Oral Answers to Questions

Stephen Doughty Excerpts

Tuesday 30th November 2021 Commons Chamber

[Mr Speaker]

I call the shadow Minister.

[Stephen Doughty (Cardiff South and Penarth) (Lab/Co-op)]

The crisis in Ethiopia and Tigray has catastrophic implications for civilians, the region and the globe. We have seen shocking atrocities over the past year, including war crimes and sexual violence. We are now hearing warnings of potential genocide from former New Zealand Prime Minister Helen Clark and from Lord Alton in the other place, and deeply concerning reports of further apparent incitement this weekend in the media, which I have raised with the Minister. What assessment has the Minister made of those very serious reports and warnings? What are we doing to protect and secure UK citizens who are still present in Ethiopia? What are we doing to bring to justice all those who are committing or inciting such atrocities?

[Vicky Ford]

The hon. Gentleman raises a number of points; I thank him for continuing to look at this serious situation. It is really important that we keep spreading the message that British nationals, whatever their circumstances, should leave Ethiopia now while the airport remains available and there are flights. We have asked all sides not to use inflammatory language; it is making the situation even more dangerous, and the impact on civilians is very severe.

We have provided humanitarian aid of up to £76.7 million in badly needed support for people in north Ethiopia, which makes us the second largest donor to the humanitarian response. That support has gone into Tigray, Afar, Amhara and eastern Sudan; it includes critical food aid, safe drinking water, medical care and support for women who have been victims of sexual violence.

Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe

Stephen Doughty Excerpts

Tuesday 16th November 2021 Westminster Hall

[Stephen Doughty (Cardiff South and Penarth) (Lab/Co-op)]

These sentiments are shared entirely by my constituents. Like many Members here today, I have been overwhelmed by messages of support for Nazanin, Richard and the whole family. All urge the Government to act and to show solidarity with the whole family in wanting Nazanin to be freed. Could my hon. Friend please convey that to the family?

[Tulip Siddiq]

Richard Ratcliffe is in the Gallery and will have heard that message directly from my hon. Friend. This campaign has touched everyone, regardless of where they are in the country. A lot of Members will know that my constituency of Hampstead and Kilburn is one of affluence and deprivation. When I am in Hampstead, Emma Thompson will stop me and ask, “Have you got Nazanin home?” When I am campaigning in the south Kilburn estates, people will open the door and say, “What good are you if you haven’t got that poor woman home yet?” The campaign has touched everyone; my hon. Friend is right to make that point.

Oral Answers to Questions

Stephen Doughty Excerpts

Tuesday 26th October 2021 Commons Chamber

[Amanda Milling]

My right hon. Friend is a real campaigner for the north of England. Having lived there for 15 years, I know that it is very important. I have just come back from a visit to the Philippines, Singapore and Japan, and one of the things I saw was posts doing everything they can to promote British business on the ground to ensure trade links in exports and in foreign direct investment.

[Stephen Doughty (Cardiff South and Penarth) (Lab/Co-op)]

I welcome the Minister to her place. She mentioned her visit to the Pacific, but the G20 also includes one African representative, and it usually invites the African Union and the New Partnership for Africa’s Development. I hope that the specific economic health climate and the humanitarian crises affecting some countries in Africa will be discussed, not least because we heard yesterday about the terrible events in Sudan. I also hope that the UK will raise the worsening situation in Ethiopia, which is a past G20 invitee, given the resumption of attacks on Mekelle, human rights atrocities, and the humanitarian crisis affecting people in Tigray and beyond. What will the Government be doing specifically on that issue at the G20, other than cutting our assistance to Africa?

[Amanda Milling]

As the hon. Gentleman will be aware, there was an urgent question yesterday about the situation in Sudan. The situation in northern Ethiopia is dire, and the UK condemns the ongoing violence and the spread of the conflict into Afar and Amhara, as well as the airstrikes impacting civilians and the ongoing human rights abuses and violations. We call on both sides urgently to implement a ceasefire and for the Eritrean forces to depart, and to seek a solution.

Arrest of Sudanese Prime Minister

Stephen Doughty Excerpts

Monday 25th October 2021 Commons Chamber

[Vicky Ford]

I thank the Chair of the Foreign Affairs Committee for his questions. As I said in my response, we are working with international partners and expect to make a public statement later. On the African Union’s response to the situation in Sudan, we welcome the statement of dismay at today’s event by the chair of the AU commission, Moussa Faki, and we will work with all of Sudan’s international friends to apply pressure on the military to return Sudan to the path of democracy.

We are actively calling for a briefing at the UN Security Council to ensure that the situation gets the highest levels of international attention that it deserves. The UK welcomes the statement by the UN Secretary General condemning the military’s actions. As I said, I will also speak to my US counterpart later today.

[Stephen Doughty (Cardiff South and Penarth) (Lab/Co-op)]

I thank my hon. Friend the Member for Newcastle upon Tyne Central (Chi Onwurah) for securing this urgent question today. I welcome the Minister to her role and thank her for meeting me last week, when we discussed Sudan among other issues. I hope that that constructive approach, also shown by her predecessor, who is with us today, will continue.

Like the Minister and the international community, the Opposition unequivocally condemn the coup and share the strong sentiments that she expressed over the arrest of Prime Minister Hamdok and others. That has put the democratic process in Sudan in peril and risks further instability at an extraordinarily difficult time for ordinary civilians there when it comes to access to food, water, healthcare and many other aspects, let alone the precarious state of the economy—and especially, as she said, for women in the country.

The Minister noted that last week she visited a number of key projects, including with women. She also met the now arrested Prime Minister and the general who led the coup. She described those meetings as positive at the time and wished the Sudanese well with the democratic transition. I do not doubt in any way her sincerity or intent in those meetings—it is important that she went—but what does she think has gone so wrong in the last few days?

Can the Minister say a little more about what we are doing to take immediate action with our allies in the region and, more broadly, at the UN Security Council and in our bilateral relationships? Has the Foreign Secretary tried to speak to General al-Burhan and what of our embassy and special representative? She mentioned the communication difficulties. Are we aware of any contact with the coup leaders, urging them to step back from this absolutely appalling state of affairs?

Does the Minister regret the decision of the Chancellor, Prime Minister and the last Foreign Secretary to slash our support to Sudan, and to much of the rest of Africa, at such a fragile and critical time? Over 50% of our budget was cut in the last year, from £142 million to £62 million; that risks our influence, let alone our ability to help the Sudanese, who will face the consequences of these terrible events.

The Minister announced a number of key projects on her visit, including an InfraCo visit in November, British Council support, humanitarian assistance and safe drinking water projects in Port Sudan. Are those now at risk? What of them? Obviously, as has been said, there are regional implications, both political and humanitarian. There are crises in South Sudan, Ethiopia, Eritrea and elsewhere—famine, conflict and instability. What assessment has she made of the risks of huge failure in the region?

