayes - 299 Noes - 82
Pauline Latham voted Aye - against a party majority and in line with the House
One of 45 Conservative Aye votes vs 235 Conservative No votes
Tally: Ayes - 243 Noes - 238
Pauline Latham voted Aye - against a party majority and against the House
One of 16 Conservative Aye votes vs 316 Conservative No votes
Tally: Ayes - 262 Noes - 323
Pauline Latham voted Aye - against a party majority and against the House
One of 22 Conservative Aye votes vs 326 Conservative No votes
Tally: Ayes - 277 Noes - 328
Debates during the 2019 Parliament
Speeches made during Parliamentary debates are recorded in Hansard. For ease of browsing we have grouped debates into individual, departmental and legislative categories.
Sparring Partners
Lord President of the Council and Leader of the House of Commons
(25 debate interactions)
(18 debate interactions)
Prime Minister, First Lord of the Treasury, Minister for the Civil Service, and Minister for the Union
(11 debate interactions)
Department Debates
(17 debate contributions)
(15 debate contributions)
(14 debate contributions)
(13 debate contributions)
Legislation Debates
(697 words contributed)
Mid Derbyshire Petitions
e-Petitions are administered by Parliament and allow members of the public to express support for a particular issue.
If an e-petition reaches 10,000 signatures the Government will issue a written response.
If an e-petition reaches 100,000 signatures the petition becomes eligible for a Parliamentary debate (usually Monday 4.30pm in Westminster Hall).
of 81,613 signatures (0.49%)
of 173,186 signatures (0.36%)
of 85,570 signatures (0.19%)
of 364,768 signatures (0.18%)
of 111,136 signatures (0.18%)
of 364,768 signatures (0.18%)
of 173,186 signatures (0.36%)
of 81,613 signatures (0.49%)
of 111,136 signatures (0.18%)
of 108,103 signatures (0.17%)
Latest EDMs signed by Pauline Latham
National Museum of Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic History and Culture
Tabled by: Oliver Heald (Conservative - North East Hertfordshire)That this House recognises the important role played by the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture in Washington DC since it opened its doors to the public on 24 September 2016, documenting and enabling the study of the life, history and culture of African Americans; notes that …
(Most recent: 15 Jul 2020)
Signatures by party:
Conservative: 9
Liberal Democrat: 2
Scottish National Party: 1
Democratic Unionist Party: 1
Independent: 1
Labour: 1
Exiting the European Union
Tabled by: William Cash (Conservative - Stone)That an humble Address be presented to Her Majesty, praying that the European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018 (Exit Day) (Amendment) (No. 2) Regulations 2019 (S.I., 2019, No. 859), dated 11 April 2019, a copy of which was laid before this House on 11 April 2019, be annulled.
(Most recent: 29 Apr 2019)
Signatures by party:
Conservative: 73
Democratic Unionist Party: 7
Independent: 1
Non-affiliated: 1
Commons initiatives
These initiatives were driven by Pauline Latham, and are more likely to reflect personal policy preferences.
MPs who are act as Ministers or Shadow Ministers are generally restricted from performing Commons initiatives other than Urgent Questions.
Pauline Latham has not been granted any Urgent Questions
Pauline Latham has not been granted any Adjournment Debates
3 Bills introduced by Pauline Latham
A Bill to make provision about the minimum age for marriage and civil partnership; and for connected purposes.
Friday 19th November 2021
A Bill to revoke parental or judicial consent which permits the marriage or civil partnership of a child and to criminalise child marriage or civil partnership under the age of 18; and for connected purposes.
The Bill failed to complete its passage through Parliament before the end of the session. This means the Bill will make no further progress. A Bill to raise the minimum age of consent to marriage or civil partnership to eighteen; and for connected purposes.
1 Bill co-sponsored by Pauline Latham
Hospital Car Parking Charges (Abolition) Bill 2017-19 - Private Members' Bill (under the Ten Minute Rule)
Sponsor - Robert Halfon (CON)
78 Written Questions in the current parliament
(View all written questions)1 Other Department Questions
The Government recognises that councils have delivered above and beyond throughout the pandemic. To support the reopening of local authority buildings and the return to face-to-face meetings, we advise use of the 'Working Safely During Coronavirus' guidance available on gov.uk which provides advice on precautions to manage risk.
Meetings where councils deem in-person attendance is not required can continue virtually. This would include non-statutory or other informal meetings.
Minister for Equalities
The Cabinet Office supports the delivery of the Sustainable Development Goals across Government, and is responsible for reporting on Goal Five (Achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls) and Goal Ten (Reduce inequality within and among countries), through the work of the Government Equalities Office.
Last year’s Single Departmental Plan provided an update of these Goals, and highlighted the work the Cabinet Office has done to support Government work towards Goals Seven (Ensure access to affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy), Eight (Promote inclusive and sustainable economic growth, employment and decent work for all), Twelve (Ensure sustainable consumption and production patterns) and Seventeen (Revitalize the global partnership for sustainable development).
Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
Cabinet Office continues to play an important role in maximising progress on the Government's priorities, including supporting a coordinated approach to domestic implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), following the UK’s Voluntary National Review.
Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
8 Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy Questions
(View all Pauline Latham's BEIS questions)Capacity caps can drive competitive auctions and deliver value for money for consumers.
A capacity cap was first deployed in the third Contract for Difference auction in 2019, which secured nearly twice the capacity of the previous auction with a 30% reduction in clearing prices.
We will publish auction parameters well in advance of the next auction in 2021, taking into account our ambitions for net zero.
Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy
In March this year, the Government published a consultation on proposals to amend the Contracts for Difference scheme for future allocation rounds. This included options to introduce flexibility in the use of capacity caps as either a 'hard' or 'soft' constraint. The consultation closed on 29 May and responses are being analysed. A government response to this consultation will be published in due course.
Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy
The Government considers a range of matters when setting the parameters for Contracts for Difference auctions, including our ambitious decarbonisation objectives, the anticipated pipeline of eligible projects, competition, and consumer costs. We will publish auction parameters well in advance of the next auction in 2021.
Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy
In March this year, the Government published a consultation on proposals to amend the Contracts for Difference scheme for future allocation rounds. This included options for changes to the current pot structure. The consultation closed on 29 May and responses are being analysed. A Government response to this consultation will be published in due course.
Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy
As we recover from COVID-19, the Government intends to deliver a UK economy which is greener, more sustainable and more resilient. The UK already has over 460,000 jobs in low carbon businesses and their supply chains and it is estimated that the low-carbon economy could grow more than four times faster than the rest of the economy between 2015 and 2030 and support up to 2 million jobs.
The Contracts for Difference (CfD) scheme is the government’s main mechanism for supporting new large-scale renewable electricity generation projects in Great Britain.
In the latest CfD allocation round 12 new renewable electricity projects were awarded contracts at record low costs across a range of technologies, which could see the creation of 8,000 jobs across the UK.
