Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Patrick Grady and Penny Mordaunt

Monday 20th May 2019 Commons Chamber

[Patrick Grady (Glasgow North) (SNP)]

What steps is the Secretary of State going to take to minimise or indeed eradicate the practice of double counting spending in both the 0.7% aid target and the 2% NATO military spending target?

[Penny Mordaunt]

I think I will have to issue an explanatory note for the hon. Gentleman on this. If we are trying to spend ODA money on things that are not ODA eligible, it is not ODA; it is as simple as that. We do not mark our own homework on either ODA spend or the NATO 2% commitment, and instead of asking these questions repeatedly at both International Development and Defence questions the hon. Gentleman should take some pride in the fact that the United Kingdom makes both those commitments.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Patrick Grady and Penny Mordaunt

Wednesday 1st May 2019 Commons Chamber

[Patrick Grady (Glasgow North) (SNP)]

T4. Is the Secretary of State proud of the fact that the Home Office has denied a visa to the father of the chief executive of the Scottish Refugee Council, which means that he cannot travel from Afghanistan to see his son receive an honorary doctorate at the University of Glasgow? What message is sent to developing countries and developing democracies when the UK routinely denies visas to people who want to contribute to our society and tackle poverty around the world?

[Penny Mordaunt]

If the hon. Gentleman would like to give me the details of the case I should be happy to look into it—I think it is often possible to resolve such cases by talking to the relevant Minister.

Government Overseas Aid Commitment: Private Investment

Debate between Patrick Grady and Penny Mordaunt

Tuesday 9th October 2018 Commons Chamber

[Penny Mordaunt]

My right hon. Friend is right. We are entering into the final decade and the last push towards the global goals. We have to be realistic. If we are going to achieve them, and I want to achieve them, we have to let other people help.

[Patrick Grady (Glasgow North) (SNP)]

It is disappointing that this has had to be an urgent question and not a statement and that it has been made while the International Development Committee is travelling, which is why I am standing here and not my hon. Friend the Member for Dundee West (Chris Law).

It is also disappointing in terms of the impact of this announcement. For many years, despite everything else going on, there has been cross-party consensus and huge public support for the delivery of the 0.7% target through public funds. The UK is supposed to be a world leader in this area. This kind of back-peddling and backsliding, and finding different ways to leverage the 0.7%, actually risks undermining that global leadership, which I thought was supposed to be a Government priority in the face of Brexit.

Does the Secretary of State accept that meeting the global goals is in our interests of building a safer, more sustainable and secure world? They are not things that just happen elsewhere in poor countries overseas; they are for everybody’s benefit. Why not be more ambitious and use this money to go beyond the 0.7 % target, which is what the Scottish National party proposed in our White Paper on independence? Will she confirm that she is committed to retaining that target in one shape or form? The Government are already double counting money spent to defence, and this is simply more of the same. If there is going to be an app that lets us choose how money is spent, when can I go on to it and choose to have my tax money spent on not Trident but on aid instead?

[Penny Mordaunt]

I thank the hon. Gentleman for those questions, but I think he is a little confused about what the 0.7% is. It is not possible to count private investment towards that figure, so a pension fund down the road cannot count towards that 0.7%, but public funds can. The Development Assistance Committee measures many things, including private sector investment, but the 0.7% is public money.

If a future Government wished to, they could spend more than 0.7%, and we are committed to spend at least that amount of money. They could do so by counting the returns that were made. At the moment, we are spending more than 0.7% because we cannot do anything other than that with these funds—they do not count towards the 0.7%. We need to get the balance right between our commitments in this agenda, which are world leading—we introduced them and we believe in them—and the demands we make of the British taxpayer. If in future years we can meet 0.7% without having to ask the British taxpayer for more money, that is an option we should explore.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Patrick Grady and Penny Mordaunt

Wednesday 4th July 2018 Commons Chamber

[Penny Mordaunt]

I absolutely agree with my right hon. Friend. Frictionless trade is a good thing, and the corridor that TradeMark East Africa has provided has cut border times dramatically, as well as cutting corruption. We are funding the second leg of that trade corridor, and it has done amazing work for the region’s prosperity.

[Patrick Grady (Glasgow North) (SNP)]

If we are to promote trade, we need to be able to promote travel. However, the Scotland Malawi Partnership and others have received a litany of complaints from people who want to come to the United Kingdom and sell their goods from east Africa, but have been denied visas by the Home Office. Will the Secretary of State meet representatives of the Home Office as a matter of urgency to ensure that they sort out the mess of the east African visa system?