The Minister rightly pointed out the need to bring to justice all those responsible for past atrocities, including former President al-Bashir and others responsible for crimes in Darfur and elsewhere. Does she now believe that those processes are at risk? She rightly mentioned the investigation into the 3 June massacres. We understand that that has now been stopped. I join her in urging for that investigation to continue; it is absolutely critical.

There are Sudanese in my constituency in Cardiff and across the UK who will today be deeply fearful for their families and others—especially those women protesting bravely in the streets. There are already reports of gunshots and burning barricades at the protests and fears of a return to civil war. We on the Opposition side join the Minister in urging an urgent return to peace, dialogue and the democratic transition—not this betrayal of the agreements and hopes of the Sudanese people.

[Vicky Ford]

As I said earlier, during my meetings last week I stressed to all parties the importance of supporting the civilian-led Government, the constitutional declaration and the Juba peace agreement and of progressing with the transition as well as continuing to co-operate with the International Criminal Court. I repeat those messages today.

On humanitarian aid, the UK stands by the people of Sudan. We have been a leading donor of such aid in Sudan. It is already the fifth largest humanitarian crisis in the world and the actions of the military do not change the urgent need for assistance. The ordinary Sudanese people must not suffer as a result. I saw first hand how UK aid through the World Food Programme is giving school food at a school just outside Khartoum to girls in great need of food support. It is also encouraging them to come to school and be educated. Given the challenges that many Sudanese people face, the UK urgently continues to call for an end to the blockades in east Sudan and for humanitarian aid and vital supplies to be able to flow without hindrance.

On financial support, we have invested £150 million in Sudan since the revolution, including £80 million in the Sudan family support programme, which is helping citizens cope with the necessary economic reforms, and a £148 million bridging loan to help clear Sudan’s arrears with the African Development Bank. We will consider the impact of today’s events on our support, including with key international financial institution partners.

Draft Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (Immunities and Privileges) Order 2021

Stephen Doughty Excerpts

Monday 13th September 2021 General Committees

[Stephen Doughty (Cardiff South and Penarth) (Lab/Co-op)]

It is a pleasure to see in you in the Chair, Ms Fovargue. The official Opposition will of course not be opposing this statutory instrument, because it simply forms the standard process around events of this nature, as the Minister set out. I do, however, have some questions, particularly given some concerns around the organisation of the conference and covid regulations, and because is important to understand the legal privileges and immunities.

The Minister set out the categories included in the order. Will he say how many attendees will be covered by the categories of UN officials, delegations and observers—“the parties”—and the CDM, the Adaptation Fund and others? He will also be aware of the concerns expressed by the Least Developed Countries Group as recently as 10 September. This was not only about their demands at this COP for fair and ambitious action to meet the 1.5° pathway and mobilising scaled-up support for many of the countries most vulnerable to climate change, which are right and substantial, but their ability to participate in the conference, which is crucial to ensuring that their voices are heard and that pressure is put to bear on some of the world’s bigger emitters. If we are seeking the ambitious outcomes that the Government and the COP President have set out, how will we ensure that that group is able to participate?

The group stated on 10 September:

“We need assurances from the UK that COP26 will be fully inclusive and fair. Our countries and our people are among the worst affected by climate change – we must not be excluded from talks deciding how the world will deal with this crisis, determining the fate of our lives and livelihoods.”

The Minister will be aware that 20 countries from the group are currently on the UK’s travel red list, which comes with significant legal implications if red list quarantine rules are broken. Will he set out what support is being given to ensure that delegations can be both covid-safe and not excluded from participation? What methods are being put in place for other methods of participation? What support is available for quarantine arrangements and fees? The costs for small delegations that do not have the monetary resources at their disposal that we would have when sending a delegation to the G7 or other conferences will be substantial.

The 20 countries in the group includes many in sub-Saharan Africa, which comes under the normal portfolio that the Minister and I cover and includes crucial countries affected by climate change, such as Mozambique, Malawi, Lesotho, Burundi, the DRC, which is critical given its rainforests and the implications of climate change, and also Afghanistan. Is the Minister aware of whether any Afghan delegation will attend the COP given the indeterminate status of its current regime? We have heard what the Foreign Secretary has said about that, so what are the implications for the types of immunities and privileges being granted under this order?

What proportion of the official delegations does the Minister believe are attached to NGO or activist groups? That could include those who have diplomatic status or others.

[Steve McCabe (Birmingham, Selly Oak) (Lab)]

I am grateful to my hon. Friend for giving way. I do not want to delay proceedings, and I understand the need for this draft order. I was going to ask the Minister this question, but he was too quick for me, so I thought I could ask it through my hon. Friend.

Most people will remember the disquiet in this country around the death of Harry Dunn and the fact that Anne Sacoolas was able to claim diplomatic immunity and return to the States without facing any consequences. Am I right in thinking that the provisions around immunities and privileges under article 5 would mean that if there was a serious road traffic incident, perhaps resulting in a death, the individual responsible would be secure from any consequences? Is that what we are approving?

[Stephen Doughty]

My hon. Friend raises an important point. I have referred to covid laws and regulations, but the order applies to the conduct of delegations in many other respects, so I hope that the Minister will answer that question.

My last question relates to the delegations from the British overseas territories. Concerns have been raised with me by several overseas territories about the size of their delegation, and they feel that they could be more included in the COP process. I assume that they will not come under one of the categories of exemption because they are a part of the UK family, but clarification on that from the Minister would be useful. What does he understand to be their status at the conference?

Our overseas territories not only play a critical in terms of our contribution to global environmental and sustainability targets, particularly given the often pristine marine environments of these island states, but will be directly affected by climate change. In last week’s Westminster Hall debate I mentioned the British Virgin Islands, which suffered seriously during the hurricane of 2017, but it has lost as a result of Brexit some funding for climate change adaptation and resilience. However, it is likely that the islands will, tragically, face more hurricanes because of our warming environment.

Finally, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change’s message is clear, and the unequivocal evidence is that we are in an emergency. It is right that the summit has an ambitious agenda, but that requires the participation of the countries and individuals who are most affected by climate change and will live with the consequences the longest. As I said, the Opposition will not oppose this draft order and its broad principles, but I hope the Minister will be able to answer my detailed questions.