Offshore wind employs around 14,000 people in the UK. The Offshore Wind Sector Deal that was agreed last year between the government and industry aims to increase UK employment to 27,000 jobs by 2030 - these jobs will support communities right across the UK.
Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy
The Business Interruption loan schemes are delivered by the British Business Bank through accredited lenders. Individual lending decisions are at the discretion of these lenders. The accreditation agreement makes clear that the interest rate at which the?lender is prepared to lend at, and any associated fees, should be based on a?lender’s normal pricing framework.
For the Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme (CBILS) and the Bounce Back Loan Scheme (BBLS), the Government pays the interest and any lender-levied fees in the first 12 months. For BBLS the interest rate is set at 2.5% per annum.
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy)
The Government is already collaborating through regionally-focused private equity firms which are benefiting from funding from the government-backed British Business Bank (BBB) programmes such as the Northern Powerhouse Investment Fund, Midlands Engine Investment Fund and Cornwall and Isles of Scilly Investment Fund. As of June 2020, the BBB’s dedicated regional funds support more than £240m worth of finance.
In order to support its regional activities further, BBB launched the £100m Regional Angels programme in 2018 – which is designed to help reduce regional imbalances in access to early stage equity finance for smaller businesses across all regions; and the UK Network – which engages with business finance stakeholders in each of the English regions and Devolved Nations, to increase small businesses’ awareness and understanding of the finance options best suited to their needs. The Future Fund is also open to companies from all regions and from all backgrounds.
We are considering a range of options that look at enhancing both new and existing levers to increase the supply of equity finance, particularly in regions, as part of the 2020 Comprehensive Spending Review discussions in order to support local businesses to expand as the economy reopens.
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy)
2 Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Questions
(View all Pauline Latham's Defra questions)Section 1A of the Zoo Licensing Act 1981 currently sets the conservation, research and education requirements that licensed zoos in Great Britain must meet. The Government is proposing, via the Animal Welfare (Kept Animals) Bill currently before Parliament, to allow these standards instead to be set in the Secretary of State’s Standards of Modern Zoo Practice (‘the Zoo Standards’). This will mean that they may be updated more easily in future. The Zoo Standards are in the process of being updated by Defra, in consultation with the UK’s Zoos Expert Committee, and will include new conservation, research and education standards in preparation for the new legislation. Defra is aiming to publish a draft of the new Zoo Standards, for a targeted consultation of relevant zoo stakeholders, later this year.
Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Event Duration Monitors (EDM) record the number of times there has been a discharge of storm sewage and for how long each discharge was for. The Water Companies send in an annual summary which gives the total number of discharges per year and the total duration per year for each site where it is a permit requirement. The 2020 data is not yet available as it is submitted at the end of February.
Event Duration Monitors started being installed in 2016 and have been progressively installed across Combined Sewer Overflows, Sewage Pumping Stations and Sewage Treatment Works. Not all sites require EDM monitoring, this depends on the sensitivity of where the discharge is made.
Direct storm sewage discharges to the River Derwent, Derbyshire (Source to confluence with River Trent)
Year | 2018 | 2019 |
Number of sites reporting EDM Data | 26 | 45 |
Total number of storm sewage spills | 983 | 1788 |
Total duration (hours) of storm sewage spills | 3845 | 12475 |
The discharge from these water company assets (in this case Severn Trent Water Ltd) is only permitted to occur when there is elevated flow in the combined (sewage and surface water) sewerage network due to rainfall/snowmelt. The discharge is known as storm sewage and the impact on water quality is reduced due to the increased dilution both within the sewer and the receiving watercourse.
In January 2021 the Storm Overflows Taskforce announced plans by the water companies to accelerate work to install monitoring devices on all storm overflows by 2023. The Environment Agency is working with all water companies to increase the transparency of EDM data by 2022. This will provide readily accessible data in a consistent format, which will give greater visibility and increase responsibility of water companies to go faster and further in reducing harm from storm overflow discharges.
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The UK is a major funder of the World Bank, a crucial tool in our development work. My Department monitors and assesses the effectiveness of the World Bank continually. We formally review each funding stream to the World Bank Group annually and we publish our assessment online. Our latest assessment concluded that the International Development Association – the concessional arm of the Bank - is ‘performing above expectations’. Amongst other things our money has contributed to the immunisation of 330 million children in the last 9 years.
Minister of State (Cabinet Office) (Minister without Portfolio)
The exact number of girls and women worldwide who have undergone Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) remains unknown, however, UNICEF estimates that at least 200 million have been cut in more than 31 countries. Most of these countries are in Africa, parts of the Middle East and Asia. Prevalence varies hugely across these countries, from less than one percent to almost universal. Today, a girl is about one-third less likely to be cut than 30 years ago. But global efforts need to go further and faster if we are to meet the Global Goal to end FGM by 2030. At current rates, 68 million girls are at risk of being cut in the next decade. The UK is leading change in partnership with the Africa-led movement to end FGM, providing £50 million of support over the next five years. UK aid has already helped 10,000 communities, representing over 27 million people, pledge to abandon FGM.
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Female Genital Mutilation is a human rights abuse and an extreme form of gender discrimination. Criminalising FGM and properly enforcing the law is key to ending the practice. The UK has already supported The Gambia, Nigeria, and Mauritania to make FGM illegal. DFID recently allocated £2.5 million to the UN, to work with governments to enforce laws in countries where FGM is already illegal but continues to be practised. Evidence shows that legal change is a critical step towards changing attitudes towards FGM. But this must be part of a multi-pronged approach with community-led change at its heart. The UK supports the Africa-led Movement to end FGM, which works at several levels, including by empowering grassroots activists to hold their governments to account.
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The traffic light system categorises countries based on risk to protect public health and the vaccine rollout from variants of COVID-19. The Joint Biosecurity Centre (JBC) produces risk assessments of countries and territories. Decisions on Red, Amber or Green List assignment and associated border measures are taken by Ministers, who take into account the JBC risk assessments, alongside wider public health factors. Key factors in the JBC risk assessment of each country include:
- genomic surveillance capability
- COVID-19 transmission risk
- Variant of Concern transmission risk
A summary of the JBC methodology is published on gov.uk, alongside key data that supports Ministers' decisions.
Current risk assessment status of all countries are reflected in the traffic light system. Countries are categorized according to their the level of risk with Green indicating low-risk, Amber indicating medium-risk and Red indicating high-risk.
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The recognition of vaccine status at ports and airports is currently available for UK citizens through the NHS app or an accessible letter, but it is currently less easy to prove for someone from overseas visiting the UK. The government is keen to work constructively with international partners to reopen travel in a sustainable way for travellers and industry.
Further detail will be set out next month including the rules which will apply to children, vaccine clinical trial volunteers and those unable to be vaccinated, how we will operationalise this approach at the border, and the dates on which any changes will come into effect.