[Penny Mordaunt]

I have frequent dialogues with colleagues throughout the Government. As the hon. Gentleman will know, 70 of my staff are embedded in the Department for International Trade to deal with these issues, particularly in respect of developing nations, but if he knows of any specific cases and will pass them on to me, I shall be happy to look at them.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Patrick Grady and Penny Mordaunt

Wednesday 18th April 2018 Commons Chamber

[Penny Mordaunt]

The House need take it not from me, but can take it from Bill and Melinda Gates, that this nation has played a huge role. The British public should be immensely proud of the efforts that have been made to combat malaria. It is still a huge problem, particularly in Commonwealth countries, and we are determined to eradicate it.

[Patrick Grady (Glasgow North) (SNP)]

9. Tackling climate change is crucial to meeting the SDGs, and we discussed that with the President of Malawi when he visited Parliament yesterday. Is the Secretary of State aware of the letter published by more than 170 faith leaders of a range of religions from across the Commonwealth calling on CHOGM leaders to turn words into action? What leadership is the UK Government showing in achieving the Paris agreement goal of keeping climate change emissions below 1.5° C?

[Penny Mordaunt]

The Prime Minister of Jamaica referred yesterday to climate change as an existential threat, and he was absolutely right to do so. Prior to CHOGM, we had been working with our Commonwealth partners to work up concrete proposals and commitments, and we have had many meetings this week, including one particularly focused on small island states, which are disproportionately affected by this issue.

Counter-Daesh Update

Debate between Patrick Grady and Penny Mordaunt

Thursday 29th March 2018 Commons Chamber

[Penny Mordaunt]

I will do my best to answer the defence matters raised by my right hon. Friend. The key Departments involved in our efforts take it in turns to deliver an update to the House. No disrespect is meant to him or to the House by there not being a Defence Minister at the Dispatch Box. As the Government’s humanitarian lead, I am taking this opportunity to focus on the humanitarian atrocities that have been committed.

I can confirm to my right hon. Friend that the vast majority of airstrikes have been in Iraq—1,362 airstrikes have taken place—which is largely due to the nature of the campaign. The campaign has differed at different stages, from having a named target when an aircraft takes off to carrying out more opportunist surveillance and not having a target as the aircraft gets airborne—that is how the campaign unfolded, as opposed to the factor he mentioned.

We remain concerned that Afrin is indirectly diverting resource away from the main effort against Daesh, and I confirm that we still believe that a political settlement is the only way forward.

[Patrick Grady (Glasgow North) (SNP)]

I thank the Minister for advance sight of her statement. We join the tributes to Anna Campbell and offer our condolences to her family.

This is a helpful statement, and I recognise the Government’s contribution. Does the Minister believe that the liberation of Raqqa means the head of the snake has finally been cut off? If so, how much longer will UK military involvement continue? I agree that a negotiated settlement is ultimately needed, so what contribution does continued UK military presence make to that?

I welcome DFID’s contribution. Supporting refugee camps is particularly important, but so is support for refugees who make their way here. How many more refugees are the UK Government willing to accept here in the UK, and will they support the Refugees (Family Reunion) (No. 2) Bill promoted by my hon. Friend the Member for Na h-Eileanan an Iar (Angus Brendan MacNeil)?

How are the Department’s resources being used to support long-term rebuilding, and what kind of strategy is in place for that? Finally, is the Minister making sure that any UK spending that is counted towards the 0.7% aid target is not also counted towards the 2% defence spending target or otherwise appropriated by her colleagues in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office and the Ministry of Defence?

[Penny Mordaunt]

Raqqa was always described as the head of the snake but, as I said in my statement, the job is not yet done. We need to complete the job there, and we also need to ensure that Daesh is not emerging elsewhere. Our commitment will be driven by our progress in the campaign, and any further action will be done on a case-by-case basis. Our armed forces are making an enormous difference, not just through the airstrikes but through surveillance, and we have saved an enormous number of lives with our contribution.

It is our policy to try to support refugees as close to their country of origin as possible. We are doing a tremendous amount in neighbouring countries, and we are grateful to the likes of Jordan and Lebanon for their huge efforts. I am aware of the Refugees (Family Reunion) (No. 2) Bill, and I have had lengthy discussions with the Home Office and other parts of government. I am keen to see whether the existing rules are in any way not fit for any of the cases we have. I have asked for detail of all the cases, including the numbers.

Although I continue to have meetings with the Home Office, the Bill’s intention is that a child, say, who has been injured or is undergoing medical treatment, and where it would not be appropriate for them to be anywhere other than here, can be reunited with their family. We have had cases in which that has happened, so the existing rules are not inadequate, but I will thoroughly look at this with the Home Office to see whether there is anything else we can do. It is our policy not to contribute towards reconstruction unless progress is made on a political process. On the double counting that the hon. Gentleman talks about, different bodies mark our homework on our NATO contribution and our 0.7%, so there are no shenanigans as to what is counting towards one thing or the other. He will know that there are clear rules on what constitutes the 0.7%, and that cannot be anything to do with the military.