Tigray

Stephen Doughty Excerpts

Wednesday 8th September 2021 Westminster Hall

[Stephen Doughty (Cardiff South and Penarth) (Lab/Co-op)]

It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Mr Davies. I thank my hon. Friend the Member for Rotherham (Sarah Champion), the Chair of the International Development Committee, for securing this debate and for the work she and her Committee have done on this matter. I also thank everyone else who has contributed today, and particularly my hon. Friends the Members for Vauxhall (Florence Eshalomi), for Putney (Fleur Anderson), for Dulwich and West Norwood (Helen Hayes), for Sheffield Central (Paul Blomfield), for Stockport (Navendu Mishra) and others. I also want to thank all other Members, because what has been clear today is the level of concern; the comments made by the right hon. Member for Sutton Coldfield (Mr Mitchell) and the hon. Members for Tewkesbury (Mr Robertson), for Congleton (Fiona Bruce), for Glasgow North (Patrick Grady) and for Strangford (Jim Shannon) have all illustrated the horrific reports we are getting from Tigray and the wider concerns of this House.

As the SNP spokesman, the hon. Member for Stirling (Alyn Smith) said, this is not a party political issue; this is about concern for the people of Ethiopia and Tigray, and about our wider humanitarian and human rights responsibilities. That is why the Labour Front Benchers and I have repeatedly raised this issue with Ministers and had many discussions with the Minister, as well as with the Ethiopian Government and other parties directly.

I commend all those humanitarian and human rights agencies doing remarkable work on the ground and, as has also been mentioned, the journalists reporting in very difficult circumstances, whose reporting is so crucial for us to understand what is going on in situations such as this. Attempts to intimidate and threaten them have been deeply disturbing.

I have been absolutely horrified by the allegations of abuse on all sides: the reports of ethnic cleansing, religious persecution, attacks on women and children, torture and war crimes—some of this stuff is simply horrific. As ever in these situations it is the civilians who suffer. The tragedy is that we are yet to see full human rights investigations and actions on those who have perpetrated these crimes, we have yet to see full humanitarian access and we have yet to see a sense of humanity break through the fog and the horrors of this war.

I share the concerns expressed by many Members about this becoming a forgotten crisis—we have all been deeply concerned about what is going on in Afghanistan, but we must recognise that crises and tragedies are happening in so many other places, whether that is in Yemen, across the Sahel, in Ethiopia or the disturbing events we have seen in Guinea in recent days. We as a House and, I hope, the Government are keeping a full awareness of all these situations and taking action wherever appropriate.

I want to touch on some of the comments that have been made. My hon. Friend the Member for Dulwich and West Norwood spoke very powerfully in the Adjournment debate earlier this year about the sexual violence we have seen, which I will come on to later. The shocking figure that an estimated 10,000 rapes had happened is simply horrific. All sides have been accused of war crimes and crimes against humanity. The Secretary-General described the situation in Tigray as “hellish”, and that very much bears out what we have heard today. Thousands have already died; 4.4 million people are now in phase 3 or above of the integrated food insecurity phase classification, with 1.7 million facing food insecurity in the Afar and Amhara regions as well, and 400,000 people in famine-like conditions. We all remember that tragedy of the early 1980s and the consequences of human-made conflict for civilians, which led to absolutely devastating famine.

It is very important that we focus on the experiences of ordinary people living in Tigray, especially women and girls who are facing the consequences of this conflict. The Amnesty International report on sexual violence was particularly damning about the sadistic brutality being inflicted on women by people on all sides of this conflict, with rape and sexual violence used systematically to torture and dehumanise women and, in some cases, children; women being kept as sex slaves; women being subjected to genital mutilation—an act that is, horrifically, often conducted in front of family members to impose further psychological damage. Of course, women and girls are at risk even if they survive these attacks, because only 53% of health facilities have clinical capacity for management of rape and sexual violence, and only one in 10 health facilities overall are functioning, many of which are controlled by—or at least access to them is controlled by—those who have been committing crimes.

In the Amnesty International report, the father of a 10-year-old child who was raped in November 2020—I will not go into the details as they are simply too horrific to read out—said

“he was not able to get his daughter—who suffered terrible physical and psychological damage—to the hospital for four and a half months”.

He said he wanted to take her to the hospital in one location, but the armed forces who committed the abuses were administering it, so he had to seek support at another location, where she did in the end receive medical help, but only after months of trauma. That is utterly horrific. Women often have no way of receiving help for the consequences of these actions.

The area is also experiencing wider famine conditions, because of the impact of locusts, climate change, covid and other diseases. The pressures of this current conflict come on top of all those other issues, because this was already an area with significant challenges. In terms of the wider humanitarian situation, 5.2 million out of 6 million people living in Tigray are now in need of humanitarian assistance and 13.6 million people are estimated to be food insecure across Ethiopia as a result of the conflict, as well as the wider circumstances. According to OCHA,

“only 25% to 50% of the normal cereal production will be available this year”.

I will ask some questions about the situation facing people who have been internally displaced and refugees. There are now 2 million internally displaced people according to USAID, with nearly 50,000 refugees arriving in South Sudan since November 2021. There is a spill-over of internally displaced people into the Afar and Amhara regions as well. We have heard from many Members today about the challenges of getting humanitarian assistance into the region. One of the reports from OCHA said that only 10% of the 3,500 cargo trucks carrying lifesaving materials had been able to enter the region. The USAID chief, Samantha Power, was very clear when she said:

“This shortage is not because food is unavailable, but because the…Government is obstructing humanitarian aid and personnel, including land convoys and air access”.

I am interested in the UK Government’s comments on her remarks.

There are reports that EDF soldiers forcibly entered World Food Programme and UNICEF offices and destroyed communications equipment belonging to those two agencies. What does the Minister have to say about those recent events, and who does he view as responsible for them?

I mentioned the refugee situation, and I am particularly concerned for the 24,000 Eritrean refugees. Because of the previous conflict, there are many refugees in the region already. The Mai Aini and Adi Harush camps in the north-western zone have been cut off from assistance and apparently have not been reached since mid-July. It has been reported that both those camps have run out of food and the refugees are facing violence and intimidation by armed groups. What assessment has been made of the situation of refugees and IDPs, the numbers, the needs and the attacks? There were disturbing reports of people being forcibly relocated from refugee camps earlier in this crisis. What has happened to them? What assessment has been made? What has been the involvement of Eritrean or other irregular forces in attacks in that region?

In the last couple of days we have seen some pretty horrendous information from the UN about the Semera-Abala corridor, which has been inaccessible since 22 August, and that 200,000 litres of fuel are required for the humanitarian response, which is not available. Cash, needed to pay for services locally, has not come in the levels needed to provide those services. UNICEF reported that 100,000 people face severe or acute malnutrition this year.

The acting humanitarian co-ordinator in Tigray, Grant Leaity, said

“all parties to the conflict must allow and facilitate the rapid and unimpeded passage of impartial humanitarian relief to avert this…catastrophe.”

He is very stark in what he says about risks of famine and significant levels of mortality. We heard from colleagues about reports of 150 people allegedly having died directly of starvation. That report is from the Tigrayan People’s Liberation Front and cannot be independently verified, but it tallies with the figures we have heard from the UN and other agencies, which have spoken of 400,000 people already living in famine-like conditions.