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
There are a number of factors to be considered, including Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation’s view on the participation of children in the vaccine programme, as well as consideration for travellers who are exempt from vaccination, such as those who are unable to be vaccinated for medical reasons or those on clinical trials. Further detail will be set out shortly on these issues and how and when it will be operationalised.
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
The UK government has introduced a traffic light system to support the safe restart of international travel. Decisions on red, amber and green list countries are taken by ministers informed by risk assessments provided by the Joint Biosecurity Centre alongside wider public health factors. This includes international transport hubs.
Passengers must follow the applicable requirements for the highest risk country or territory that they have been in or passed through in the previous 10 days. This includes transit stops. Passengers are also required to record the countries and territories they have transited through on their Passenger Locator Form.
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
All arrivals into the country, irrespective of vaccination status, must follow the same testing and isolation requirements as per the traffic light system. We are considering evidence and policy options relating to the role of vaccinations in facilitating more seamless inbound travel where it is safe and fair to do so, and will set out our position in due course.
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Transport)
We are unable to provide the evidence provided to Ministers as it relates to the formulation of ongoing border policy and its release could prejudice decision making.
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Officials in the Department of Health and Social Care and the Department for Transport have discussed options for reducing the cost of travel testing, including whether National Health Service lateral flow tests could be used by arrivals from ‘amber’ and ‘green list’ countries. However, lateral flow tests are not permitted for most international arrivals as they are not suitable for identifying variants. Polymerase chain reaction testing of inbound travellers and genome sequencing of positive samples are crucial for disease surveillance and identification of potentially harmful variants.
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Yellow Card Scheme is the system used in the United Kingdom for reporting adverse drug reactions (ADRs). This acts as an early warning system for the identification of previously unrecognised adverse reactions and also provides valuable information on recognised ADRs, allowing the Commission on Human Medicines and Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) to identify and refine the understanding of risk factors that may affect the clinical management of patients.
The following table shows spontaneous suspected ADR reports for fluoroquinolones in association with tendon injury, mitochondrial dysfunction and oxidative stress to 25 May 2021 in the UK.
Reaction | Number of reports |
Tendon disorders* | 1,381 |
mitochondrial cytopathy, mitochondrial toxicity, mitochondrial myopathy acquired | 1 |
Oxidative stress | 2** |
Source: MHRA Sentinel database for Adverse Drug Reactions.
Notes:
*Tendon disorders includes 21 different relevant reaction terms.
**These reports are duplicates and have been subsequently merged on the database.
The frequency of tendonitis range from 1 in 100 to less than 1 in 10,000, depending on the specific fluoroquinolone medicine. For the products that provide an estimate of the frequency of tendon rupture, this is listed as less than 1 in 10,000. Mitochondrial dysfunction and oxidative stress are among the possible mechanisms that might lead to tendon injury or other ADRs caused by fluoroquinolones, but this association is not fully understood and mitochondrial dysfunction and oxidative stress are not listed as ADRs in the product information for fluoroquinolones.
The MHRA continues to review information about the safety of all medicines, including fluoroquinolones, and will take appropriate regulatory action as appropriate on the basis of new safety information. Serious side effects of fluoroquinolone antibiotics can be varied, potentially affecting several different parts of the body. An assessment of the potential merits of fluoroquinolone toxicity as a clinical diagnosis in response to tendon injury, mitochondrial dysfunction or oxidative stress has not been made.
Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport
The Yellow Card Scheme is the system used in the United Kingdom for reporting adverse drug reactions (ADRs). This acts as an early warning system for the identification of previously unrecognised adverse reactions and also provides valuable information on recognised ADRs, allowing the Commission on Human Medicines and Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) to identify and refine the understanding of risk factors that may affect the clinical management of patients.
The following table shows spontaneous suspected ADR reports for fluoroquinolones in association with tendon injury, mitochondrial dysfunction and oxidative stress to 25 May 2021 in the UK.
Reaction | Number of reports |
Tendon disorders* | 1,381 |
mitochondrial cytopathy, mitochondrial toxicity, mitochondrial myopathy acquired | 1 |
Oxidative stress | 2** |
Source: MHRA Sentinel database for Adverse Drug Reactions.
Notes:
*Tendon disorders includes 21 different relevant reaction terms.
**These reports are duplicates and have been subsequently merged on the database.
The frequency of tendonitis range from 1 in 100 to less than 1 in 10,000, depending on the specific fluoroquinolone medicine. For the products that provide an estimate of the frequency of tendon rupture, this is listed as less than 1 in 10,000. Mitochondrial dysfunction and oxidative stress are among the possible mechanisms that might lead to tendon injury or other ADRs caused by fluoroquinolones, but this association is not fully understood and mitochondrial dysfunction and oxidative stress are not listed as ADRs in the product information for fluoroquinolones.
The MHRA continues to review information about the safety of all medicines, including fluoroquinolones, and will take appropriate regulatory action as appropriate on the basis of new safety information. Serious side effects of fluoroquinolone antibiotics can be varied, potentially affecting several different parts of the body. An assessment of the potential merits of fluoroquinolone toxicity as a clinical diagnosis in response to tendon injury, mitochondrial dysfunction or oxidative stress has not been made.
Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport
The reporting rate for spontaneous adverse drug reactions (ADR) is variable and can depend on a multitude of factors. Although some historical studies have estimated only 10% of ADRs are reported, the actual rate is unknown and variable because it is influenced by public awareness and seriousness of the event.
Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport
T-cell Lymphomas are recognised as a rare form of cancer that require pan regional arrangements for referral and treatment. Cancer Alliances have pathways in place to support diagnosis as part of their skin cancer pathways. NHS England and NHS Improvement are continuing to work with providers of specialised services to deliver best-quality evidence-based care and treatment for patients living with rare cancers.
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The NHS Long Term Plan committed the Government to reviewing the commissioning arrangements for a range of services including sexual and reproductive health, to ensure that they can deliver the best outcomes for the people who need them. The Department confirmed in 2019 that local authorities will continue to be responsible for commissioning sexual and reproductive health services, but that they must work much more closely with the National Health Service to deliver joined-up care for patients and to embed prevention into the full range of health and other public services.
The Department are currently considering a range of options for where Public Health England’s wider public heath functions, including supporting the commissioning and delivery of sexual and reproductive health services, could sit in the future as part of the reform to the public health system. We will be engaging in more detail on these issues and setting out next steps on the reform programme over the coming months.
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Government has mandated local authorities in England to commission comprehensive open access sexual health services, including the provision of free contraception. Contraception is also widely available free of charge through general practice. The Government provides funding to local authorities for their public health responsibilities, including sexual health services, through the public health grant. It is for individual local authorities to decide their spending priorities based on an assessment of local need, including the need for sexual health services taking account of their statutory duties.
