Asked by: Sarah Champion (Labour - Rotherham)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether he has made an assessment of the potential impact of the planned reduction of Official Development Assistance on the number of women at risk of preventable death in pregnancy and childbirth.
Answered by Stephen Doughty - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Official Development Assistance (ODA) allocations and the impact on programmes are being worked through, following the decision to reduce UK ODA from 0.5 per cent or gross national income to 0.3 per cent in 2027. We will be taking a rigorous approach to ensure that all ODA delivers value for money, including by considering the impact on women and girls in accordance with the public sector equality duty.
The UK remains unequivocally committed to supporting global efforts to end preventable maternal, child, and newborn deaths in line with Sustainable Development Goal targets. This month the UK delegation to the UN Commission on Population and Development committed to protect and progress sexual and reproductive health and rights, including maternal and newborn health by cosponsoring the launch of the Global Midwifery Accelerator. The UK continues to work closely with partners and provides strong political leadership on maternal health, to end preventable deaths.
Asked by: Sarah Champion (Labour - Rotherham)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 17 February 2025 to Question 29899 on Gaza: Energy and Water Supply, if he will make an assessment of the potential impact of prioritising Gazan contractors in the rebuilding of Gaza on the economy of the Occupied Palestinian Territories.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Civil society will be best placed to rebuild their communities, and we must ensure they have the right support. We will be guided by our trusted partners in supporting private sector investment in Gaza's recovery and reconstruction, including considering how to work with Gazan construction agencies. We are exploring ways to support private sector recovery in Gaza and continue to provide ongoing support to monitor, protect and grow the private sector in the Occupied Palestinian Territories, and improve the Palestinian trade performance.
Asked by: Sarah Champion (Labour - Rotherham)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether he has had discussions with his US counterpart on the Guttmacher Institute's publication entitled Family planning impact of the Trump foreign assistance freeze, published on 29 January 2025.
Answered by Stephen Doughty - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The Foreign Secretary has not had direct discussions with his US counterpart specifically regarding the Guttmacher Institute's publication on the impact of cuts to US foreign assistance funding on Family Planning initiatives. However, the UK is actively assessing the broader implications of the US funding cuts across various development sectors.
Asked by: Sarah Champion (Labour - Rotherham)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps she is taking to improve data capture on the (a) number of private law proceedings that involve allegations of child sexual abuse and (b) outcomes of these cases.
Answered by Alex Davies-Jones - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)
HM Courts and Tribunals Service will be introducing a new case management system for private law children‘s cases, Manage Cases. This system will identify each type of abuse or harm allegation made by an applicant, including child sexual abuse. This will support data capture of the number of proceedings in which child sexual abuse is a factor and the outcome of these cases. The national roll out of the new digital system is expected to begin later this year.
Asked by: Sarah Champion (Labour - Rotherham)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of the proposed reduction in Official Development Assistance from 2027 on people with disabilities; and what steps he is taking to (a) fund and (b) otherwise resource the FCDO Disability Inclusion and Rights Strategy to 2030.
Answered by Stephen Doughty - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Official Development Assistance (ODA) allocations and the impact on programmes are being worked through following the decision to reduce UK ODA from 0.5 per cent of gross national income to 0.3 per cent in 2027. Equality Impact Assessments - which consider impacts on people with disabilities - are an essential part of how we make decisions, including on ODA allocations. We will set out our spending plans following the completion of the spending review.
At 16 per cent of the global population, people with disabilities are among the world's most vulnerable, particularly at times of crisis. The Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office is committed to mainstreaming a disability inclusion and rights approach across our work and we will also drive stronger international coordination to advance global disability inclusion progress.
Asked by: Sarah Champion (Labour - Rotherham)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, with reference to the the European Commission announcement entitled Vision for Agriculture and Food, published on 19 February 2025, if he will hold discussions with animal welfare organisations on the potential merits of implementing the same regulations as proposed in the EU on (a) phasing out the use of cages for farmed animals and (b) introducing animal welfare labelling.
Answered by Daniel Zeichner - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
This Government was elected on a mandate to introduce the most ambitious plans to improve animal welfare in a generation. The Department is engaging with key animal welfare stakeholders as part of the development of our overarching approach to animal welfare.
The use of cages and other close confinement systems for farmed animals is an issue which we are considering very carefully.
A public consultation on proposals to improve and extend current mandatory method of production labelling was undertaken last year by the previous Government. We are now carefully considering all responses before deciding on next steps and will respond to this consultation in due course.
We await the EU Commission proposals on phasing out the use of cages for farmed animals and animal welfare labelling with interest.
Asked by: Sarah Champion (Labour - Rotherham)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent representations he has made to his (a) Kazakhstani and (b) Tajikistani counterpart on obligations under international law prohibiting the (i) expulsion and (ii) return of refugees to countries where they would face (A) risk of persecution and (B) serious harm.
Answered by Stephen Doughty - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The British Embassies in Astana and Dushanbe monitor the situation in country for refugees, including from Afghanistan, and lobby relevant authorities on their obligations under international law when necessary. I raised human rights with my Kazakh and Tajik counterparts in February 2025 and October 2024 respectively. We continue to encourage all states, including Kazakhstan and Tajikistan to uphold international human rights obligations.
Asked by: Sarah Champion (Labour - Rotherham)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, whether his Department plans to publish a timeline for the Fair Work Agency becoming fully operational.
Answered by Justin Madders - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade)
Creating the Fair Work Agency (FWA) is a complex process that requires primary legislation. The Employment Rights Bill is the first phase of delivering the FWA.
Implementation will occur in phases following Royal Assent to ensure a smooth and effective transition. We will provide more information on timings in due course.