I will end by asking the Minister some specific questions. Yesterday, the WFP announced that it faces a funding gap of $426 million for its operations across Ethiopia, to meet the needs of 12 million people in 2021. The US increased its funding to the WFP by $149 million in June. I wonder what the UK will do specifically to support agencies such as the WFP. We have also heard about women’s programmes that have been cut.

We have been clear that the decision to cut the aid commitment from 0.7% to 0.5% was completely wrong, and that is exemplified in situations such as this. I know that the Minister does not want to answer this question directly, but I will ask him again: is our total support to Ethiopia going up or down this year? He has spoken about giving £42.7 million, plus £5 million for refugees in Sudan—obviously that is welcome, with the focus on Tigray—but if the total support for Ethiopia is going down, that money is being diverted from other needs. There are many needs elsewhere in Ethiopia, so that is deeply concerning. I worry that we will find ourselves in a situation similar to Afghanistan, where cuts simply have to be reversed. We need to be putting resource in because the needs are so great.

I have mentioned access issues. Have the Government raised the road access issues for fuel and food trucks in recent days? There seem to have been particular problems in the last few weeks. The Security Council report mentioned that Turkey and Sudan have been attempting to act as mediators, and other regional powers have also been attempting to act as mediators in the conflict. What is the Minister’s assessment of those regional and international efforts? Is the UK offering any particular diplomatic and good-offices support to attempt to reach a peaceful settlement between the parties?

I understand that the Foreign Secretary spoke to Prime Minister Abiy in early August. Has there been further contact with Prime Minister Abiy, Ethiopian Ministers and other parties to the conflict since that time? I welcome that the Foreign Secretary did that, and I am sure that the Minister himself has been in contact with people, but it would be useful to understand who and when. Have we identified anybody for Magnitsky-style sanctions yet? The US Department of the Treasury imposed sanctions on the chief of staff of the Eritrean defence forces for alleged crimes in Ethiopia. Have we issued any sanctions? I know that the Minister will not speak about potential sanctions, but have we issued any? What role have we been playing at the Human Rights Council? What discussions have we had with the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights?

We have a huge responsibility. We have a particular relationship, friendship and history with Ethiopia through our aid programme, and the world has a responsibility to protect civilians in such crises. This House and the British public have a keen interest in the situation in Ethiopia; we all want to see a prosperous, secure and inclusive Ethiopia, but sadly that seems very far from the present situation.

[Geraint Davies (in the Chair)]

The Minister has about 15 minutes if he allows two minutes for the Chair of the International Development Committee to respond. With luck, there might even be time for a couple of interventions. Over to you, Minister.

--- Later in debate ---

[James Duddridge]

It is a good thought. It is something that we are doing and will do. I will certainly discuss with our envoy for freedom of religion or belief, my hon. Friend the Member for Congleton (Fiona Bruce), how to make it as effective as possible. The networks are really useful to validate informally before we see what is happening on the ground.

[Stephen Doughty]

On the point about communications, the Minister is aware that our own CDC and also Vodafone have invested substantial amounts in the new Ethiopia telecommunications partnership. Opening up telecommunications to people in Ethiopia is obviously a good thing for all the people, but, given the issues with money transfers, internet access and telecommunications being cut off, is there not an incongruity here? What will we do through those investments to ensure that we get telecommunications open in Tigray properly?

[James Duddridge]

Various Members have talked about the size of the population of 120 million. My hon. Friend the Member for Tewkesbury (Mr Robertson), the able chair of the all-party group, has talked about a nation of optimism. This is one of the gems at the heart of our east African strategy. It would be a bastion of stability if we could build out and not have to resolve problems. Telecommunications is an essential good. It allows people to trade and allows cash transfers, so the investment is right. It is a long-term investment that we have talked about for years and will be deliverable going forward. It does seem incongruous to talk of Ethiopia as a place of optimism and investment, but we simply have to get back to that place when we get beyond this because that is where development happens.

There are echoes of the ’80s and Live Aid—we did a brilliant job, and Ethiopia has done a brilliant job in bringing itself up. When there has been a natural crisis, it has needed help, but it has also been able to help itself. We need to reset and get back to that position, but we are so far from that point at the moment.

Global Britain: Human Rights and Climate Change

Stephen Doughty Excerpts

Tuesday 7th September 2021 Westminster Hall

[Stephen Doughty (Cardiff South and Penarth) (Lab/Co-op)]

It is a pleasure to serve with you in the Chair, Mr Betts. I thank the hon. Member for Arfon (Hywel Williams) for securing this important debate—diolch yn fawr iawn—which is, as has been said, appropriately timed, following some of the worst years of environmental catastrophes and the unequivocal evidence from the IPCC ahead of the crucial COP meeting. The hon. Gentleman will know how seriously the Welsh Government take these issues and how they are incorporating them at the heart of their policies.

Let us remind ourselves of the two key facts in the IPCC report. The last decade was hotter than any period in the last 125,000 years, and scientists can now link specific weather events to human-made climate change.

I commend the speeches made by a range of hon. Members, in particular my hon. Friends the Members for Birkenhead (Mick Whitley), for Pontypridd (Alex Davies-Jones) and for York Central (Rachael Maskell). There was also a typically passionate speech from the hon. Member for Strangford (Jim Shannon).

Human rights were rightly referenced in the 2015 Paris agreement, because the fortunes of all aspects of life, including that of humanity, are inevitably intertwined with the functioning of ecosystems on this small blue dot, whether that is access to food and land or to water and sanitation, or the prospects of women and girls, right through to the implications of conflict driven by climate change. In 2015, the UN Environment Programme executive director described climate change as one of the greatest threats to human rights in a generation. If global Britain is to mean anything—we have seen the concept starkly drawn into question in recent weeks—we have to ensure that climate sustainability is at the heart of all of our international policies, from trade, through business and development assistance, to our defence and our diplomacy. That is why it was so disappointing to see such little reference to it in the recent Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office human rights report.

I have just a few examples from recent weeks—we have heard many today. Just a few weeks ago, Haiti endured another devastating earthquake, and on top of that, the impact of a hit from Tropical Storm Grace. Thirteen thousand Rohingya refugees were forced to relocate after intense rainfall and landslides in Bangladesh. We heard from my hon. Friend the Member for Birkenhead about the situation in Madagascar and potentially one of the first climate famines, with families forced to survive on eating a handful of insects. In Ethiopia and South Sudan—we will discuss the situation in Tigray tomorrow—hundreds of thousands face starvation, with the implications of climate change coming on top of conflict in the region.

Climate change not only physically threatens lives, but potentially unwinds decades of progress in other areas, such as education, infrastructure, access to clean water, food, sanitation and healthcare. Five hundred million people rely on ecosystem services worldwide as a source of income and to put food on their tables. The total number of people affected by natural disasters over the past decade has tripled to 2 billion and the WHO speaks of the impact on infectious diseases and an additional 250,000 deaths.