The Department secured a Spending Round settlement in 2019 for local government, with the public health grant receiving a welcome increase in real terms in 2020/21. Decisions on future funding will be a matter for the Spending Review.
No specific assessment has been made of the impact of the public health grant on access to contraception.
The All-Party Parliamentary Group on Sexual and Reproductive Health’s report, ‘Women's Lives, Women's Rights: Strengthening Access to Contraception Beyond the COVID-19 Pandemic’, has raised a number of important issues. The recommendations in the report will be considered as part of our upcoming work to develop the sexual and reproductive health strategy.
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Government has mandated local authorities in England to commission comprehensive open access sexual health services, including the provision of free contraception. Contraception is also widely available free of charge through general practice. The Government provides funding to local authorities for their public health responsibilities, including sexual health services, through the public health grant. It is for individual local authorities to decide their spending priorities based on an assessment of local need, including the need for sexual health services taking account of their statutory duties.
The Department secured a Spending Round settlement in 2019 for local government, with the public health grant receiving a welcome increase in real terms in 2020/21. Decisions on future funding will be a matter for the Spending Review.
No specific assessment has been made of the impact of the public health grant on access to contraception.
The All-Party Parliamentary Group on Sexual and Reproductive Health’s report, ‘Women's Lives, Women's Rights: Strengthening Access to Contraception Beyond the COVID-19 Pandemic’, has raised a number of important issues. The recommendations in the report will be considered as part of our upcoming work to develop the sexual and reproductive health strategy.
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Government has mandated local authorities in England to commission comprehensive open access sexual health services, including the provision of free contraception. Contraception is also widely available free of charge through general practice. The Government provides funding to local authorities for their public health responsibilities, including sexual health services, through the public health grant. It is for individual local authorities to decide their spending priorities based on an assessment of local need, including the need for sexual health services taking account of their statutory duties.
The Department secured a Spending Round settlement in 2019 for local government, with the public health grant receiving a welcome increase in real terms in 2020/21. Decisions on future funding will be a matter for the Spending Review.
No specific assessment has been made of the impact of the public health grant on access to contraception.
The All-Party Parliamentary Group on Sexual and Reproductive Health’s report, ‘Women's Lives, Women's Rights: Strengthening Access to Contraception Beyond the COVID-19 Pandemic’, has raised a number of important issues. The recommendations in the report will be considered as part of our upcoming work to develop the sexual and reproductive health strategy.
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Local National Health Service trusts interested in securing serology or antibody tests are responsible for procuring those tests and deciding on the type of test kits. The Medicines and Health products Regulatory Agency is the national regulator for medical tests and any test can legally be marketed and deployed in the United Kingdom once it receives a CE mark.
The Government’s antibody testing programme continues to evolve in line with emerging needs, including to support ongoing research and surveillance studies.
Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
We recognise that accurate and rapid assessment of suspected acute aortic dissection is crucial. Computerised tomography plays a central role in the diagnosis to allow expedited management and all acute hospitals with emergency departments have the capacity to make the diagnosis.
NHS England and NHS Improvement are aware of the findings of the Healthcare Safety Investigation Branch’s recent investigation into delayed recognition of acute Aortic Dissection, and these recommendations have been included in the actions being taken forward with hospitals.
NHS England and NHS Improvement Specialised Commissioning is progressing the Thoracic Aortic Dissection service specification and have identified resource to support this as one of the priorities within the Specialised Vascular Clinical Group work programme.
It should also be noted that the NHS England and NHS Improvement’s Getting It Right First Time Cardiothoracic Review recommended that acute aortic syndrome patients are only operated on by rotas of acute aortic syndrome specialist teams. This is being actioned across cardiac and vascular teams. The NHS England and NHS Improvement Specialised Cardiac Improvement Programme has developed a guide and toolkit to support implementation with the first Region rolling out from April 2020.
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The UK is appalled by reports of atrocities including widespread rape and other forms of sexual violence perpetrated by different armed groups in Tigray. As stated in response to question 6268, we are currently identifying personnel from the Preventing Sexual Violence in Conflict Initiative Team of Experts who can deploy to the region to strengthen justice for survivors of conflict-related sexual violence. We do not have a fixed date for deployment yet. COVID-19 restrictions and the conflict environment are practicalities that have to be factored in, but we are working to deploy as soon as possible.
The UK is supporting the International Committee of the Red Cross, UN agencies, specialised NGOs and 9 civil society partners to provide adequate essential services to survivors. We currently contribute to the UNICEF, International Red Crescent and national Ethiopian Red Cross response supporting a total of 545 survivors (542 females and 3 males) with case management services.
The UK provided £241 million of bilateral Official Development Assistance in 2020/21. The UK made the decision in November 2020 to pause financial aid payments to the Government of Ethiopia destined for Tigray but we continue to provide support to people in Tigray via UN and NGO partners. £22 million has been allocated to the humanitarian response in Tigray to support those in need.
UK-funded partners such as UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), UN Children's Fund (UNICEF), UN's World Food Programme (WFP) and International Committee of the Red Cross are providing food, shelter, water and healthcare in challenging circumstances. The UK is in the process of allocating budgets for programmes this financial year. As we do this, we will continue to review and adapt to the context.
The UK is also supporting civil society partners in Tigray to deliver gender-based violence and sexual and reproductive health response, which includes helping rape survivors. Final budgets are under review but we are also planning to support the documentation and investigation of such crimes.
The UK provided £241 million of bilateral Official Development Assistance in 2020/21. The UK made the decision in November 2020 to pause financial aid payments to the Government of Ethiopia destined for Tigray but we continue to provide support to people in Tigray via UN and NGO partners. £22 million has been allocated to the humanitarian response in Tigray to support those in need.
UK-funded partners such as UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), UN Children's Fund (UNICEF), UN's World Food Programme (WFP) and International Committee of the Red Cross are providing food, shelter, water and healthcare in challenging circumstances. The UK is in the process of allocating budgets for programmes this financial year. As we do this, we will continue to review and adapt to the context.
The UK is also supporting civil society partners in Tigray to deliver gender-based violence and sexual and reproductive health response, which includes helping rape survivors. Final budgets are under review but we are also planning to support the documentation and investigation of such crimes.
The UK is appalled by reports of atrocities including widespread rape and other forms of sexual violence perpetrated by different armed groups in Tigray. This is unacceptable. The G7, under the UK Presidency, issued a communique on 5 May which condemned rape and sexual exploitation, and other forms of gender-based violence and called for all parties to cease hostilities immediately, ensure respect for human rights and international law and hold those responsible for human rights violations and abuses, including sexual violence, accountable. The UK will support the UN Office for the High Commissioner for Human Rights to ensure that their joint investigations into atrocities in Tigray with the Ethiopian Human Rights Commission are independent, transparent and impartial and that those responsible for these human rights abuses are held to account.
