Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the answer by Lord Bates on 23 February (HL Deb, col 411), what new initiatives they are taking to (1) stop the fighting in, (2) curtail the flow of weapons to, and (3) bring about better conditions for humanitarian aid to reach the people of, South Sudan.

We remain deeply concerned by continued instability and the increasingly desperate humanitarian situation in South Sudan. Following the declaration of famine, the Secretary of State for International Development, my Rt Hon. Friend, the Member for Witham (Ms Patel) announced a £100 million package of emergency assistance that will help to provide vital life-saving nutritional, health and livelihoods support for the people of South Sudan. Together with our international partners, the UK continues to pursue every opportunity to call on all parties in the conflict in South Sudan urgently to cease all hostilities, ensure humanitarian assistance reaches those who need it most and engage in a genuine, inclusive dialogue. Multilaterally, we are lobbying for support of a UN arms embargo, and continue to support the imposition of sanctions against those who would continue to block the path to peace. In addition, the deployment of 379 UK troops to the UN Mission in South Sudan has begun and will support the mission in carrying out its mandate to protect civilians.