For some countries, particularly small island states, sea level rises could threaten their very existence. That applies in our British family, in our overseas territories. The British Virgin Islands experienced a devastating hit from Hurricane Irma, which cost £2.3 billion in 2017, with public schools destroyed and others rendered unusable. Yet, because of Brexit, they have lost €7 million in funding from the EU global climate change alliance plus and are yet to get answers from the Government on how that will be replaced. I hope the Minister can answer that question. What role will our overseas territories and our wider family play at the upcoming COP? What representation will they have?

Many hon. Members referenced migration as a result of climate change. The Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre reported that more than three times as many displacements happened in the years 2008 to 2018 as a result of environmental disasters than from conflict. Let us not forget that that is a period that includes the disasters in Syria and north Africa. If what we are seeing from climate change dwarfs that, we should all be deeply concerned.

Climate change is of course a threat to the amazing progress made in the last decades on the rights of women and girls, because environmental hazards that lead to crises often mean girls dropping out of school to help their families to engage in the daily search for drinking water, as well as other aspects such as forced marriage.

In the face of the climate emergency and the impacts that we have heard about in powerful speeches today, it is deeply disappointing that the FCDO has been cutting its support for key programmes as part of the official development assistance cuts. That has been criticised by the director of the International Institute for Environment and Development, not just for the cuts themselves but for the impact they will have on our diplomatic position at the COP conference. Here are two examples: the Plastic Pollution Free Galapagos programme and the Green Economic Growth programme in Papua, which had been described as highly effective, have been cut. That is absolutely absurd. Will the Minister set out how much of the cuts to ODA has hit programmes with climate change as a key or majority component? Conversely, how much funding is still going into fossil fuel projects, directly or via other agencies?

The Government have yet to come forward with how they will allocate or spend the £11.6 billion that has been promised. Can the Minister give us some details? How will that be scheduled over the next few years? What discussions has the Minister been having with the Home Office and other colleagues about the implications on migration changes and refugee flows as a result of climate change?

The Labour party would put human rights at the heart of our foreign policy, and climate change at the heart of all our policies. As has been said, those two things are absolutely intertwined. We would seek the action needed to tackle them.

[Mr Clive Betts (in the Chair)]

Will the Minister please allow the Member who tabled the debate a minute to make some final remarks? That will be appreciated. I call the Minister.

Oral Answers to Questions

Stephen Doughty Excerpts

Tuesday 20th July 2021 Commons Chamber

[Mr Speaker]

I call the shadow Minister.

[Stephen Doughty (Cardiff South and Penarth) (Lab/Co-op)]

I welcome the Minister’s response. The allegations of rape and sexual violence have shocked the world. I also welcome the recent comments by our permanent representative to the United Nations about the shocking attacks on humanitarian workers, including those in recent days. Unfortunately, we have heard increasingly inflammatory language from Prime Minister Abiy, and in recent days fighting involving Tigrayan forces has allegedly spread to the Afar region. With famine, violence and so many needs increasing, will the Minister confirm whether our total support to Ethiopia will increase or be cut this year?

[James Duddridge]

We are committed to helping the community, and our support overall will of course increase, but I think the hon. Gentleman is talking not about support but about finance. Actually, what is critical is our focus on resolving the conflict, because only then can we get humanitarian partners in to deliver the aid. Aid convoys have come under attack and 600 vehicles are needed each week, so without a diplomatic effort to quell that conflict—for the Eritreans to remove themselves from Ethiopia and to quell the types of additional conflicts that the hon. Gentleman is talking about—any more money is not going to get through.

Official Development Assistance and the British Council

Stephen Doughty Excerpts

Wednesday 30th June 2021 Commons Chamber

[Stephen Doughty (Cardiff South and Penarth) (Lab/Co-op)]

I thank my hon. Friend the Member for Rotherham (Sarah Champion), who chairs the International Development Committee, and the Backbench Business Committee for securing this debate, and all Members across the House who supported the application. It has been a very good debate, with some powerful contributions from across the House. It has been good to be back in this place actually having a proper debate, with people engaging and asking questions. We hope to see more of that in this place as we go forward.

We heard powerful comments from the Chair of the Committee about the lack of transparency over these cuts, their public financial illiteracy and their impact.

The former Prime Minister, the right hon. Member for Maidenhead (Mrs May), spoke powerfully about not looking at things in silos, how things such as modern slavery and girls’ education are intimately connected, and the impact of these cuts on the UK’s clout on the world stage.

The Chair of the Foreign Affairs Committee, the hon. Member for Tonbridge and Malling (Tom Tugendhat), said that these cuts will undermine Britain’s bilateral ties and are a mistake when we should be making an impact around the world.

My hon. Friend the Member for Bethnal Green and Bow (Rushanara Ali) spoke about the impact of the cuts on food insecurity when famine is on the rise, and on the joint economic and health crises that the world faces. I will return to that point.

The former International Development Secretary, the right hon. Member for Sutton Coldfield (Mr Mitchell), made an extraordinarily powerful and persuasive speech. He was absolutely right to say that the Government are, in fact, the ones rebelling—against their own manifesto commitments. He spoke about the absurdity of cutting organisations such as UNICEF and UNFPA, and the work on neglected tropical diseases, at a time when that work is more crucial than ever.

The hon. Member for Basildon and Billericay (Mr Baron) made a powerful case about the absurd closures that the British Council now faces, leaving it £10 million short; my hon. Friend the Member for Aberavon (Stephen Kinnock) spoke powerfully about that issue the other day.

My right hon. Friend the Member for Birmingham, Hodge Hill (Liam Byrne) talked about the incoherence of the cuts, and the right hon. Member for Haltemprice and Howden (Mr Davis) spoke about their stark impact on our fellow human beings in some of the worst humanitarian catastrophes, and said that polling shows that the British public want us to support action in those circumstances.

The hon. Member for West Worcestershire (Harriett Baldwin), who is a former Minister, said that the most powerful poll that would matter in this place would be having a meaningful vote, as Mr Speaker and as so many Members across the House have requested. That meaningful vote is not tonight, despite what the Prime Minister and the Leader of the House tried to suggest the other day.

The hon. Member for Mid Derbyshire (Mrs Latham) spoke about the powerful and damaging impact that the cuts will have on women, family planning, water and sanitation, and my hon. Friend the Member for Bristol East (Kerry McCarthy) said that the cuts were morally reprehensible.

I was proud to have my hon. Friend the Member for Luton North (Sarah Owen) in my team for a while. She made a powerful and passionate speech, making it clear that poverty is political and this is about political choices—not party political choices, but choices that this House should be making on issues of such national and international importance.