We are working to promote justice for survivors of sexual violence, to provide support to survivors and children born of conflict related sexual violence and to prevent sexual violence from occurring. British Embassy staff conducted a specific protection mission in Shire in Tigray on 4-7 April. It included the assessment of the current Gender-Based Violence response, specific emergency services provided in camps and the gaps that need to be filled. They interviewed staff and volunteers supporting survivors of sexual violence to identify essential activities required to address the immediate needs of the survivors as well as the accountability needs to ensure well-informed and effective assistance. We are currently identifying personnel from the Preventing Sexual Violence in Conflict Initiative Team of Experts who can deploy to the region.
The UK is appalled by reports of atrocities including widespread rape and other forms of sexual violence perpetrated by different armed groups in Tigray. This is unacceptable. The G7, under the UK Presidency, issued a communique on 5 May which condemned rape and sexual exploitation, and other forms of gender-based violence and called for all parties to cease hostilities immediately, ensure respect for human rights and international law and hold those responsible for human rights violations and abuses, including sexual violence, accountable. The UK will support the UN Office for the High Commissioner for Human Rights to ensure that their joint investigations into atrocities in Tigray with the Ethiopian Human Rights Commission are independent, transparent and impartial and that those responsible for these human rights abuses are held to account.
We are working to promote justice for survivors of sexual violence, to provide support to survivors and children born of conflict related sexual violence and to prevent sexual violence from occurring. British Embassy staff conducted a specific protection mission in Shire in Tigray on 4-7 April. It included the assessment of the current Gender-Based Violence response, specific emergency services provided in camps and the gaps that need to be filled. They interviewed staff and volunteers supporting survivors of sexual violence to identify essential activities required to address the immediate needs of the survivors as well as the accountability needs to ensure well-informed and effective assistance. We are currently identifying personnel from the Preventing Sexual Violence in Conflict Initiative Team of Experts who can deploy to the region.
The seismic impact of the pandemic on the UK economy has forced us to take tough but necessary decisions, including temporarily reducing the overall amount we spend on aid, and exiting from some programmes, including the Accelerating the Sustainable Control and Elimination of Neglected Tropical Diseases (NTDs) programme. We will still spend more than £10 billion this year to fight poverty, tackle climate change, and improve global health, which remains a top priority for UK ODA. We will focus on the UK's position at the forefront of the international response to COVID-19 through our commitments to COVAX, Gavi, and WHO, and through bilateral spend where the need is greatest in Africa. Where we have taken the decision to exit programmes, this will be done in a measured way, working closely with our delivery partners.
The UK has made a significant contribution to global efforts towards protecting hundreds of millions of people from NTDs. Malaria is not classified as an NTD by the World Health Organisation. We remain committed to the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, TB and Malaria.
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The seismic impact of the pandemic on the UK economy has forced us to take tough but necessary decisions, including temporarily reducing the overall amount we spend on aid, and exiting from some programmes, including the Accelerating the Sustainable Control and Elimination of Neglected Tropical Diseases (NTDs) programme. We will still spend more than £10 billion this year to fight poverty, tackle climate change, and improve global health, which remains a top priority for UK ODA. We will focus on the UK's position at the forefront of the international response to COVID-19 through our commitments to COVAX, Gavi, and WHO, and through bilateral spend where the need is greatest in Africa. Where we have taken the decision to exit programmes, this will be done in a measured way, working closely with our delivery partners.
The UK has made a significant contribution to global efforts towards protecting hundreds of millions of people from NTDs. Malaria is not classified as an NTD by the World Health Organisation. We remain committed to the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, TB and Malaria.
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
In January this year, the Foreign Secretary led a cross-government process to review, appraise and finalise Official Development Assistance (ODA) allocations across all geographies, to maximise the Government's strategic focus in the use of ODA next year. In completing this process, officials considered any impact on women and girls, the most marginalised and vulnerable, people with disabilities and people from other protected groups, when developing advice to Ministers.
Information on our programmes in India, including our implementing partners, is published online and can be viewed on devtracker.fcdo.gov.uk.
Minister of State (Cabinet Office) (Minister without Portfolio)
We stand side by side with India as a friend and partner during what is a deeply concerning time in the fight against COVID-19. The UK has been the first country to deliver life-saving medical support to India and continues to work closely with the Government of India to identify what support we can provide in the coming days, based on their most pressing needs.
As the Foreign Secretary set out in his Written Ministerial Statement on 21 April, we have prioritised our aid to be more strategic and remain a force for good across the world. Since 2015, the UK has given no aid money to the Government of India. The FCDO makes investments and deploys world-leading expertise in areas of mutual interest. Our work in India reduces poverty, tackles climate change and creates new partners and markets for the UK.
Following a thorough review, the FCDO's aid budget has been allocated in accordance with UK strategic priorities against a challenging financial climate of COVID. Throughout this process, we have strived to ensure that every penny of our aid brings maximum strategic coherence, impact and value for taxpayers' money. We are now working through what this means for individual programmes, in line with UK strategic priorities identified. We stand side by side with India as a friend and partner during what is a deeply concerning time in the fight against COVID-19. The UK is working closely with the Government of India to identify further assistance we can provide in the coming days, based on their most pressing needs.
Minister of State (Cabinet Office) (Minister without Portfolio)
As the Foreign Secretary set out in his Written Ministerial Statement on 21 April, we have prioritised our aid to be more strategic and remain a force for good across the world. Following a thorough review, the FCDO's aid budget has been allocated in accordance with UK strategic priorities against a challenging financial climate of COVID-19. Throughout this process, we have strived to ensure that every penny of our aid brings maximum strategic coherence, impact and value for taxpayers' money. We have cut FCDO aid programming to China by 95 per cent in 2021, focusing the remaining programme funding on specific programmes that support British values around open societies and human rights. We are now working through what this means for individual programmes, in line with UK strategic priorities identified.
Minister of State (Cabinet Office) (Minister without Portfolio)
All Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO) official aid spend can be found in the Statistics on International Development UK Aid report at:
https://www.gov.uk/guidance/statistics-on-international-development
The latest Muskoka2 donor estimates were published as part of the European Parliamentary Forum for Sexual & Reproductive Rights in the Donor Delivering Report and cover 2016 to 2018. The report is available at: https://www.epfweb.org/node/90
A more detailed Muskoka2 donor estimates report covering 2002-2017 is available at: https://datacompass.lshtm.ac.uk/id/eprint/1526/
An updated Muskoka2 report is expected to be published on the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine datacompass website later this year. Musoka2 estimates are not available for 2019 onwards due to reporting timeframes of multilateral agencies and external data compilation.
