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Written Question
World Health Organisation: Overseas Aid
Monday 15th June 2020

Asked by: John Spellar (Labour - Warley)

Question to the Department for International Development:

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, how much funding was allocated from (a) the UK Government public purse and (b) other countries to the World Health Organisation in 2019.

Answered by Wendy Morton

The UK is the third biggest donor to the WHO, giving £120 million per annum on average. We do not routinely keep data on funding allocated by other countries. The World Health Organization holds this information.


Written Question
Palestinians: Schools
Wednesday 29th January 2020

Asked by: John Spellar (Labour - Warley)

Question to the Department for International Development:

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, with reference to the Answer of 8 July 2019 to Question 272116, if he will place a copy in the Library of the inception report which formed the basis of the independent review of Palestinian Authority textbooks.

Answered by Andrew Murrison - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence)

The UK commissioned the Georg Eckert Institute to produce an inception report. I can confirm that we will place a copy of this inception report in the Library and I will write to the Right Honourable member once this has been done.


Written Question
Middle East and North Africa: Locusts
Tuesday 7th January 2020

Asked by: John Spellar (Labour - Warley)

Question to the Department for International Development:

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what support his Department is providing to countries in the Middle East and North Africa to (a) counter plagues of locusts and to (b) support populations affected by them.

Answered by Andrew Murrison - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence)

DFID provides approximately £17 million per annum in core funding to the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), a strategic objective of which is to “increase the resilience of livelihoods to threats and crises” such as locusts. In 2018, UK core funding to the FAO supported the Desert Locust Information System, which provides an early warning information system for countries including in the Middle East and North Africa.

DFID also funds a range of programmes that work to improve the monitoring of and response to pests more generally. These include the Commonwealth Agricultural Bureaux International (CABI) Plantwise and Action on Invasives programmes, the development and testing of biopesticides by the International Centre of Insect Physiology and Ecology, and new work under development with the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation to strengthen pest and disease surveillance, forecasting and the coordination and capacity of plant health organisations.


Written Question
Developing Countries: Renewable Energy
Monday 28th October 2019

Asked by: John Spellar (Labour - Warley)

Question to the Department for International Development:

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what support his Department provides to developing countries to support off-grid electricity generation from renewable sources.

Answered by Lord Goldsmith of Richmond Park

Off-grid renewable energy is often the best way for millions of people to have access to electricity, especially in rural areas. DFID’s support to off-grid electricity generation is delivered through a range of programmes.

We provide funding for the installation of off-grid solar power, such as through mini-grid projects in Kenya and Rwanda. We provide technical assistance and are helping to establish markets in a number of African countries for household solar power. For example, a programme using results-based financing is delivering clean energy electricity access to millions, while the Africa Clean Energy programme is supporting a market-based approach for private sector delivery of solar home system products and services.

We also support private sector off-grid projects through the Green Climate Fund. For example, one project is helping 50 poor, rural communities in Mali to switch from fossil fuel-powered diesel generators and kerosene lamps to green energy by installing solar mini-grids. We also support development finance interventions such as the Private Infrastructure Development Group, the Multilateral Development Banks, and CDC – which has, for example, invested substantial equity in M-KOPA, a pay-as-you-go solar energy company.

Since 2011, the UK has provided 26 million people with improved access to clean energy and installed 1,600 MW in clean energy capacity.

The Prime Minister announced at the UN Climate Action Summit funding of up to £1 billion for research, development and deployment of new energy technologies and business models to unlock opportunities in developing countries for cleaner growth and better access to clean energy.


Written Question
Pakistan: Earthquakes
Thursday 3rd October 2019

Asked by: John Spellar (Labour - Warley)

Question to the Department for International Development:

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what assistance the Government is offering to the Government of Pakistan following the aftermath of the recent earthquake in Azad Kashmir.

Answered by Lord Goldsmith of Richmond Park

DFID has been liaising closely with the Government of Pakistan’s National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) since the earthquake struck on 24 September 2019.