The former Secretary of State for Scotland, the right hon. Member for Dumfriesshire, Clydesdale and Tweeddale (David Mundell), spoke about the impact of the cuts on nutrition—the 80% cuts to malnutrition programmes. In the other place, my noble Friend Lord Collins has been speaking passionately about this issue for so long, and I know that he works with the right hon. Gentleman on it.

My hon. Friend the Member for Hornsey and Wood Green (Catherine West) talked about the impact on global health research. How absurd to be cutting global health research, given the benefits not just of finding a vaccine for covid, but also of the work on malaria, HIV and neglected tropical diseases. The role that British universities and British health science are playing in that research is now being put at risk again, and that is absolutely absurd.

The hon. Member for Tiverton and Honiton (Neil Parish) spoke about the tiny amount that this money represents compared with the total borrowing that we have seen, for example, to deal with the covid pandemic. He said that we have to look at wider health systems globally to deliver beyond vaccines, including on issues such as clean water.

Again, another Government Member, the right hon. Member for North Thanet (Sir Roger Gale), spoke incredibly powerful. He asked why on earth we are cutting pandemic-preventing programmes and spoke about the literally life or death decisions that are now being made.

My hon. Friend the Member for Stockport (Navendu Mishra) made a typically strong speech about the job cuts at the British Council, and the hon. Member for Totnes (Anthony Mangnall) gave a fantastic and incredibly well informed speech about the practical implications of the cuts. He rightly challenged some of his colleagues, including the hon. Member for Rother Valley (Alexander Stafford), on the impact that the will have on the Commonwealth; these cuts are going to have an impact on Commonwealth countries and on countries that want to join the Commonwealth, such as South Sudan. They will have an impact on places such as Rwanda, on which the right hon. Member for Sutton Coldfield ran a fantastic programme over many years, which many of his colleagues attended.

The hon. Member for Southend West (Sir David Amess) rightly said that the British Council represents some of the best of Britain—why on earth are we cutting it? And the right hon. Member for Gainsborough (Sir Edward Leigh) absolutely nailed it on the head: British people are kind and humanitarian. Why on earth we would want to make cuts when we see the scenes from places such as Yemen? I have friends working out there at the moment for the United Nations and Médecins Sans Frontières—British citizens out there on the frontlines, taking that action. How on earth are we cutting such provision at this time? It is unbelievable.

The Chair of the Defence Committee, the right hon. Member for Bournemouth East (Mr Ellwood), gave a very powerful speech. He rightly pointed out the damage to Britain’s strategic interests in the world. That is space that will be taken by others—our adversaries, those who wish this country ill and have a very different vision of how this world should be. Why on earth we are retreating when they are advancing is beyond me.

The hon. Member for Bury South (Christian Wakeford) gave an absolutely excellent speech.

[Christian Wakeford]

I intend to be helpful, but also to correct my own record: although I paid tribute to my hon. Friend the Member for Totnes (Anthony Mangnall), I failed to pay tribute to the hon. Member for Rotherham (Sarah Champion), not only for introducing this important debate, but for all the work that she has been doing on preventing sexual violence against women across the globe.

[Stephen Doughty]

I completely concur. Drawing on what the hon. Gentleman said, I want to be absolutely clear that the Opposition believe that global Britain can and must be a force for good in this world, doing our fair share and our moral duty but also acting in our common and national interest, particularly given the rapidly changing and volatile global power dynamics.

I am proud to have worked at the former Department for International Development and with some of our leading British humanitarian organisations. I have seen the incredible work that our aid and our organisations have done around the world; I pay tribute to all of them. I am deeply saddened that they are now having to scrabble around to deal with the cuts, which are being introduced in such an irresponsible way. I will give two contrasting examples.

We have done incredibly positive work on vaccines. I welcome the incredible work of our Oxford and AstraZeneca teams in developing that vaccine and the fact that we are delivering vaccines around the world, although far more are needed, as we said at the time of the G7. However, those vaccines can be delivered effectively only when they have strong health systems behind them—when we have surveillance, when we are looking at genomic sequencing, and when we are supporting nurses, doctors and those who put those vaccines in arms around the world. Doing the one without the other is not enough.

We have just done fantastic work supporting the elections in Somaliland, which was mentioned earlier. The Minister knows of my strong connections with Somaliland; I declare my interests. There is fantastic work supporting democracy and development there, but I want to see it go further—I want to see a British Council office opened in Hargeisa. That seems pretty unlikely, given the cuts to the British Council across the world at a time when we should be increasing our influence in countries where we have strong historical ties that are also of key strategic importance.

The impact of the pandemic is absolutely immense, in this country and globally. Let us be clear: not just poverty is on the rise, but all the other misery associated with it. The World Health Organisation reports that 70% of surveyed countries have had significant decreases in the number of routine immunisations other than for covid. Some 80 million infants are at risk of missing vaccinations for measles, polio and diphtheria. We will see 6.3 million more cases of TB, adding 1.4 million deaths from that terrible disease. It is likely that 50 million children in Pakistan and Afghanistan will now not receive a polio vaccine. STOPAIDS has stated that 11.5 million people have now had inconsistent access to crucial antiretroviral treatments and therapies, which has put their lives at risk—as you know, Mr Deputy Speaker, I do much work as chair of the all-party parliamentary group on HIV and AIDS.

Gender-based violence is on the rise, with an additional 31 million cases predicted. Some 9.7 million students are at risk of dropping out of school, and 11 million girls are at risk of not coming back to school because of covid. The UN estimates that 132 million people could fall into food insecurity and famine. That will only be exacerbated by the climate crisis that we already know is having an impact and is coming.

For those reasons, not one of the other G7 nations has decreased its official development assistance. In fact, most are increasing their spending, including France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Canada and Finland. The hon. Member for North East Derbyshire (Lee Rowley) gave a long list of countries; I could give a long list of countries that are doing the exact opposite of what we are doing at the moment and that look aghast at it.

Let us look at one of the situations we face. The Minister knows of the very serious situation in Ethiopia, which I have raised with him. There have been some very volatile developments in the past few days. Millions are at risk from famine and conflict and there are some truly horrific reports, yet we do not have clarity on what is happening with UK funding to Ethiopia at this critical time. The Minister spoke the other day about diversion of funds, but we are not clear whether UK funding will be increasing in response to the demand or decreasing. I hope that he can clarify that.

I note that the Minister has a Ghanaian flag on his mask. What will happen to programmes in Ghana? An organisation called Tools for Self Reliance has told us that it is losing a three-year programme that would have helped 1,000 women in Ghana, because of the cuts being introduced by the Minister’s Department. We see the LGBT+ community under attack in Ghana. What will happen to our human rights programmes supporting marginalised communities across the world? What will happen, for example, to the crucial replenishments on global slavery that the former Prime Minister, the right hon. Member for Maidenhead, mentioned? I will also mention the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria. Will we keep our commitments going forward?

