Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment he had for her policies of the debate on the report entitled Preventing and combating violence against women with disabilities, which was held at the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe on 11 October 2023.

The UK values the work of the Parliamentary Assembly to the Council of Europe as well as our UK delegation in debating these important issues. The UK reaffirms its commitment to preventing and responding to violence against women and girls in all their diversity and we welcome calls for the intensification of efforts to address this violence.

The debate included reaffirming the commitments made to women and girls with disabilities outlined in the Istanbul Convention. As a ratifier of both the Istanbul Convention and the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, the UK is clear on our international commitments to upholding the rights of women and girls in all their diversity and preventing violence against them and prioritises this through policies and action at home and overseas.