Asked by: Baroness Northover (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for International Development:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the Stop TB Partnership's recent report on the impact of the global response to the COVID-19 pandemic on tuberculosis services; and what support they intend to provide to the Global Fund's COVID-19 Response Mechanism to help countries respond to COVID-19 and mitigate the impacts on HIV, tuberculosis, and malaria programmes.
Answered by Baroness Sugg
The UK Government is concerned about the indirect impacts of COVID-19 on other health priorities, including increased rates of HIV, TB and malaria. The Stop TB Partnership’s rapid assessment of COVID-19 and the TB response gives helpful insights into short-term impacts. The modelling report co-commissioned by the Stop TB Partnership outlines longer-term impacts, suggesting that disruptions caused by COVID-19 could lead to an additional 6.3 million TB cases and 1.4 million TB deaths between 2020 and 2025. The findings of both reports are concerning.
The UK Government is taking action, including through support to the Global Fund’s COVID-19 Response Mechanism, which we are funding through our £1.2 billion contribution to the Fifth Replenishment of the Global Fund. Through our multilateral partnerships with organisations like the WHO, and our regional and national programmes, the UK Government also supports developing countries to make their domestic health systems, including their TB programmes, stronger and more resilient.
Asked by: Baroness Northover (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for International Development:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what support they intend to provide to the Global Drug Facility to avoid shortages of key medical supplies and personal protective equipment for (1) tuberculosis, and (2) COVID-19, caused by current global supply and transport network disruptions.
Answered by Baroness Sugg
Along with other donors the UK is supporting UN agencies, the Red Cross and NGOs to respond to coronavirus in other countries. This includes helping the world’s poorest countries to access critical medical supplies including PPE. UK aid is also helping to increase global production of medical supplies, including PPE. This includes significant support to the World Health Organisation (WHO) to help it work with global manufacturers.
The UK Government does not directly fund the Global Drug Facility, but it does provide significant funding to global bodies to tackle TB. This includes our funding to the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, TB, and Malaria, which we have committed £1.4 billion to for the next three years. We are also supporting developing countries through our multilateral partnerships with organisations like the WHO, and our regional and national programmes, to make their domestic health systems, including their TB programmes, stronger and more resilient.
Asked by: Baroness Northover (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for International Development:
To ask Her Majesty's Government which companies have provided consultancy and advice services to the Department for International Development regarding Burma in (1) 2016–17, and (2) 2017–18; and what was the value of each of those contracts with those companies.
Answered by Lord Bates
DFID Burma has not commissioned consultancy and advice services. However, some of the programmes that DFID supports have commissioned consultancy, particularly for design and evaluation purposes.
Asked by: Baroness Northover (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for International Development:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what meetings they have held with Karen civil society organisations from Burma regarding the withdrawal of British and other financial support to internally displaced people in Karen state.
Answered by Lord Bates
DFID has not withdrawn funding to internally displaced people in Karen State. DFID held discussions with Karen civil society organisations in 2017 setting out new arrangements through which they could receive funding. Some organisations have chosen not to apply for this funding.
Asked by: Baroness Northover (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for International Development:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the impact that the non-renewal of UN Security Council Resolution 2165 would have on humanitarian access in Syria.
Answered by Lord Bates
Over three million people have received humanitarian support so far under resolution 2165, which allows much needed aid to be delivered cross-border into Syria without the consent of the regime. The UK is committed to its renewal and is working with our international partners to secure this.
Asked by: Baroness Northover (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for International Development:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what consideration they have given to the needs of vulnerable elderly people in humanitarian emergencies such as those currently trapped in Aleppo and other besieged Syrian cities, and the 1.65 million older people in Yemen.
Answered by Lord Bates
When carrying out humanitarian assessments and responding to humanitarian needs, DFID and our partners take into account the specific needs of those who may be more vulnerable, including the elderly.
In Syria mitigating diseases that are common amongst the elderly is a priority. DFID is providing flu vaccines and support for the treatment of diabetes and high blood pressure. This is part of the £717million DFID is providing to support vulnerable people inside Syria. In Aleppo and other besieged areas, DFID funded partners are providing food, clean water, shelter and healthcare to meet the needs of vulnerable Syrians, including the elderly, where access is possible.
In Yemen, DFID is providing £100million this financial year in humanitarian aid to support vulnerable Yeminis, including the elderly. This will be delivered through partners such as the UN and NGOs, and includes food, medical supplies, water, healthcare and nutritional supplies.
Asked by: Baroness Northover (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for International Development:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government to what extent ageing and older people in developing countries remain an issue of concern for the Department for International Development, why this matter no longer forms part of the Department's ministerial portfolios, and whether ageing still forms part of the Department’s Inclusive Societies work.
Answered by Lord Bates
The Department for International Development's (DFID) Inclusive Societies department leads the Department's work on ageing. The Minister of State, Rory Stewart, has responsibility for Inclusive Societies department’s work.
Many DFID programmes reach and include older people, for example on health systems strengthening and eye care, or specific programmes for the poorest including supporting slum dwellers in Tanzania or supporting widows resulting from the Genocide in Rwanda.
Ageing also features in DFID country level poverty analyses as a key factor in understanding poverty. In addition to this DFID is taking a global leadership role to push for better quality and use of age disaggregated data to ensure that the Sustainable Development Goals leave no one behind. DFID hosted a series of high profile events on this subject in May and is working towards the publication of an action plan detailing next steps early in 2017.
Asked by: Baroness Northover (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for International Development:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the potential contribution of addressing childhood cancer to the third Sustainable Development Goal.
Answered by Baroness Anelay of St Johns
The third millennium development goal includes the intention to reduce by one third premature mortality from non-communicable diseases through prevention and treatment by 2030: this includes all forms of cancer. Reporting will be based on data from country health information systems.
DFID’s health focus is to improve the provision of basic health services for the poorest by strengthening health systems, improving health worker capacity and increasing access to essential medicines and equipment. Increasing coverage, access and quality will strengthen health services to address all health problems including childhood cancer. DFID also supports some specific efforts to tackle childhood cancer, such as a project through World Child Cancer in Burma, which seeks to improve the diagnosis, treatment and care for children with cancer.
Asked by: Baroness Northover (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for International Development:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they are taking to support humanitarian and human rights organisations that seek the ability to cross the border at Semalka between Iraqi Kurdistan and Northern Syria in order to provide humanitarian aid.
Answered by Baroness Anelay of St Johns
DFID currently funds a number of NGO partners who use the Semalka border crossing to provide humanitarian aid –health, food, livelihoods, and protection programmes – to people in parts of northern Syria. In general, access across the border is negotiated by agencies themselves.
Asked by: Baroness Northover (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for International Development:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what discussions they have had with the President of the Iraqi Kurdistan Region to ensure that aid convoys are permitted and facilitated, and that humanitarian workers, journalists, and staff of relief and aid organisations are permitted entry into the region of Northern Syria and Rojava.
Answered by Baroness Anelay of St Johns
The UK has raised the issue with the Kurdistan Regional Government’s Presidential Office, and strongly encouraged the free movement of humanitarian aid. We will continue to monitor the situation closely and to do all we can to ensure the provision of humanitarian access.