We have heard again and again from those on both sides of the House about the damage that these cuts will bring, and I want to commend those who have spoken out. It is always difficult to speak out against your own Government and your own party. I have not been afraid to do that when I think we have got things wrong, as the Minister will know. But it is right to do that, and this is Parliament at its best. That is why we need to have a vote on these issues: these voices need to be heard.

I want to talk briefly about the public financial illiteracy of this. The Independent Commission for Aid Impact, set up by the right hon. Member for Sutton Coldfield, has rightly pointed out the absurd way in which the cuts were brought about. One paragraph from its report paints a perfect picture. It states:

“Value for money risks were further exacerbated by the speed at which the Star Chambers process took place…aid-spending departments were given five to seven working days to prepare proposals for the 30% budget cuts. The proposals were reviewed, revised and approved by ministers over four virtual meetings totalling just seven hours. One of the officials we interviewed described it as ‘like doing a handbrake turn with an oil tanker’.”

That is not a sensible way to be handling hard-earned taxpayers’ money or the public finances of this country. Whatever we think about the amounts, that is not the way we should be doing things. It is simply absurd.

We have also heard about the contradictions relating to other areas of international policy, including defence, trade and diplomacy. It seems absolutely absurd, at a time when British troops are on the frontline in the Sahel working with our allies to defeat jihadist extremists, that we would cut aid from that region, which will only fall into further crisis in the months and years to come. That is absolutely absurd.

Lastly, I want to turn to the British Council. It has rightly been referred to as one of the most vital components of UK soft power, working in over 100 countries and reaching 80 million people a year with arts, culture and education programmes. For much of the world, the British Council provides the first direct relationship with this country and with our values, our culture and our language. It attracts students, workers, future business leaders and even future leaders. That represents incredible soft power, and incredible relationships and partnerships. The hon. Member for Basildon and Billericay spoke powerfully about this, and he has also said in the media that reducing the British Council’s international presence and retreating on the global stage will do damage to our soft power, which is not compatible with the Government’s foreign policy priorities as set out in the integrated review. I urge the Government to think again.

I want to conclude by asking the Minister a few crucial questions. He says that we are going to reverse this and go back to 0.7%. Well, when are we going to do that? Answer that question, Minister. When will we get transparency on the individual cuts to individual programmes in individual countries? We have put down parliamentary question after parliamentary question, but they have been completely blocked by Ministers refusing to answer and refusing to give clarity. Many countries and organisations are unable to plan or to think forward because the Government are not clear about what is happening.

My hon. Friend the Member for Birmingham, Edgbaston (Preet Kaur Gill), the shadow International Trade Secretary, has written today to the Foreign Secretary asking for clarity on a whole series of measures and on when that information will be made available to the House. When will we have that meaningful vote that the Speaker rightly called for and that Members across the House have called for today? It is crucial that we have that vote so that the House can have its say.

In conclusion, let us be clear that this is a double whammy. Our aid would have gone down anyway because it is a percentage, so, as the economy shrank, the amount we were giving would have been reduced. But the Government have doubled down on that; they want to go even further and do even more damage. This is morally wrong, and it is financially illiterate. It is damaging to our soft power reputation while others are on the rise. It is reversing at a critical time for the world, and it is out of step with the House, with those on the Government’s own side and with the public, according to the most recent polls. Britain is and can be so much better than this. This is one of the things that could unite us in this House and unite us as a country at a time when critical threats and challenges are facing the world and facing all human beings, whether they are British or from other countries. I urge the Government to think again on these cuts.

--- Later in debate ---

[James Duddridge]

The early announcements were part of existing ODA—they are repurposing. The 100 million doses are classified as ODA and will be in addition to the £10 billion ODA point that we had. So the most recent money is additionality, although my right hon. Friend the Member for Wokingham (John Redwood) made the strong point that there are a lot of areas that we do not count, partly because of the rules.

My hon. Friend the Member for Mid Derbyshire (Mrs Latham) talked of girls’ education, and we are increasing our pledge to the Global Partnership for Education by 15%, to £430 million, which is our largest pledge ever. Our G7 partners promised £2.7 billion to this cause, and the Prime Minister is hosting the global education summit with Kenyatta here in the UK in July.

Our fourth priority is humanitarian preparedness and response, where we will spend more than £900 million, although my opposite number, the hon. Member for Cardiff South and Penarth (Stephen Doughty) rightly raises concerns about places such as Ethiopia and working out where we spend the money. Yes, we should get humanitarian access and we need to deliver that access—I made reference to that in an earlier debate in this place —but bringing peace and security to that country is the most critical thing, which helps the fusion with diplomacy.

[Stephen Doughty]

rose—

[James Duddridge]

I am not going to give way yet, but I will come back to the hon. Gentleman if there is time.

Our fifth priority was science and technology. The sixth one was open societies and conflict resolution, which drives some of these problems. All too often we spend our money on problems that could have been solved early on. The final priority is economic development and growing GDP per capita in the developing world so that they pay tax and get functioning systems as we would have. In that light, we are supporting the continental free trade area, which will drive growth in countries, and we are expanding our diplomatic network.

My hon. Friend the Member for Tonbridge and Malling (Tom Tugendhat), who chairs the Foreign Affairs Committee, mentioned Niger, Chad and Djibouti, all of which I will be hoping to visit in the near future, and a number of people mentioned the large number of multilateral bodies we are and will continue to be pre-eminent in.

The British Council is the second leg of this debate. We are strongly committed to the British Council. We have allocated more than £600 million since the pandemic to secure its future, which includes a 27% increase on funding this year. I know hon. Members wanted more, but in the context of an aid cut the British Council has done incredibly well out of the settlement, because of the value people see in it—we have seen that across the board.

Let me address some more specific comments. My right hon. Friend the Member for Maidenhead (Mrs May) talked about the linkages. One thing an integrated Department allows is for us to look at the linkages between modern slavery and girls’ education, which is the example she chose. She criticised us for operating in silos, but, again, bringing together the Departments has helped. A number of Members expressed concerns about a loss of expertise; actually, changes to the total operating costs ratio—a bit of a technicality—mean that we can do more in-house, which should help.

An hon. Member asked about our staff in Abercrombie House; we will be increasing the number of staff in Abercrombie House and in Scotland.

My hon. Friend the Member for Tonbridge and Malling criticised us for making admirals ambassadors and honourable consuls captains. I get his point, but we are not merging with the Ministry of Defence. I could talk about some of the best people in my team—for example, the director general, Africa was an economist, focused on aid, was an ambassador and is now back here doing a cross-Whitehall job. I could go on with many examples of people across Whitehall.

