Question to the Department for International Development:

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what steps her Department is taking to ensure its provision of overseas assistance is in accordance with the Government's human rights obligations.

The Sustainable Development Goals sit at the heart of the UK Aid Strategy and represent a commitment to achieve measurable improvements in economic, social and political human rights. In the Bilateral Development Review, the Department for International Development committed to tackling some human rights issues that have been neglected for too long, including modern slavery and child exploitation.

A commitment to respecting human rights is one of the four Partnership Principles that DFID considers alongside other factors in determining how it provides aid in a country. DFID works closely with the Foreign and Commonwealth Office to assess commitment to human rights and raise any concerns at the appropriate level.