Asked by: Florence Eshalomi (Labour (Co-op) - Vauxhall)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, whether his Department is providing support to (a) the HIV Justice Network and (b) other organisations working to repeal HIV-specific laws globally.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
Addressing stigma, discrimination and criminalisation is critical to ensuring equality of access to HIV prevention, testing and treatment services and to achieving progress in the global HIV response.
The UK is a champion of human rights around the world and we are committed to the principle of non-discrimination on any grounds, including on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity. The UK's network of over 280 Diplomatic Missions monitor human rights in host countries.
At the UN High Level Meeting on HIV in June 2021, the UK worked hard to secure the highest level of commitment from our global partners and garner support for the ambitious, rights-based Global AIDS Strategy 2021-2026, so the world has the best chance of meeting the 2030 goal to end AIDS. We also endorse the Global Fund's 2023-2028 Strategy, with a focus on addressing inequities and structural drivers of HIV infection and AIDS-related deaths including barriers to services due to stigma, discrimination and criminalisation.
Our funding to the Robert Carr Fund and to UNAIDS helps to support legal and policy reform to combat stigma, discrimination and criminalisation, and to improve access to HIV services for those most at risk, as well as supporting civil society and grassroots organisations to challenge harmful policies and attitudes that exclude minorities and put them at greater risk of HIV infection and increase access to services for these groups.
Asked by: Florence Eshalomi (Labour (Co-op) - Vauxhall)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, what steps he is taking to help encourage the repeal of HIV specific laws in the 20 jurisdictions in the Commonwealth that still have them.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
Addressing stigma, discrimination and criminalisation is critical to ensuring equality of access to HIV prevention, testing and treatment services and to achieving progress in the global HIV response.
The UK is a champion of human rights around the world and we are committed to the principle of non-discrimination on any grounds, including on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity. The UK's network of over 280 Diplomatic Missions monitor human rights in host countries.
At the UN High Level Meeting on HIV in June 2021, the UK worked hard to secure the highest level of commitment from our global partners and garner support for the ambitious, rights-based Global AIDS Strategy 2021-2026, so the world has the best chance of meeting the 2030 goal to end AIDS. We also endorse the Global Fund's 2023-2028 Strategy, with a focus on addressing inequities and structural drivers of HIV infection and AIDS-related deaths including barriers to services due to stigma, discrimination and criminalisation.
Our funding to the Robert Carr Fund and to UNAIDS helps to support legal and policy reform to combat stigma, discrimination and criminalisation, and to improve access to HIV services for those most at risk, as well as supporting civil society and grassroots organisations to challenge harmful policies and attitudes that exclude minorities and put them at greater risk of HIV infection and increase access to services for these groups.
Asked by: Florence Eshalomi (Labour (Co-op) - Vauxhall)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps he is taking to secure the release of British hostages in Iran.
Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK does not, and never will, accept our nationals being used as diplomatic leverage. The Iranian Government has put detained British nationals and their loved ones through unimaginably difficult ordeals, and it remains in Iran's gift to release any British National who has been unfairly detained. The Government continues to call out Iran's behaviour, including urging the Government of Iran to stop its practice of unfairly detaining British and other foreign nationals. With regard to individual detentions, our guiding principle is to act in the best interests of that individual. The Foreign Secretary, FCDO Ministers and - where appropriate - the Prime Minister are fully engaged in complex cases and have raised issues with foreign governments.
Asked by: Florence Eshalomi (Labour (Co-op) - Vauxhall)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, how many suppliers their Department excluded from procurement on the grounds of (a) fraud, (b) corruption and (c) other grounds under the Public Contract Regulations 2015 from 2015 to 2022.
Answered by David Rutley - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The grounds for the exclusion of bidders from public procurement procedures are set out in the Public Contracts Regulations 2015. These rules set out the circumstances in which bidders must, or may, be excluded from a public procurement process. The information requested is not readily available and could only be obtained at disproportionate cost. To obtain the information a manual search through individual records would be required as this is not recorded centrally on departmental systems.
Asked by: Florence Eshalomi (Labour (Co-op) - Vauxhall)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what support the Government is providing to help support comprehensive, integrated HIV services in Africa.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
The Government welcomes the Dar Es Salaam Declaration for Action to End AIDS in Children, launched on 1 February. The UK's pledge to the 7th replenishment of the Global Fund will help to save over 1 million lives including by providing medicine for 170,000 mothers to prevent HIV transmission to their babies. We also continue to support UNAIDS to deliver on its mandate to provide effective leadership for the global HIV response and implement the ambitious new Global AIDS Strategy. The UK continues to fund other key international partners, including UNITAID, the Robert Carr Fund, the Global Financing Facility and others on combatting HIV and AIDS in Africa and in children, pregnant women and mothers. These investments are aligned to our commitments in the International Development Strategy on women and girls and global health. Furthermore, our integrated approach ensures that countering HIV is embedded in FCDO's health systems strengthening work and our work to end the preventable deaths of mothers, babies and children, including through our bilateral programming. Our Women's Integrated Sexual Health programme has supported the provision of integrated services in sub-Saharan Africa and the integration of comprehensive sexuality education modules, including HIV prevention, into the national school curriculum in Sierra Leone.
