Question to the Department for International Development:

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what steps her Department is taking to support developing countries to increase the number of ventilators available during the covid-19 pandemic.

The UK is at the forefront of the global response to COVID-19. We are using UK aid to its full effect to counter the health, humanitarian, and economic risks and impact of this pandemic in the developing world. We have committed up to £764 million of UK Aid to combat COVID-19 and reinforce the global effort to find a vaccine.

Our funding is supporting a range of initiatives and partners to ensure it can reach those who need it the most. This includes £75 million for the World Health Organisation (WHO) to help lead international efforts to stop the spread of the virus and access critical medical supplies; £55 million to International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement appeals to provide medical supplies and equipment to hospitals and clinics, and build quarantine areas and disinfection facilities; and a range of support to NGOs.

The WHO and UNICEF are working with governments to identify requirements and ensure that supplies, including the critical medical equipment for oxygen therapy, reach those in need.