Question to the Department for International Development:

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, with reference to the press notice from the Prime Minister's Office dated 7 June 2015, announcing a global programme of drug development and research into infectious diseases, what the contents and timing of that programme will be; and what steps her Department plans to take to ensure the success of that programme.

The Manifesto commitment was made to respond to the urgent need for research to develop new health products for infectious diseases. There is insufficient funding globally available for the development of new drugs and vaccines for neglected diseases and resistance to essential drugs is a growing problem globally. DFID is currently working on a strategy to deliver on this commitment.

The UK Government has a strong track record of supporting successful product development research, through public-private Product Development Partnerships (PDPs). In the last ten years, DFID-supported PDPs have developed 11 new drugs, 2 new vaccines and 6 new diagnostic tests. Success is judged not only by cost-effective development of the products but also by ensuring that they are affordable and made available to the poorest in low and middle income countries.