Question to the Department for International Development:

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, with reference to the Prime Minister's press release of 18 August 2014, what steps she is taking to assess the impact of her Department's policies on the family.

The Family Test was announced by the Prime Minister in August 2014 and introduced in October 2014 for domestic policies through the publication of guidance for officials – Family Test Guidance.

The objective of the Test is to introduce a family perspective to the policy-making process, specifically to make the potential impacts on family functioning and relationships explicit.

The Department for International Development (DFID) leads the UK’s work to end extreme poverty internationally. In this respect the welfare of the world’s poorest – both individuals and families – are central to DFID’s work. DFID does not however have a leading responsibility for domestic policies and has not therefore made any assessments using the Family Test.