Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment she has made of the potential effect of reductions to the aid budget on global levels of child malnutrition; and what steps she is taking to tackle child malnutrition around the world.

Due to the seismic impact of the pandemic on the UK economy, the Government has taken tough but necessary decisions, including the temporary reduction in the aid budget from 0.7% to 0.5% of national income.

Tackling malnutrition remains a core focus of our work delivering the objectives of the Integrated Review and the Foreign Secretary's priorities on global health, humanitarian response and in support of UK goals on girls' education and climate. It is critical for reducing preventable deaths and ensuring children get the best start in life in the poorest countries of the world. We are taking a number of steps to increase the impact of aid spending on nutrition and food systems, including the promotion of nutrition objectives in other sectors.