Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, if he will increase the Government’s pledge to the Global Polio Eradication Initiative.

The UK supports the work of the Global Polio Eradication Initiative (GPEI), to which we have provided £1.38 billion since 1995. We remain proud of our contribution to polio eradication, which has seen polio cases reduced by over 99%. To date, more than 20 million people are walking who may otherwise have been paralysed due to polio. The UK will continue to be a supportive partner to the GPEI in the future to ensure every child everywhere is safe from this disease. In light of ongoing crises, we have temporarily paused some overseas aid spending, including to GPEI, as we review our allocations.