Asked by: Lord Judd (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what representations they have received from (1) NGOs, and (2) others, about (a) the World Trade Organization’s proposed ‘Waiver from certain provisions of the TRIPS Agreement for the prevention, containment and treatment of COVID-19’ (IP/C/W/669), and (b) the need of developing countries for immediate access to the COVID-19 vaccines currently available; what assessment they have made of any such representations; and what assessment they have made of (i) the humanitarian needs of people in developing countries, and (ii) the need to avoid new opportunities for the development and spread of COVID-19 mutations.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon
The UK is committed to rapid, equitable access to safe and effective vaccines, and has committed £548 million to the COVAX Advance Market Commitment (AMC) to ensure COVID-19 vaccine access for low- and middle-income countries. We do not consider waiving intellectual property (IP) rights to be an appropriate course of action in boosting the manufacturing of safe, effective, and quality vaccines. The existing intellectual property framework has mobilised research and development to deliver a host of new medicines and technologies to detect, treat, and defend against COVID-19.
According to the UN Global Humanitarian Overview, 235 million people will need humanitarian assistance and protection in 2021. Humanitarian needs are the largest on record, driven in large part by the direct and indirect consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic. The UK is a major humanitarian donor, providing over £2 billion in assistance to humanitarian crises in the last financial year. The emergence of new COVID-19 variants serves as a powerful reminder that viruses mutate by their very nature. As a result, over 4000 SARS-CoV-2 variants have been identified across the globe. The UK's world-leading genomic sequencing continues to monitor these variants as they arise and develop, and we will offer this expertise to identify new variants to countries who do not have the resources to do so.
Asked by: Lord Judd (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what estimate they have made of the health situation in Gaza; and how much financial assistance they intend to provide to that region to meet any health-related need.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon
The UK remains concerned about the ongoing humanitarian situation in Gaza and the impact of COVID-19 on an already fragile healthcare system. We are pleased that the OPTs will be among the first to benefit from the COVAX Advance Market Commitment (AMC) - the international initiative to support global equitable access to vaccines, with delivery of a first batch of more than 37,000 doses of the of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine anticipated in mid-February.
The UK was one of the first donors to provide funding to support the health and humanitarian response to the COVID-19 pandemic in the OPTs. We have provided £1.25m funding (WHO with £630,000 and UNICEF with £620,000) to purchase and co-ordinate delivery of medical equipment, treat critical care patients, train frontline health workers and scale up laboratory testing capacity - mainly in Gaza. The FCDO is currently running a prioritisation exercise across all its programmes, to ensure that every pound we spend goes as far as possible. The Foreign Secretary will communicate the outcome shortly.
Asked by: Lord Judd (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what discussions they have had with the government of Kenya about the clashes on the Kenya–Somalia border between 24 and 26 January.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon
The UK works closely with both Somalia and Kenya on matters of security and regional stability. The Secretary of State for Defence visited Kenya and Somalia from 25 to 27 January and urged both countries to focus on their many shared interests in these areas and work together to reduce border tensions.
In response to the reported recent clashes near the Kenya-Somalia border we have also encouraged regional institutions, including the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD), to conduct independent fact-finding missions and promote conflict resolution measures. We have no basis on which to believe that UK-trained troops were involved. The UK provides training to Somali National Army units in Somalia's South West State, to support internal stability and counter Al-Shabaab, but not in the state of Jubaland where the clashes were reported.
Asked by: Lord Judd (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of whether any Kenya Defence Forces personnel assisted the forces loyal to the Jubaland state government that were involved in clashes on the Kenya–Somalia border between 24 and 26 January.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon
The UK works closely with both Somalia and Kenya on matters of security and regional stability. The Secretary of State for Defence visited Kenya and Somalia from 25 to 27 January and urged both countries to focus on their many shared interests in these areas and work together to reduce border tensions.
In response to the reported recent clashes near the Kenya-Somalia border we have also encouraged regional institutions, including the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD), to conduct independent fact-finding missions and promote conflict resolution measures. We have no basis on which to believe that UK-trained troops were involved. The UK provides training to Somali National Army units in Somalia's South West State, to support internal stability and counter Al-Shabaab, but not in the state of Jubaland where the clashes were reported.
Asked by: Lord Judd (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of whether any UK-trained Somali National Army units were involved in clashes on the Kenya–Somalia border between 24 and 26 January.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon
The UK works closely with both Somalia and Kenya on matters of security and regional stability. The Secretary of State for Defence visited Kenya and Somalia from 25 to 27 January and urged both countries to focus on their many shared interests in these areas and work together to reduce border tensions.
In response to the reported recent clashes near the Kenya-Somalia border we have also encouraged regional institutions, including the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD), to conduct independent fact-finding missions and promote conflict resolution measures. We have no basis on which to believe that UK-trained troops were involved. The UK provides training to Somali National Army units in Somalia's South West State, to support internal stability and counter Al-Shabaab, but not in the state of Jubaland where the clashes were reported.
Asked by: Lord Judd (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what discussions they intend to have with the government of the United States about the impact on the food and health situation for the people of Yemen of the decision to designate Ansar Allah as a foreign terrorist organisation and a specially designated terrorist entity; and what steps they are taking in response to any such impact.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon
We share the concerns raised by the UN and NGOs about the impact of designation on what is already the world's worst humanitarian crisis. We have already engaged with the US to urge them to ensure that the vital humanitarian response, including food supplies, is not disrupted and will raise this urgently with the new administration. Our priority is to support the UN's peace process and ensure lifesaving humanitarian aid can reach the millions of Yemenis in need.
Asked by: Lord Judd (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to reports of an increase of COVID-19 cases in Gaza, what action they are taking with international partners to support the health care system in that region.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon
The UK remains concerned about the ongoing humanitarian situation in Gaza and the impact of COVID-19 on an already fragile healthcare system. Recognising the severity of the situation, we were one of the first donors to provide funding to support the health and humanitarian response to the COVID-19 pandemic in the Occupied Palestinian Territories. We have provided £1.25 million funding (the World Health Organisation with £630,000 and the United Nations Children's Fund with £620,000) to purchase and co-ordinate delivery of medical equipment, treat critical care patients, train frontline health workers and scale up laboratory testing capacity - mainly in Gaza.
Asked by: Lord Judd (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the level of food insecurity in Palestine during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon
The outbreak of the Coronavirus (COVID-19) in the Occupied Palestinian Territories (OPTs) has exacerbated the humanitarian and food insecurity situation. Prior to the COVID-19 outbreak, food insecurity, driven by high poverty and unemployment, affected 1.6 million Palestinians - nearly a third of the population in OPTs.
We recognise the importance of tackling food insecurity. To support, we are providing £2.5 million to the World Food Programme to provide food and cash assistance to the most vulnerable Palestinians in West Bank and Gaza. We have also contributed £1 million to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency's Emergency Appeal in the OPTs which will help provide emergency food to over one million food-insecure refugees in Gaza.