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
We are committed to delivering an efficient and effective humanitarian system and the implementation of World Humanitarian Summit Grand Bargain commitments, including recognising national and local organisations and communities as first responders to crises. We have been one the largest donors to the UN Country-Based Pooled Funds, who channel a substantial proportion of their funding to local and national actors - 25% in 2019 - and support the Start Network, which facilitates action among local and national NGOs, as well as the Red Cross Movement. We continue innovative approaches to promote greater localisation, notably an £18 million fund launched in 2020 for UK NGOs responding to COVID-19 designed to encourage improved partnerships with local and national actors. The UK is at the forefront of discussions to develop a successor arrangement to the Grand Bargain beginning later this year, working with the UN, Red Cross and civil society.
Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The Foreign Secretary will lead on a new development strategy to ensure close alignment of UK aid and development aims with the objectives set out in the Integrated Review (IR). The Government has consulted widely on the IR and will be discussing the development strategy with partners and other stakeholders. The strategy will be published in due course.
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Famine prevention is a priority theme of the UK's G7 Presidency. As part of this, the UK Special Envoy, Nick Dyer, is chairing a Panel on Famine Prevention and Humanitarian Crisis to agree a Compact to prevent famine in 2021 and slow the growth in humanitarian need through stronger approaches to early action. The Democratic Republic of Congo is one of the priority countries for the UK's Call to Action on famine and food insecurity.
Tackling severe food insecurity and malnutrition is one of the UK's top priorities in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). Since 2017, UK aid has provided 1.97 million people with food aid, cash and vouchers to reduce food insecurity and treated over 300,000 cases of severe acute malnutrition.
The UK is also leading a global call to action on the risk of famine and appointed Nick Dyer as the UK's Special Envoy for Famine Prevention and Humanitarian Affairs. DRC is a priority country for food insecurity and the UK's Call to Action. During my visit to DRC in November 2020 and a subsequent call with President Tshisekedi in March 2021, I discussed with the Government the need to address insecurity and conflict in the East, one of the key drivers of the humanitarian crisis.
The seismic impact of the pandemic on the UK economy has forced us to take tough but necessary decisions, including temporarily reducing the overall amount we spend on aid to 0.5% of GNI. We will remain a world-leading ODA donor and still spend more than £10 billion this year to fight poverty, tackle climate change and improve global health. We are working through what this means for individual programmes. Decisions will be announced in due course.
The UK remains a committed development partner to the Democratic Republic of Congo, including on reducing child stunting. In the last year, we have supported 4 million children with community-based nutrition including counselling on exclusive breastfeeding, Vitamin A supplementation, and growing nutritious crops.
All FCDO official aid spend can be found in the Statistic for International Development: UK Aid report at: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/statistics-on-international-development
a) The last published donor estimates based on Muskoka 1 cover 2002 to 2015 and can be found at: https://www.thelancet.com/journals/langlo/article/PIIS2214-109X(18)30276-6/fulltext#seccestitle10
b) The latest Muskoka 2 donors estimates were published as part of the European Parliamentary Forum for Sexual & Reproductive Rights in the Donor Delivering Report and cover 2016 to 2018.
The report is available on: https://www.epfweb.org/node/90
Musoka 2 estimates are not available for 2019 onwards due to Multilateral agencies' reporting timeframes and external data compilation.
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
On November 26 the Foreign Secretary announced new measures to ensure every penny of the UK aid budget goes as far as possible and makes a world leading difference.
As well as focusing our aid on strategic priorities in countries where the UK's development, security and economic interests align, these measures included three ways to improve the quality of aid across government. To increase coherence, FCDO decided the final allocation of ODA to other departments, a process which the Foreign Secretary concluded in January 2021. Programmes were judged against their fit with the UK's strategic priorities, evidence of impact achieved, and whether they represent value for money. Finally, the Spending Review agreed to establish a new administrative cost framework to give departments greater flexibility to design the best projects, rather than outsourcing work to expensive consultants.
Minister of State (Cabinet Office) (Minister without Portfolio)
The Foreign Secretary has set out seven core priorities for the UK's aid budget in the overarching pursuit of poverty reduction: climate and biodiversity; Covid and global health security; girls' education; science and research; defending open societies and resolving conflict; humanitarian assistance; and promoting trade and economic growth. Aid will be allocated against these priorities while taking into account considerations of need, including levels of poverty, ability of countries to self-finance poverty reduction and the UK's comparative advantage, to ensure that every penny we spend on ODA goes as far as possible and has the greatest impact and delivers value for money.
Minister of State (Cabinet Office) (Minister without Portfolio)
FCDO has engaged partners about the budget changes announced in July 2020. Most of those changes have been implemented and affected aid delivery partners have been notified of our decision. FCDO is currently working through a process of prioritisation to align its development spending in 2021 with the new GNI target. No decisions have yet been taken on individual budget allocations.
Minister of State (Cabinet Office) (Minister without Portfolio)
The new approach to aid announced by the Foreign Secretary in November 2020 marks our commitment to promoting science, research and data, and a rigorous use of evidence in the design of our interventions. Programmes will be designed to strive for the best possible development outcomes and impact, recognising that development action often takes place in risky and difficult environments. We insist on the rigorous use of evidence and scrutiny in programme design.
At the time of the FCDO merger the Foreign Secretary committed to reinforce the role of the Independent Commission on Aid Impact (ICAI) to strengthen further transparency and accountability in the use of taxpayers' money. In December, FCDO completed a review of ICAI to strengthen its impact and provide practical, action-oriented recommendations to support Government in delivering UK aid.
Minister of State (Cabinet Office) (Minister without Portfolio)
Following the Presidential election results on 16 January 2021, I set out, in a statement, our significant concerns about the overall political climate surrounding the elections and have urged the Government of Uganda to meet its international human rights commitments. The treatment of opposition candidates and their supporters since the Ugandan elections is concerning and does not provide for an open political landscape for democracy to flourish. Following the unacceptable constraints placed on the opposition candidate, Robert Kyagulanyi, the British High Commission in Kampala pressed the Ugandan authorities to remove restrictions on his political freedoms prior to the lifting of his de facto house arrest on 25 January. The recent violence towards journalists on 17 February was unacceptable and we welcomed the commitment of the Chief of Defence Forces to investigate the matter and take appropriate action. Our High Commissioner continues to engage with political leaders across all parties to discuss these issues and push for democratic engagement and reform.
The UK Government supports programmes for civil society groups and organisations in Uganda that promote democracy, robust institutions, and transparent elections. We have worked with Uganda over a number of years, helping to strengthen institutions in Uganda to uphold democratic freedoms and advocate for the equal treatment of all Ugandans according to the terms of the Ugandan constitution and laws. As a long-standing partner to Uganda, the UK will continue to follow post-election developments closely, and engage with the Ugandan Government and Ugandans to advocate for democracy.
The internationally accepted method for estimating Maternal Newborn and Child Health spend is the Methodology for Calculating Baselines and Commitments: G8 Member Spending on Maternal, Newborn and Child Health.
