Asked by: Siobhain McDonagh (Labour - Mitcham and Morden)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps the UK Government is taking to support Afghan civil society in delivering (a) humanitarian and (b) development assistance to vulnerable women and girls in that country.
Answered by Leo Docherty - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence) (Minister for the Armed Forces)
Since April 2021, the Government has disbursed £514 million in aid for Afghanistan. We contribute to the Afghanistan Reconstruction Trust Fund which includes a $20 million programme of support to Afghan civil society. The Government has committed to at least 50 per cent of our aid in Afghanistan reaching women and girls. We fund programmes that target women and girls, aimed at tackling gender-based violence and providing health and sexual reproductive health services. We continue to press the Taliban to reverse their ban on female aid workers as Afghan women are critical in providing life-saving support to women and girls.
Asked by: Andrew Gwynne (Labour - Denton and Reddish)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what plans his Department has to support sexual health clinics as a result of the Mpox outbreak.
Answered by Neil O'Brien
We continue to work closely with the UK Health Security Agency, local authorities and NHS England to monitor the impact of monkeypox (mpox) on sexual health services and support system-wide action to maintain access to routine sexual and reproductive health services.
In 2022/23, we have allocated more than £3.4 billion to local authorities in England to fund public health services, including sexual health services, through the public health grant and provided additional funding for the mpox response, including the supply of medicines and vaccinations.
We will announce the 2023/24 public health grant allocations to local authorities in due course.
Asked by: Caroline Lucas (Green Party - Brighton, Pavilion)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 19 December 2022 to Question 108144 on NHS: Staff, with which (a) trades unions, (b) medical royal colleges, (c) NHS system leaders, (d) voluntary organisations his Department consulted on the NHS workforce plan.
Answered by Will Quince
The following table shows the organisations that have been engaged. This list is not exhaustive because NHS England and Health Education England leaders and programme teams are also working with external stakeholders and their contribution is also informing the plan’s development.
Trade unions, royal colleges and representative bodies | Regulators | Members of Cancer Charities Group |
Unison | Professional Standards Authority | Alike |
Unite | General Medical Council | AMMF – the cholangiocarcinoma charity |
GMB | Care Quality Commission | Anthony Nolan |
Managers in Partnership | Healthcare and Professions Council | Blood Cancer UK |
British Medical Association | Nursing and Midwifery Council | Bloodwise |
Academy of Medical Royal Colleges | Think tanks | Bone Cancer Research Trust |
Royal College of Nursing | Nuffield Trust | Bowel Cancer UK |
Royal College of Midwives | The Health Foundation | Brain Trust – the brain cancer people |
Royal College of Physicians | The King’s Fund | The Brain Tumour Charity |
Royal College of Surgeons | Regulators | Brain Tumour Research |
Royal College of General Practitioners | Professional Standards Authority | British Liver Trust |
Royal College of Psychiatrists | General Medical Council | Breast Cancer Now |
Royal College of Anaesthetists | Care Quality Commission | Cancer 52 |
Royal College of Pathologists | Healthcare and Professions Council | Cancer Research UK |
Royal College of Ophthalmologists | Nursing and Midwifery Council | CATTS (Cancer Awareness for Teens & Twenties) |
Royal College of Occupational Therapists | Think tanks | Chai Cancer Care |
Royal Pharmaceutical Society | Nuffield Trust | Children's Cancer and Leukaemia Group |
Royal College of Speech and Language Therapists | The Health Foundation | CLIC Sargent |
Royal College of Ophthalmologists | The King’s Fund | CoppaFeel! |
Royal College of Emergency Medicine |
| DKMS |
Royal College of Podiatry |
| Ellen MacArthur Cancer Trust |
The Association for Clinical Biochemistry and Laboratory Medicine |
| Eve Appeal |
The Society of Radiographers |
| Fight Bladder Cancer |
Institute of Osteopathy |
| GO Girls Support |
