Asked by: Simon Kirby (Conservative - Brighton, Kemptown)
Question to the Department for International Development:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what recent assessment she has made of the humanitarian situation in Syria.
Answered by Justine Greening
The humanitarian crisis in Syria has reached catastrophic proportions. The UN estimates that 10.8 million people are in dire need of humanitarian aid within Syria. At least 6.5 million people in Syria have been forced to flee their homes to other areas of the country and there are now 3 million refugees in the region. The UN reports that July 2014 was the deadliest month in Syria since the start of the conflict in March 2011, with over 1000 reported civilian deaths.
Asked by: Simon Kirby (Conservative - Brighton, Kemptown)
Question to the Department for International Development:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what progress has been made in the negotiations towards achieving a post-2015 set of millennium development goals; and if she will make a statement.
Answered by Justine Greening
The United Nations Open Working Group on Sustainable Development Goals (OWG), issued its final Report on 28 July 2014. The Report proposed 17 goals and 169 targets. It reflects many of the UK priorities for the Post-2015 agenda including on poverty eradication, gender, sustainable development and open societies and open economies.
The next step will be for the United Nations Secretary General to deliver his Synthesis Report in the Autumn in preparation for intergovernmental negotiations in January 2015. The final post-2015 agenda will be agreed upon at a summit in September 2015.
Asked by: Simon Kirby (Conservative - Brighton, Kemptown)
Question to the Department for International Development:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what steps her Department has taken to help the Philippines recover and build resilience after Typhoon Haiyan.
Answered by Justine Greening
Following the devastation wrought by Typhoon Haiyan last November, DFID committed funding of £77 million for the humanitarian response and early recovery activities. The Independent Commission for Aid Impact (ICAI), the UK independent aid watchdog, reviewed DFID’s response and found it exemplary.
In addition, the UK is making a £5 million investment through a multi-donor trust fund with the Asian Development Bank to build urban resilience in 25 cities in 6 countries including the Philippines. This will allow them to plan for and invest in measures, such as flood protection and drainage systems, to help in the event of future extreme weather events.
Asked by: Simon Kirby (Conservative - Brighton, Kemptown)
Question to the Department for International Development:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what steps the UK is taking to end aid dependency in countries which receive UK aid; and if she will make a statement.
Answered by Justine Greening
The UK government is working to eradicate poverty and end aid dependency through faster economic development, which helps poorer countries achieve a secure, self-financed and timely exit from poverty through creating jobs for individuals and generating taxes for governments to invest in key sectors such as health and education. To achieve this vision, we are putting in place a coherent framework to address the key constraints to economic development and support the main drivers of inclusive and sustained economic growth.
Asked by: Simon Kirby (Conservative - Brighton, Kemptown)
Question to the Department for International Development:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what steps her Department is taking to provide humanitarian assistance in Eastern Ukraine; and if she will make a statement.
Answered by Justine Greening
The UK has committed £1.4 million of humanitarian assistance to Ukraine this Financial Year, which includes £1 million following the recently launched UN Preliminary Response Plan.
Asked by: Simon Kirby (Conservative - Brighton, Kemptown)
Question to the Department for International Development:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, if she will make UK aid to Malawi conditional on the repeal of laws which discriminate against LGBT people; and if she will make a statement.
Answered by Baroness Featherstone
The UK is not currently providing any aid to the Government of Malawi. At the end of 2013, the UK suspended all funding going through Malawi government systems following revelations of wide-spread fraud and corruption involving public finances.
Asked by: Simon Kirby (Conservative - Brighton, Kemptown)
Question to the Department for International Development:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, if she will make UK development aid to Uganda conditional on the repeal of laws in that country which discriminate against LGBT people; and if she will make a statement.
Answered by Baroness Featherstone
The UK suspended all budget support to the Government of Uganda in 2013. After the Anti-Homosexuality Act was passed we assessed our programme to ensure that UK aid was not being provided to organisations that proactively and publically promoted the legislation.
The UK welcomes the decision of the Ugandan Constitutional Court to annul the Anti-Homosexuality Act.
Asked by: Simon Kirby (Conservative - Brighton, Kemptown)
Question to the Department for International Development:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, if she will review her departmental estate in order to reduce costs; and if she will make a statement.
Answered by Desmond Swayne
DFID has reviewed its UK estate which resulted in a move from 1 Palace Street, Victoria to 22 Whitehall. The move was completed on time and more than £1 million under budget.
The relocation will save HMG £62.5 million in rent and rates by 2020. The move also heralded a new, more business-like approach from the department, with more efficient use of office space and flexible working practices saving even more money in the longer term.
Asked by: Simon Kirby (Conservative - Brighton, Kemptown)
Question to the Department for International Development:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, if she will estimate the annual cost to her Department of (a) stationery and (b) postage incurred when sending a ministerial reply to hon. Members; and if she will make a statement.
Answered by Desmond Swayne
Based on approximately 3,500 replies a year we estimate the annual cost of replying to hon. members as: a) £525, b) £1,650.
Asked by: Simon Kirby (Conservative - Brighton, Kemptown)
Question to the Department for International Development:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, whether she has any plans to increase the number of replies within her Department's working day standard; and if she will make a statement.
Answered by Desmond Swayne
The handling of correspondence is given the highest priority by my Department and we aim to respond to all correspondence within 15 working days.