Key humanitarian partners, including UN agencies, met with the NDMA to discuss the response to the earthquake on Friday 27 September. The NDMA confirmed that the Government of Pakistan will not launch any formal appeal or request for National or International Assistance, but donors and agencies can provide assistance on a voluntary basis.

DFID stands ready to respond and provide funding and the National Disaster Consortium partners have pre-positioned supplies which can be deployed at short notice.


Written Question
Yemen: Humanitarian Aid
Wednesday 17th July 2019

Asked by: John Spellar (Labour - Warley)

Question to the Department for International Development:

What recent discussions he has had with his (a) European and (b) other international counterparts on the humanitarian crisis in Venezuela.

Answered by Andrew Murrison - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence)

The UK regularly discusses the humanitarian crisis in Venezuela in international fora.

This includes with our European counterparts, as well as during the visits to the UK by the Colombian President Duque and US Secretary of State Pompeo.

Together with our international partners, we continue to call for unimpeded access for humanitarian aid in to Venezuela.


Written Question
Venezuela: Reconstruction
Monday 4th February 2019

Asked by: John Spellar (Labour - Warley)

Question to the Department for International Development:

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what preparations her Department has made for urgent reconstruction work in Venezuela in the event of a change of Government.

Answered by Alistair Burt

DFID does not have a bilateral presence in Venezuela. DFID continues to work closely with – and provide significant core funding to – the UN and Red Cross movement to alleviate the worsening humanitarian situation. In the event of a change in government in Venezuela, the international financial institutions will play a key role in supporting any reconstruction work.


Written Question
Venezuela: Refugees
Monday 19th November 2018

Asked by: John Spellar (Labour - Warley)

Question to the Department for International Development:

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, pursuant to the answers of 12 November 2018 to Questions 188711 and 188712 on Venezuela, how much money from the public purse has been spent on Venezuelan related aid in the last year.

Answered by Alistair Burt

Despite efforts by the UK to urge the Venezuelan Government to accept humanitarian aid, they continue to deny the existence of a humanitarian crisis.

DFID is supporting the relief effort within the region through partners such as United Nations agencies, the Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF), the European Commission and the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC).

The European Commission announced a €35m aid package this year of which the UK’s share is approximately 15%. In addition, the UK is a longstanding supporter of the CERF which allocated $26m to the region. The UK is the largest donor to the fund since inception and in 2017 represented 20% of the fund’s total contributions. This year the UK has contributed £55m to the CERF which will support responses to humanitarian needs across the globe, including in response to the Venezuelan crisis. DFID is also ICRC’s second largest donor, providing approximately £63m of core funding per year for ICRC to direct towards priority operations across the globe as they deem appropriate.


Written Question
Land Mines
Monday 19th November 2018

Asked by: John Spellar (Labour - Warley)

Question to the Department for International Development:

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, how much her Department spent on the clearance of landmines and improvised explosive devices in the last 12 months.

Answered by Alistair Burt

Between October 2017 and October 2018 the Department for International Development spent £45,308,302 on programmes that reduce the humanitarian impact of landmines and improvised explosive devices (ERW). These programmes survey and clear land contaminated by landmines and ERW; provide mine risk education sessions to help communities understand the dangers of landmines and ERW; and support national mine action authorities to manage contamination effectively and efficiently.


Written Question
Venezuela: Overseas Aid
Monday 12th November 2018

Asked by: John Spellar (Labour - Warley)

Question to the Department for International Development:

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what discussions she has had with her EU and UN counterparts on providing humanitarian relief to Venezuelans in that country and in neighbouring countries.

Answered by Alistair Burt

DFID has deployed two humanitarian experts and funded additional roles for UN agencies in the region. The UK is also supporting the international response through core funding to the UN, humanitarian agencies, the European Commission and Red Cross movements.

The UK continues to urge the Venezuelan Government to accept humanitarian aid and DFID is supporting the Foreign and Commonwealth Office’s efforts to urge Venezuela to meet their population’s needs.