College of Operating Department Practitioners |
| Guts UK |
British Association of Art Therapists |
| Haven House |
British Association of Drama therapists |
| Jo’s Cervical Cancer Trust |
British Association for Music Therapy |
| Kidney Cancer UK |
The Society of Chiropodists and Podiatrists |
| Less Survivable Cancers Taskforce |
British Dietetic Association |
| Leukaemia Care |
British and Irish Orthoptic Society |
| Leukaemia UK |
British Association of Prosthetists and Orthotists |
| Lymphoma Action |
College of Paramedics |
| Macmillan Cancer Support |
The Chartered Society of Physiotherapy |
| Maggie's – everyone’s home of cancer care |
College of General Dentistry |
| Marie Curie |
Faculty of Sexual and Reproductive healthcare |
| MDS UK Patient Support Group |
Queen’s Nursing Institute |
| Melanoma Focus |
Institute of Health Visiting |
| Melanoma UK |
British Society of Rheumatology |
| Mesothelioma |
The Richmond Group of Charities (including Macmillan Cancer Support, Diabetes UK, Asthma UK, Age UK) |
| Mylenoma UK |
Cancer Charities Group (*see separate list for members) |
| National Cancer Research Institute |
Council of Deans of Health |
| Neuroendocrine Cancer UK |
Medical Schools Council |
| OcuMel UK |
Universities UK |
| Ovacome |
University Alliance |
| Ovarian Cancer Action |
Office for Students |
| Pancreatic Cancer Action |
Skills for Care |
| Pancreatic Cancer UK |
Local Government Association |
| Paul's Cancer Support |
Association of Directors of Adult Social Services |
| Penny Brohn UK |
Social Partnership Forum |
| Prostate Cancer Research |
NHS providers |
| Prostate Cancer UK |
NHS Employers |
| Race Against Blood Cancer |
The Shelford Group |
| Roy Castle Lung Cancer Foundation |
ICS leaders |
| Salivary Gland Cancer UK |
NHS Confederation |
| Sarcoma UK |
Community Providers Network |
| Shine Cancer Support |
|
| Solving Kids Cancer |
|
| Target Ovarian Cancer |
|
| Teenage Cancer Trust |
|
| Trekstock |
|
| The Joshua Tree |
|
| WMUK – The charity for Waldenstrom's macroglobulinaemia |
|
| World Cancer Research Fund |
Further discussions will take place before the plan is finalised. This will include engagement with patient representative groups. NHS England can discuss with any organisations interested in the development of the Plan.
Asked by: John Penrose (Conservative - Weston-super-Mare)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, when she plans to respond to the correspondence from the hon. Member for Weston-super-Mare of 27 October 2022 and 24 November 2022 on behalf of his constituent Mrs Jennifer Humphreys on women's rights.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
As set out in Lord Ahmad's responses to the honourable member on behalf of correspondence received from his constituent, the UK Government is committed to defending and promoting universal and comprehensive sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR) and will continue working with other countries to protect and further gender equality in international agreements. We continue to fund, support and lead on initiatives related to promoting gender equality including SRHR, Women, Peace and Security and Preventing Sexual Violence in Conflict.
Asked by: David Mundell (Conservative - Dumfriesshire, Clydesdale and Tweeddale)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will take steps to provide additional funding for sexual health services to help recover services that have been affected by the monkeypox outbreak.
Answered by Neil O'Brien
In 2022/23, we have allocated more than £3.4 billion to local authorities in England to fund public health services, including sexual health services, through the public health grant and provided additional funding for the monkeypox response, including the supply of medicines and vaccinations.
The Department continues to work closely with the UK Health Security Agency, local authorities and NHS England to monitor the impact of monkeypox on sexual health services and support system-wide action to maintain access to routine sexual and reproductive health services.
Local authorities are responsible for commissioning comprehensive, open access sexual health services to meet local demand and individual local authorities decide on spending priorities based on an assessment of local need for sexual health services. We will announce the 2023/24 public health grant allocations to local authorities in due course.
