Asked by: Lord Taylor of Warwick (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the impact of their partnership with the World Bank on the position of the City of London as a global financial centre.
Answered by Baroness Chapman of Darlington - Minister of State (Development)
The UK works closely with the World Bank (WB) to strengthen the position of the City of London as a global financial centre. The World Bank Group has 70 staff members in London, which is one of three International Finance Corporation (IFC) Treasury Hubs.
IFC, WB's private sector arm, has an active committed investment portfolio of over $5.2 billion with UK businesses. The UK is the largest investor country for the Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA), with an exposure of $7.4 billion.
The City is also a centre of innovation. For example, last month, with support from the UK, the IFC sold $500 million of assets on the London Stock Exchange in a breakthrough transaction which will create a new asset class for UK and international investors.
Asked by: Lord Taylor of Warwick (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government when they plan to publish the report on the outcome of the Development Review.
Answered by Baroness Chapman of Darlington - Minister of State (Development)
The development review was one of three internal review processes, commissioned specifically to inform departmental strategy alongside other inputs. We have subsequently launched the FCDO2030 programme, as set out in the FCDO's recently published annual report, informed by those internal reviews.
Asked by: Lord Taylor of Warwick (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government, following their announcement to increase defence spending, what steps they are taking to ensure that diplomatic solutions remain at the forefront of their approach to international relations.
Answered by Baroness Chapman of Darlington - Minister of State (Development)
His Majesty's Government is responding to a period of profound change, with conflicts overseas undermining security and prosperity at home. This Government will continue using diplomatic solutions in a multidisciplinary approach to achieve our interests. We are reinforcing our relationships. The Prime Minister hosted European leaders to deliver on European security. The Foreign Secretary is driving collective efforts on Ukraine, Gaza, and Sudan with the G7. This Government is developing deeper relations around the globe, reopening negotiations on a Free Trade Agreement with India, signing a UK-South Africa Growth Plan and new Strategic Partnerships with Indonesia and Nigeria. As a permanent member of the United Nations Security Council, we remain committed to upholding the international system, supported by the UK's network of diplomats. We are investing in a College of Diplomacy, ensuring the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office remains ready for the future.
Asked by: Lord Taylor of Warwick (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the impact of British International Investment's increased focus on renewable energy projects in Africa; and what assessment they have made of how this aligns with the UK's international development policy.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon
The FCDO's International Development White Paper outlines the Government's ambition for BII to be a leading DFI on climate finance, supporting partner countries in their transition to net zero and resilient economies. This builds on BII's track record of being the UK's principal investment vehicle for delivering climate finance to developing countries, with over $1 billion of climate finance invested since COP26.
Through the agreement of BII's five-year strategy, Investment Policy, and Policy on Responsible Investment, FCDO ensures alignment of all BII's investments with the UK's international development priorities. In addition, FCDO oversees an evaluation and learning program which recently reviewed BII's infrastructure portfolio. The review found that (i) BII contributes to the provision of cleaner capacity through investments in renewable energy assets, (ii) BII increases resource efficiency through the lowering of power distribution losses in its transmission and distribution (T&D) portfolio, and (iii) 65 percent of the impact generated by BII's infrastructure investments comes from those located in Africa.
Asked by: Lord Taylor of Warwick (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to ensure the safe evacuation of British nationals who are facing challenges trying to leave Gaza.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon
As the Prime Minister and former Foreign Secretary have said, the safety of British nationals remains our top priority. We are working with the Egyptian and Israeli authorities round the clock to ensure our British nationals can leave Gaza as soon as possible. The UK is supportive of limited and temporary cessations of hostilities as part of measures to facilitate the flow of life-saving humanitarian aid into Gaza. It is crucial that we capitalise on the hostage deal to allow as much food, water, medical supplies and fuel as possible to reach vulnerable civilians in Gaza. This pause should act as a confidence-building mechanism for future pauses, including those solely on humanitarian grounds. The UK has a team at the Rafah crossing to ensure we can provide the necessary consular and administrative support needed to British nationals when they cross. We are providing support for British nationals to get from Rafah to Cairo, where we have set up a reception centre and have arranged temporary accommodation. Additional Consular and Border Force staff are in country to support this work, as is an FCDO Rapid Deployment Team and a team of British Red Cross psychological support experts. More than 150 British nationals and their dependants have left Gaza so far, this is well over half of those who registered with the FCDO initially.