This methodology was used to estimate UK Government spend on maternal mortality in the answer to Question 97554 published on 5 October. The UK government has spent an average of approximately £1 billion per year on Maternal Newborn and Child Health between 2013/14 - 2017/18, on a range of bilateral and multilateral programmes.
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The full breakdown of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office's (FCO) 2019 Official Development Assistance (ODA) spend is detailed at this link: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/921034/Data_Underlying_SID_2019.ods. By filtering by year, the FCO and sector code 91010, you can calculate that the FCO spent £306 million on frontline diplomatic activity in 2019.
The FCO's total ODA spend in 2019 was £679 million (page 14 of https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/927135/Statistics_on_International_Development_Final_UK_Aid_Spend_2019.pdf). Spend on frontline diplomatic activity was 45 per cent of the FCO's total 2019 ODA spend.
Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Data in the Statistics on International Development (SID) is captured and defined in line with the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development's (OECD) Development Assistance Committee reporting directives. Aid-related frontline diplomacy is captured under the OECD administrative sector code 91010, and broken down by country in the SID from 2012. From 2016 to 2018, the Foreign and Commonwealth Office published this data by region, before reverting to publication by country again in 2019. Over the course of this period, the Government has both improved the way it records its ODA eligible administrative spend and made changes to the way we present and publish the SID data to improve transparency and compliance with national statistic publication requirements. The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office is unable to collate the aid-related frontline diplomacy costs by country before 2012 or from 2016 to 2018 within the timescale provided without incurring disproportionate cost. The regional costs for 2012 to 2015 and for 2019 can be calculated using the published SID data.
Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
As with all public expenditure, HM Treasury allocates Official Development Assistance funding to departments at each Spending Review. As announced on 21st October 2020, the Chancellor has decided to conduct a one-year Spending Review in order to prioritise the response to COVID-19, and our focus on supporting jobs. We expect this process to conclude in late November.
Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Statistics on International Development (SID) - which is a national statistic - provides an overview of official UK spend on international development, including a breakdown of types of spend. Frontline Diplomatic Activity is recorded as 'Administrative costs not included elsewhere' using Sector Purpose code 91010. The SID covering spending for 2019 and the accompanying data was published on GOV.UK on 24 September, and can be viewed through the following links:
Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
In light of the decision to move to a one-year Spending Review, we are considering the implications for the completion of the Integrated Review, and will provide an update in due course
The UK is committed to tackling malaria and this is linked to our manifesto commitment to end the preventable deaths of mothers, newborns and children. As the Spending Review process has not yet concluded, we are unable to comment in detail on specific future spending options. It remains in the UK's interest to use ODA to make the world healthier, safer and more prosperous and to continue to invest in strong health systems and reducing the global burden of malaria.
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The Independent Commission for Aid Impact (ICAI) review of maternal health results in 2018 made five recommendations, including adopting a long-term approach to maternal health planning, linking strongly to health system strengthening work and increasing the focus on quality of care. We welcomed all recommendations and the 2020 follow up review acknowledged our swift progress, finding that the UK had 'enhanced its emphasis on the need for good quality, respectful care for women and their babies and increased focus on adolescents and poorer women within its new family planning programmes'. ICAI also recognised the UK Government's commitment to Ending the Preventable Deaths of Mothers, Newborns and Children by 2030 and to international advocacy for comprehensive sexual reproductive health and rights.
Using internationally accepted methods, we estimate that the UK Government has spent an average of approximately £1 billion per year on Maternal Newborn and Child Health between 2013/14 - 2017/18, on a range of bilateral and multilateral programmes. Maternal health remains a key priority throughout our health work, with recently announced investments including £600 million to the Reproductive Health Supplies programme to buy family planning supplies for millions more women and girls in the world's poorest countries each year.
The UK commitment to ending preventable deaths has created further momentum to ensure the right balance in the FCDO portfolio across family planning, health services and other essential interventions for maternal and newborn health and wellbeing. This holistic approach is essential if we are to maximise the impact of our money and policy, and more important than ever before given the challenges that the COVID-19 pandemic is creating for health services across the world. In responding to the ICAI recommendations, we are reviewing our approach to maternal health results to include more context based country data and to increase our focus on long-term, sustainable change.
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The Independent Commission for Aid Impact (ICAI) review of maternal health results in 2018 made five recommendations, including adopting a long-term approach to maternal health planning, linking strongly to health system strengthening work and increasing the focus on quality of care. We welcomed all recommendations and the 2020 follow up review acknowledged our swift progress, finding that the UK had 'enhanced its emphasis on the need for good quality, respectful care for women and their babies and increased focus on adolescents and poorer women within its new family planning programmes'. ICAI also recognised the UK Government's commitment to Ending the Preventable Deaths of Mothers, Newborns and Children by 2030 and to international advocacy for comprehensive sexual reproductive health and rights.
Using internationally accepted methods, we estimate that the UK Government has spent an average of approximately £1 billion per year on Maternal Newborn and Child Health between 2013/14 - 2017/18, on a range of bilateral and multilateral programmes. Maternal health remains a key priority throughout our health work, with recently announced investments including £600 million to the Reproductive Health Supplies programme to buy family planning supplies for millions more women and girls in the world's poorest countries each year.
The UK commitment to ending preventable deaths has created further momentum to ensure the right balance in the FCDO portfolio across family planning, health services and other essential interventions for maternal and newborn health and wellbeing. This holistic approach is essential if we are to maximise the impact of our money and policy, and more important than ever before given the challenges that the COVID-19 pandemic is creating for health services across the world. In responding to the ICAI recommendations, we are reviewing our approach to maternal health results to include more context based country data and to increase our focus on long-term, sustainable change.
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The Independent Commission for Aid Impact (ICAI) review of maternal health results in 2018 made five recommendations, including adopting a long-term approach to maternal health planning, linking strongly to health system strengthening work and increasing the focus on quality of care. We welcomed all recommendations and the 2020 follow up review acknowledged our swift progress, finding that the UK had 'enhanced its emphasis on the need for good quality, respectful care for women and their babies and increased focus on adolescents and poorer women within its new family planning programmes'. ICAI also recognised the UK Government's commitment to Ending the Preventable Deaths of Mothers, Newborns and Children by 2030 and to international advocacy for comprehensive sexual reproductive health and rights.
Using internationally accepted methods, we estimate that the UK Government has spent an average of approximately £1 billion per year on Maternal Newborn and Child Health between 2013/14 - 2017/18, on a range of bilateral and multilateral programmes. Maternal health remains a key priority throughout our health work, with recently announced investments including £600 million to the Reproductive Health Supplies programme to buy family planning supplies for millions more women and girls in the world's poorest countries each year.
The UK commitment to ending preventable deaths has created further momentum to ensure the right balance in the FCDO portfolio across family planning, health services and other essential interventions for maternal and newborn health and wellbeing. This holistic approach is essential if we are to maximise the impact of our money and policy, and more important than ever before given the challenges that the COVID-19 pandemic is creating for health services across the world. In responding to the ICAI recommendations, we are reviewing our approach to maternal health results to include more context based country data and to increase our focus on long-term, sustainable change.