Asked by: Tony Lloyd (Labour - Rochdale)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to advance gender equality globally.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
The FCDO puts women and girls at the heart of its foreign and development policy. As set out in the International Development Strategy, the UK has prioritised action guided by the 3E's: 'Educating Girls, Empowering Women and Ending Violence against women and girls', including using our full range of levers to address the attempted global rollback on women's and girls' rights.
As just one example, at the recent UN General Assembly Third Committee on Human Rights (https://www.gov.uk/government/speeches/we-must-respect-the-bodily-autonomy-of-women-and-girls-throughout-their-lives-cross-regional-joint-statement-at-the-un-third-committee), the UK co-led a landmark joint statement with 71 signatory countries, committing to protect and promote Sexual, Reproductive Health and Rights, therefore showing strong UK leadership on gender equality.
Asked by: Tony Lloyd (Labour - Rochdale)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, if he will publish a detailed budget heading for sexual and reproductive health and rights programmes.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
The UK is proud to defend and promote universal and comprehensive sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR) alongside our partners. The UK International Development Strategy involves support for women and girls including comprehensive SRHR, and will guide aid prioritisation decisions. Comprehensive SRHR is central to achieving the commitments in the International Development Strategy on women and girls and global health, and the Government's manifesto commitment to end the preventable deaths of mothers, newborns, and children by 2030.
Asked by: Tony Lloyd (Labour - Rochdale)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, with reference to the Statistics on International Development: Final UK Aid Spend 2021, published 12 April 2022, what assessment he has made of the implications for his Department's policies of the trends in the level of funding for (a) reproductive health programmes and (b) the United Nations Population Fund's thematic programme.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
The UK is committed to promoting and defending comprehensive sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR), and to working with our partners to drive progress. Family planning is an important part of our programming on reproductive health. At the 2017 Family Planning Summit, the UK committed to spend an average of £225 million on family planning each year to 2022. The UK has exceeded that commitment, spending an average of approximately £246 million on family planning every year between April 2017 and March 2022. The UK continue to be an important partner and significant funder of the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA).
The FCDO works closely with HM Treasury to ensure that aid spend is directed towards our priorities in line with the International Development Strategy, meeting the UK Government's commitment to spend 0.5% of Gross National Income (GNI) on Official Development Assistance until the fiscal situation allows a return to 0.7%. Comprehensive SRHR is integral to achieving the commitments in the International Development Strategy on women and girls and global health.
Asked by: Baroness Northover (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Goldsmith of Richmond Park on 11 November (HL3016), how much Official Development Assistance (ODA) support they provided to the Global Financing Facility in (1) 2018, (2) 2019, (3) 2020, and (4) 2021; and how much ODA was specifically for Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights (SRHR) to bilateral priority countries in (a) 2019, (b) 2020, and (c) 2021.
Answered by Lord Goldsmith of Richmond Park
The UK Government has committed a total of £95 million of Official Development Assistance to the Global Financing Facility from 2017 to 2025 in two phases. The payments made to date are 1) £18 million in 2018, 2) £8 million in 2019, 3) £3 million in 2020 and 4) £6 million in 2021.
Overall the UK spent the following amount of bilateral Official Development Assistance on Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights over the last three years. 1) £515 million in 2019, 2) £372 million in 2020 and 3) £242 million in 2021. This data is calculated using the methodology outlined in the Donor Delivering Report and the Statistics on International Development: Final UK Aid Spend 2021.
Asked by: Baroness Northover (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the remarks by the Minister of State for Development and Africa on 14 November that he was "pleased to confirm new UK Government funding to the Global Family Partnership FP2030", whether they will provide a breakdown of that funding.
Answered by Lord Goldsmith of Richmond Park
The UK plays a leading role in advancing voluntary family planning globally, as part of our longstanding commitment to comprehensive sexual and reproductive health and rights. New UK funding to the Global Family Planning Partnership 'FP2030' will accelerate country leadership in regions including North, West, and Central Africa; East and Southern Africa; Asia and the Pacific; and Latin America and the Caribbean.
We are not able to give a yearly funding breakdown until ODA funding allocations are confirmed over the Spending Review period.