Asked by: Lord Taylor of Warwick (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what financial support they are providing to countries in Africa to help combat climate change on that continent.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon
The UK is working closely with African partners to fight climate change, boost resilience and help those whose lives are most impacted. The UK supports initiatives, such as contributing towards the African Development Bank's Climate Action Window (£200 million) and South Africa's Just Energy Transition ($1.8 billion). At the Africa Climate Summit (4-6 September) the Minister for Climate and the Environment, The Rt Hon Andrew Mitchell MP, reaffirmed the Government's commitment to spend £11.6 billion on international climate finance, with approximately 40 per cent of this being spent on Africa. Minister Mitchell also announced projects worth £49 million to help African countries manage the impact of climate change and improve the lives of women, farmers and at-risk communities.
Asked by: Lord Taylor of Warwick (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to renegotiate part of the UK–EU Trade and Cooperation Agreement given reports of threats to (1) export businesses, and (2) the sustainability of manufacturing operations in the UK.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon
We recognise that the Covid pandemic, war in Ukraine and energy crisis have shocked supply chains, meaning raw material costs for manufacturers of electric vehicles have spiked since we signed the Trade and Cooperation Agreement (TCA). This is a problem for manufacturers across Europe, not just in the UK. Ministers have raised this with the European Commission and we're ready to work with the EU and industry to find a joint UK-EU solution.
The UK Government is supporting industry through the Automotive Transformation Fund and Advanced Propulsion Centre to develop a high-value end-to-end electrified automotive supply chain in the UK and support cutting-edge automotive technologies. In the coming months, the Government will build on these interventions with decisive action to ensure future investment in zero emission vehicle manufacturing.
Asked by: Lord Taylor of Warwick (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what recent discussions they have had with international partners regarding how the international development programme can help to support less developed countries that are at the forefront of climate change-related damage.
Answered by Lord Goldsmith of Richmond Park
All parties at COP27, the 27th Conference of the Parties of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), including the UK, agreed to establish new funding arrangements for assisting developing countries that are particularly vulnerable to the effects of climate change. Parties agreed to establish a Transitional Committee of developed and developing countries to operationalise the funding arrangements, with which the UK engages closely.
At COP27 the UK announced a commitment to increase climate adaptation finance to £1.5 billion in 2025. This funding will help countries build their resilience to climate change impacts. The UK engages closely through the UNFCCC process with partners, as well as through direct engagements with developing countries.
Asked by: Lord Taylor of Warwick (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what development programmes they are considering as part of their Official Development Assistance spending.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon
The FCDO's Official Development Assistance spending will be focused according to the priorities set out in the International Development Strategy, while closely taking into account the needs of our partner countries. Individual programme funding decisions will be made by our experts on the ground, guided by our approach to prioritisation.
We will provide an update on Official Development Assistance allocations in due course.
Asked by: Lord Taylor of Warwick (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to form long-lasting partnerships with (1) Latin American, (2) Asian, and (3) African, countries.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon
The UK is committed to working with partners in Latin America, Asia and Africa, including to foster long-term stability and trade, address drivers of conflict, call out human rights abuses and violations, promote democracy and tackle climate change. In his foreign policy speech on 12 December, the Foreign Secretary reaffirmed the UK's commitment to working with developing countries in continents around the world, and to making a sustained effort to revive old friendships and build new ones, reaching beyond long-established alliances. In the last year, the UK has offered guarantees to allow almost £5 billion of extra multilateral finance for the developing world, as well as a reliable source of infrastructure investment through the British Investment Partnerships, through UK Export Finance, and through the G7 Partnership for Global Infrastructure. We are negotiating and signing free trade deals and Mutual Recognition Agreements, and demonstrating our long-term commitment to the Indo Pacific, including by joining the Trans-Pacific free trade agreement as soon as possible.