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs aims to respond to Independent Commission for Aid Impact (ICAI) reviews within six weeks of the reports' publication dates.
This is the usual timescale for Government responses to ICAI reviews and enables the Government to give proper consideration to reviews and the recommendations made within them.
Minister of State (Cabinet Office) (Minister without Portfolio)
The Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs aims to respond to the ICAI review of DFID's results in Nutrition within six weeks of the report's publication date. This is the usual timescale for Government responses to ICAI reviews and will enable the Government to give proper consideration to the report and the recommendations made within it.
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK was at the forefront of agreeing the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in 2015, and we remain committed to being at the forefront of global efforts to achieve them. On the 2 September, we appointed Nick Dyer as the UK’s first Special Envoy for Famine Prevention and Humanitarian Affairs, which has strong links to the SDGs including Goal 2 on Zero Hunger. The FCDO brings together the best of our development and diplomatic expertise, projecting the UK as a Force for Good in the world, with a continued focus on supporting the bottom billion. Championing global progress on the SDGs, and using our G7 and COP presidencies, will be crucial to these aims. The SDGs also play a vital role in post-COVID-19 recovery.
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The Treasury committed to reforming Small Brewers Relief (SBR) and our review of SBR is ongoing. A technical consultation was launched in January this year to help inform the Government’s review. The consultation document provides further information on the Government’s assessment of changes and we are currently analysing the responses.
The Treasury believes that reducing the starting taper from 5,000 to 2,100 hectolitres (880,000 pints a year to 370,000 pints a year) strikes a balance between guaranteeing the full value of the relief for truly small breweries, while providing those between the 2,100 to 5,000 hectolitres threshold a smoother transition to the main duty rate. Officials are continuing to work closely with HM Revenue and Customs to deliver a relief that is sustainable and supports brewers of all sizes in the long-term.
The Government has made it clear that changes to SBR will not come into effect until at least January 2022. We will consider the state of the industry as it recovers from Covid-19, and the need to provide sufficient time for brewers to adapt, before making any changes.
Minister for Equalities
The Treasury committed to reforming Small Brewers Relief (SBR) and our review of SBR is ongoing. A technical consultation was launched in January this year to help inform the Government’s review. The consultation document provides further information on the Government’s assessment of changes and we are currently analysing the responses.
The Treasury believes that reducing the starting taper from 5,000 to 2,100 hectolitres (880,000 pints a year to 370,000 pints a year) strikes a balance between guaranteeing the full value of the relief for truly small breweries, while providing those between the 2,100 to 5,000 hectolitres threshold a smoother transition to the main duty rate. Officials are continuing to work closely with HM Revenue and Customs to deliver a relief that is sustainable and supports brewers of all sizes in the long-term.
The Government has made it clear that changes to SBR will not come into effect until at least January 2022. We will consider the state of the industry as it recovers from Covid-19, and the need to provide sufficient time for brewers to adapt, before making any changes.
Minister for Equalities
The Treasury committed to reforming Small Brewers Relief (SBR) and our review of SBR is ongoing. A technical consultation was launched in January this year to help inform the Government’s review. The consultation document provides further information on the Government’s assessment of changes and we are currently analysing the responses.
The Treasury believes that reducing the starting taper from 5,000 to 2,100 hectolitres (880,000 pints a year to 370,000 pints a year) strikes a balance between guaranteeing the full value of the relief for truly small breweries, while providing those between the 2,100 to 5,000 hectolitres threshold a smoother transition to the main duty rate. Officials are continuing to work closely with HM Revenue and Customs to deliver a relief that is sustainable and supports brewers of all sizes in the long-term.
The Government has made it clear that changes to SBR will not come into effect until at least January 2022. We will consider the state of the industry as it recovers from Covid-19, and the need to provide sufficient time for brewers to adapt, before making any changes.
Minister for Equalities
Since November, employers are only asked to cover National Insurance and employer pension contributions for hours not worked under the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (CJRS). This is lower than the previous level in September and October, and for an average claim accounts for just 5 per cent of total employment costs, or £70 per employee per month. Furthermore, many small employers can benefit from the Employment Allowance for support with their NICs bill, and, since March, businesses have received billions in loans, tax deferrals, Business Rate reliefs, and general and sector-specific grants. This support can be used by businesses to cover the costs of NICs and pension contributions, ensuring that they can continue to furlough their employees.
The current estimate of MOD cost of supporting the Afghan Relocation and Assistance Policy (ARAP) is £8.25 million. This includes:
- Pre Op PITTING movement of ARAP persons to UK.
- The ARAP share for Op PITTING.
- Early costs arising from the movement of ARAP persons from 3rd
The MOD continues to incur costs for the movement of persons to the UK, but is not responsible for the significant costs will be incurred by Home Office in delivering the Managed Quarantine Service, bridging accommodation and wrap around support for the ARAP population in the UK, including costs of accommodation and services once in the UK.
We do not anticipate that this expenditure will be classified as Official Development Assistance
Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence)
The Government continues to listen carefully to the debate on the legal age of marriage. Justice officials liaise closely with officials in other departments that have an interest in this matter and in forced marriage, which Government made an offence in 2014.
I am aware of my Hon. Friend’s Private Members’ Bill which seeks to raise the age for marriage and civil partnership formation in England Wales from sixteen or seventeen to eighteen years of age. It also seeks to provide for related offences including an offence of failing to protect a child from entering marriage. Her Bill would also place a requirement on certain professionals to notify the police, if any such marriage has taken place, or could take place, and seeks to provide for a new child marriage protection order.
My noble and learned friend Lord Wolfson, in his new role as minister for family justice, will arrange to meet with my hon. friend shortly to discuss these important issues with her.
Solicitor General (Attorney General's Office)
The Regulations we made, consistent with the duty placed on the Government under section 9 of the Northern Ireland (Executive Formation etc.) Act 2019, have been in place since 31 March 2020. The Regulations provide a new framework for lawful access to abortion services in Northern Ireland. The Regulations deliver equivalent outcomes in practice to the rest of the UK so that women and girls can enjoy similar rights in accessing abortion services locally in Northern Ireland.
Since April 2020, some service provision has commenced on the ground in Northern Ireland through existing sexual and reproductive health clinics across most Health and Social Care Trusts. According to figures released by the Department of Health in October 2020, over 719 abortions have been provided to women and girls locally in Northern Ireland.
My Department and I are continuing to engage and work with the Northern Ireland Health Minister and the relevant Northern Ireland departments, in implementing the remaining CEDAW recommendations on matters for which they are responsible, including the full commissioning of abortion services in line with the Regulations we made, at the earliest opportunity.
Minister of State (Education)