The right hon. Member for Birmingham, Hodge Hill (Liam Byrne) asked us to support the special drawing rights. I have spoken to the right hon. Gentleman about the matter and I have said openly that we are lobbying for that at World Bank-IMF meetings. We support the recycling of SDRs to the developing world. The right hon. Gentleman also mentioned IDA replenishment, which we support and are working on.

The hon. Member for Oxford West and Abingdon (Layla Moran), who is no longer in her place, mentioned funding for a specific project and felt there would be adverse effects if it was cancelled because of a new variant. I would very much like more information on that from her.

My right hon. Friend the Member for South West Wiltshire (Dr Murrison) is an ex-Minister and clearly understands the dynamics of having to make difficult decisions, particularly in respect of balancing aid issues with education and law and order. He asked about the logistics of COVAX; I would love to draw on his resource, but we are also working with Africa CDC.

My hon. Friend the Member for Rother Valley (Alexander Stafford) offered an equally passionate but slightly different view from that expressed by the hon. Member for Rotherham, but it was good to see them both get praise.

My hon. Friend the Member for North East Derbyshire (Lee Rowley) made a very thoughtful speech that challenged everyone.

As ever, my hon. Friend the Member for Southend West (Sir David Amess) made very good points. Given his penchant for publicity and flair, I have no doubt that he will be on the front page of the Southend Echo tomorrow, not me.

The least said about the speech by my right hon. Friend the Member for Staffordshire Moorlands (Karen Bradley) the better, really; certain things should stay in private.

My right hon. Friend the Member for Bournemouth East (Mr Ellwood) made a deeply thoughtful speech that he said was from the defence perspective but actually ranged much more widely beyond that.

I heard an impressive speech from my hon. Friend the Member for Bury South (Christian Wakeford), whom I have not heard speak before. He went from 10 minutes to eight minutes to three minutes and back to eight minutes.

I heard my first speech from an Alba Member of Parliament. I noted down initially that the speech from the hon. Member for East Lothian (Kenny MacAskill) was kind, thoughtful and well informed; by the end I put “ranting”. But it was all the better for it and when in future I see his name on the annunciator, I am going to rush into the Chamber.

Ethiopia

Stephen Doughty Excerpts

Monday 14th June 2021 Commons Chamber

[James Duddridge]

I thank my hon. Friend. This is indeed one of our largest aid programmes. He asked whether the UN and the AU could do more. Yes, always, but we are working with our UN partners very carefully. I have spoken extensively to the new political affairs, peace and security commissioner, Bankole Adeoye, about this issue. Sadly, I can confirm the World Food Programme’s analysis of famine-like conditions—IPC5. Clearly, we need to do more. My hon. Friend asked whether we could do more, and I can announce this afternoon that the UK Government will provide a further £16.7 million of aid from our regular programme elsewhere in Ethiopia and divert it towards the conflict in Tigray. He mentioned NGO access. That has improved since the early days of the conflict, but NGOs still do not have full access, and the land in Tigray is controlled by different combatants, which makes it even more difficult. He talked of hospitals. Hospital supplies were virtually at zero at one point, and from what we have seen from our five visits from the embassy and Her Majesty’s Government, only around 74 of the 264 hospitals are operating in any way, shape or form.

My hon. Friend also mentioned the Eritrean troops. They have no place in the Ethiopian conflict, and they have been asked to leave. They should leave, and we will work with all partners to ensure that that happens. Rather chillingly, he also asked whether the conflict could spread. We are concerned, with the election coming up and with the pre-existing instabilities in the Oromo region and the Amhara region on the Sudanese border, not to mention the issue of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance dam, that there are a number of flashpoints, so it is important that we deal with this conflict as it stands at the moment and ensure that it does not spread further into the region and Ethiopia more generally.

[Stephen Doughty (Cardiff South and Penarth) (Lab/Co-op) [V]]

I thank the hon. Member for Tewkesbury (Mr Robertson) for his strong words, and the Minister for his frank response. We have also repeatedly raised this horrendous situation. Indeed, I raised it with the Prime Minister in this House eight months ago, but tragically since then we have seen a worsening and deepening of the crisis. As has been said, Ethiopia has made huge strides forward on poverty, and our aid, trade and friendly partnership has been hugely important. We all want to see a prosperous and democratic Ethiopia, but the war and famine of the 1980s are seared into the memories of the British people and the world, so it is especially heartbreaking to see the current famine and to see civilians being hacked to death, rape, the destruction of food and health capacity, tens of thousands displaced and hundreds of thousands cut off from assistance. We must now speak forcefully and frankly, and most crucially take action in the face of the growing and incontrovertible evidence. We have a clear responsibility to act and to protect and assist Ethiopian civilians.

The UN human rights chief has spoken of potential war crimes and crimes against humanity, and the G7 spoke this weekend of a humanitarian tragedy, with potentially hundreds of thousands living in famine conditions, so has the Prime Minister spoken to Prime Minister Abiy or any of the other key players, not least following the G7 this weekend? If not, when will he do so? What action are we taking at the Security Council and the Human Rights Council with the AU to bring about an end to the conflict, full humanitarian access and a full independent investigation into the allegations of human rights abuses?

There is clear evidence of a serious food crisis, as the UK envoy and the UN have said, with huge numbers of people at risk of famine and food emergency, so this is the wrong time for us to be slashing humanitarian aid, as the House has made repeatedly clear. The Minister mentioned £16.7 million being diverted. However, the UN humanitarian chief pointed out last week that the UK had provided $108 million to Ethiopia last year, but that this year we have reported only $6 million. Can the Minister clarify that, and tell us when we will be urgently increasing our total assistance? I share his concerns about Eritrean troops. Have any actually left, or are they still there? It has been claimed that they have left, but I have yet to see any evidence of that. Will he also consider targeted sanctions and measures against any individual, from whatever side, who is found to have committed human rights abuses, war crimes or other atrocities?

[James Duddridge]

I thank the hon. Gentleman for his long-standing interest in this issue, through oral questions in the House and through parliamentary questions as well. We share the desire for a return to a democratic and prosperous Ethiopia. That was at the centre of the east African strategy, and we will work more closely with the United Nations in particular, and with UN organisations and local organisations, to ensure that all perpetrators are brought to account. The primary relationship with Prime Minister Abiy is with the Foreign Secretary, who met him on an east African trip and who I know retains that dialogue. I do not know specifically when the Prime Minister last spoke to Prime Minister Abiy, but I will certainly let the hon. Gentleman know.

On the aid level, I thank the hon. Gentleman for welcoming the small redirection of aid moneys. I do not recognise the numbers that he talked about, but I am more than happy to have a dialogue with him around that. Obviously, multilateral spending in addition to bilateral spending makes the situation slightly more complicated, particularly as we are diverting more money into the region. I think those are the main issues that he raised. If I have missed any, I will pick them up during other answers.