Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what advice his Department provides to (a) UK search and rescue NGOs and (b) other specialist UK NGOs seeking to provide emergency deployment to assist with overseas disasters, such as the earthquakes in Turkey and Syria in February 2023; and whether there have been any changes in how his Department coordinates NGOs seeking to provide emergency deployment to assist with overseas disasters since the abolition of the Department for International Development.

FCDO engages regularly with NGO partners through a range of forums. On Thursday 9 February I [Minister Mitchell] met with a group of NGOs who are providing humanitarian aid to those impacted by the earthquake to understand their assessment of urgent needs on the ground.

The UK International Search and Rescue team deployed to Turkey on 7 February and worked around the clock to rescue people trapped under the rubble. The team have now completed rescue operations and returned to the UK. The UK committed an additional £4.3 million from the Conflict, Stability and Security Fund, to aid the White Helmets major search-and-rescue operations in Syria. We have published guidance on GOV.UK to advise people on how they can best provide support to the earthquake response.

https://www.gov.uk/government/news/turkey-and-syria-earthquakes-what-you-can-do-to-help