Asked by: Florence Eshalomi (Labour (Co-op) - Vauxhall)
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 (a) help ensure access to treatment and care for (i) pregnant and (ii) breastfeeding women and (b) help those women stay in care in Africa.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
The Government welcomes the Dar Es Salaam Declaration for Action to End AIDS in Children, launched on 1 February. The UK's pledge to the 7th replenishment of the Global Fund will help to save over 1 million lives including by providing medicine for 170,000 mothers to prevent HIV transmission to their babies. We also continue to support UNAIDS to deliver on its mandate to provide effective leadership for the global HIV response and implement the ambitious new Global AIDS Strategy. The UK continues to fund other key international partners, including UNITAID, the Robert Carr Fund, the Global Financing Facility and others on combatting HIV and AIDS in Africa and in children, pregnant women and mothers. These investments are aligned to our commitments in the International Development Strategy on women and girls and global health. Furthermore, our integrated approach ensures that countering HIV is embedded in FCDO's health systems strengthening work and our work to end the preventable deaths of mothers, babies and children, including through our bilateral programming. Our Women's Integrated Sexual Health programme has supported the provision of integrated services in sub-Saharan Africa and the integration of comprehensive sexuality education modules, including HIV prevention, into the national school curriculum in Sierra Leone.
Asked by: Florence Eshalomi (Labour (Co-op) - Vauxhall)
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 help (a) provide access to universal testing and treatment and (b) supress the virus for all children and adolescents living with HIV in Africa.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
The Government welcomes the Dar Es Salaam Declaration for Action to End AIDS in Children, launched on 1 February. The UK's pledge to the 7th replenishment of the Global Fund will help to save over 1 million lives including by providing medicine for 170,000 mothers to prevent HIV transmission to their babies. We also continue to support UNAIDS to deliver on its mandate to provide effective leadership for the global HIV response and implement the ambitious new Global AIDS Strategy. The UK continues to fund other key international partners, including UNITAID, the Robert Carr Fund, the Global Financing Facility and others on combatting HIV and AIDS in Africa and in children, pregnant women and mothers. These investments are aligned to our commitments in the International Development Strategy on women and girls and global health. Furthermore, our integrated approach ensures that countering HIV is embedded in FCDO's health systems strengthening work and our work to end the preventable deaths of mothers, babies and children, including through our bilateral programming. Our Women's Integrated Sexual Health programme has supported the provision of integrated services in sub-Saharan Africa and the integration of comprehensive sexuality education modules, including HIV prevention, into the national school curriculum in Sierra Leone.
Asked by: Florence Eshalomi (Labour (Co-op) - Vauxhall)
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 help provide life-saving treatment to children living with HIV in Africa.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
The Government welcomes the Dar Es Salaam Declaration for Action to End AIDS in Children, launched on 1 February. The UK's pledge to the 7th replenishment of the Global Fund will help to save over 1 million lives including by providing medicine for 170,000 mothers to prevent HIV transmission to their babies. We also continue to support UNAIDS to deliver on its mandate to provide effective leadership for the global HIV response and implement the ambitious new Global AIDS Strategy. The UK continues to fund other key international partners, including UNITAID, the Robert Carr Fund, the Global Financing Facility and others on combatting HIV and AIDS in Africa and in children, pregnant women and mothers. These investments are aligned to our commitments in the International Development Strategy on women and girls and global health. Furthermore, our integrated approach ensures that countering HIV is embedded in FCDO's health systems strengthening work and our work to end the preventable deaths of mothers, babies and children, including through our bilateral programming. Our Women's Integrated Sexual Health programme has supported the provision of integrated services in sub-Saharan Africa and the integration of comprehensive sexuality education modules, including HIV prevention, into the national school curriculum in Sierra Leone.
Asked by: Florence Eshalomi (Labour (Co-op) - Vauxhall)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps he is taking to help countries impliment legal reforms that would help end AIDS and HIV amongst the (a) LGBT+ community (b) women and (c) migrants.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
Our funding to the Robert Carr Fund and to UNAIDS helps to support legal and policy reform to combat stigma and discrimination and to improve access to HIV services for those most at risk. Addressing stigma and discrimination and ensuring equality of access to HIV prevention, testing and treatment services is critical to the global HIV response. The UK is a champion for human rights. We support the strategy of the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, TB and Malaria with its focus on addressing inequities and structural drivers of HIV infection and AIDS-related deaths including legal barriers.
Asked by: Florence Eshalomi (Labour (Co-op) - Vauxhall)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether his Department is taking steps to work with community-led organisations to develop measurement tools based on programme implementation data to identify programmes that are suitable for (a) investment and (b) scale-up.
Answered by Andrew Mitchell - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) (Minister for Development)
The UK's International Development Strategy recognises the importance of locally-led decision-making - to give those who benefit from our programmes a voice in what we do and how we do it.
The FCDO's Official Development Assistance (ODA) programming decisions are delegated to those closest to delivery, working with local organisations to assess emerging evidence and programme performance.
Our approach to annual programme monitoring ensures that teams look at the learning being built through delivery and at programme delivery against objectives. This enables informed decisions on future changes to the programme, including on possible scale-up. All programme annual reviews are published on Dev Tracker (devtracker.gov.uk).
The FCDO are developing an advisory panel which will include local and UK based organisations who will represent community led organisations. The advisory panel will support the FCDO in developing our approach to working with small organisations. We will test our thinking and approaches with this group before implementing changes to approach. So far over 100 organisations have expressed an interest in becoming part of this advisory panel.