Asked by: Uma Kumaran (Labour - Stratford and Bow)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to improve its capabilities to negotiate humanitarian access to conflict areas.
Answered by Stephen Doughty - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK uses its diplomatic reach and political influence in support of access negotiations by impartial humanitarian actors.
The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) is finalising an internal humanitarian diplomacy training module focused on access and protection, in partnership with the British Red Cross, to bolster capability across the FCDO. The UK also recently published the Conflict, Hunger and International Humanitarian Law: A Practitioner's Legal Handbook, which sets out rules relevant to addressing conflict-induced hunger, including rules on humanitarian access. This is a free resource, available online and intended to support understanding of these issues at a global level. The FCDO regularly briefs UK Defence Attachés on humanitarian access and protection. The UK is also working with partners and allies to maximise collective impact on humanitarian access and protection in crises. This includes partnership with the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, who lead access negotiations, and an Australian-led partnership with other states to develop a political declaration to protect humanitarian personnel.
Asked by: Uma Kumaran (Labour - Stratford and Bow)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, with reference to the reduction in Official Development Assistance, whether her Department plans to maintain its full pledge to the 21st replenishment of the International Development Association.
Answered by Stephen Doughty - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK is strongly committed to the International Development Association, and we will prioritise spending our Official Development Assistance (ODA) budget through multilaterals. ODA allocations and the impact on programmes are currently being worked through and we will set out our spending plans following the completion of the resource allocation processes.
Asked by: Uma Kumaran (Labour - Stratford and Bow)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 2 June 2025 to Question 52505 on Sri Lanka: War Crimes, for what reason his Department provided legal representation to the freedom of information tribunal against the application for Major David Walker to be summoned to give evidence.
Answered by Catherine West - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) takes seriously its statutory obligations under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 and has complied with all relevant directions issued by the Tribunal. The FCDO accepts the Tribunal's decision of March 2024 not to call Mr Walker as a witness in the case. It would be inappropriate for the FCDO to comment any further on ongoing legal proceedings.
Asked by: Uma Kumaran (Labour - Stratford and Bow)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of adopting new digital tools on public sector efficiency.
Answered by Feryal Clark - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
The Government has assessed the potential impact of adopting digital tools on public sector efficiency through detailed analysis.
This work identified up to £45 billion in potential annual benefits from digital transformation, including through automation of routine tasks, migrating services to lower-cost online channels, and reducing fraud via digital compliance tools.
Government continues to evaluate the effectiveness of these tools, recently publishing a study on Microsoft CoPilot across 20,000 Civil Servants. The Incubator for AI also deploys bespoke tools to unlock mission delivery. For example, the PM recently announced the rollout of Extract, an AI planning tool, to all local authorities in England by Spring next year.
These initiatives will enhance efficiency and reduce duplication, ensuring we can deliver public services which are fit for the future, while also making it easier for people to interact with their government’s digital services.