Yasmin Qureshi

Through the Restoring Your Railway Ideas Fund, the Department has announced funding of up to £50,000 to develop plans to extend the Metrolink to Bolton and Bury. The Department and Network Rail are providing support to Transport for Greater Manchester to conduct a feasibility study.

Local authorities are responsible for managing traffic on their roads, including implementation of measures such as low-traffic neighbourhoods. In July 2020 the Government announced ambitious plans for cycling and walking, and committed £2 billion of funding for active travel over the next 5 years. The details are set out in the Prime Minister’s Gear Change plan and can be viewed at www.gov.uk/government/publications/cycling-and-walking-plan-for-england.

The Plan sets out a comprehensive, long term vision to increase active travel and embed the benefits of walking and cycling into how we live, work and move around. This includes the creation of new low-traffic neighbourhoods, to stop rat-running and make it easier to walk and cycle.

We have announced several measures available to UK businesses, including coach operators and manufacturers, and this includes further measures announced by the Chancellor on 24 September as part of the Winter Economy Plan and support for businesses in local lockdown areas.

In addition, we are supporting coaches to be used for school transport and public transport, where appropriate. The Department for Education has provided over £70 million to local transport authorities to provide additional dedicated school and college capacity in our transport system, including coaches.

We continue to work closely with representatives from the coach sector including the Confederation of Passenger Transport, and with other Government Departments, to understand the ongoing risks and issues, including demand considerations and how these could be addressed.

The Department for Transport is actively monitoring the impact on jobs in the aviation sector from Covid-19 at the national and regional level, with support from other government Departments.

The Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme has been available to businesses affected by COVID-19 to pay wages. The Job Support Scheme will replace the scheme from 1 November, where businesses can also take advantage of the Job Retention Bonus.

The Department for Transport has worked with a Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (SAGE) sub-group to develop the Transport Risk Assessment for COVID Knowledge (TRACK) project. TRACK is an 18-month, £1.7 million UKRI-funded project to understand and model the transmission of COVID-19 on public transport. The Department has also commissioned the Defence Science and Technology Laboratory to do work on the transmission risk for aviation.

Further information can be found in a press release from the University of Leeds from the 21st October entitled "Research to understand COVID-19 spread on public transport”.

The Government supports the use of hydrogen trains on the railway where appropriate to deliver our legally binding target to reach net-zero greenhouse gas emissions from the UK by 2050.

Network Rail is developing a Traction Decarbonisation Network Strategy which will examine which parts of the network are best suited to use of hydrogen trains, as well as battery and electrification. This will inform Government decisions in 2020.

Our innovation programmes have supported the development of hydrogen technology, such as the ‘Hydroflex’ train, and continue to provide funding opportunities for innovative environmental projects. The Government is also funding work on safety and wider issues that will have to be considered to allow the smooth entry into service on the network of hydrogen trains.

The Government recognises the performance and capacity problems in Manchester and therefore commissioned Richard George and Network Rail to recommend service and infrastructure options. Officials have now received the first recommendations, which they are currently considering and expect more of over the course of the next few months.

To help communities across the country, we have pledged £500m to start reopening lines closed following the Beeching report, reconnecting smaller towns, regenerating local economies and improving accessibility to jobs, homes and education.

Further details will be announced in due course.

The Government is committed to supporting disabled people affected by the COVID-19 outbreak. We continue to monitor the impact of COVID-19 on disabled people using existing and new data sources.

The Minister for Disabled People, Health and Work has had discussions with charities, disabled people's organisations and individuals to understand the range of experiences disabled people have had during the COVID-19 pandemic and to identify the support needed as lockdown restrictions are eased.

We are ensuring that disabled people continue to have access to disability benefits, food, medicines, essentials, accessible communications, updated guidance, including workplace and transport related guidance, as well as financial and other support during the COVID-19 outbreak.

The Government continues to provide disability employment support through initiatives such as Access to Work, Disability Confident, the Work and Health Programme, Intensive Personalised Employment Support, and other forms of support that disabled people need to retain, adapt and move into employment.

The Cabinet Office Disability Unit works with disability stakeholders and across Government Departments to ensure that the needs of disabled people are considered in the UK Government’s response to COVID-19. We are clear that consideration of equality impacts must be integral in all key policy decisions. All equality and discrimination laws and obligations continue to apply during the COVID-19 pandemic.

We will publish the National Strategy for Disabled People taking into account the impacts of the pandemic on disabled people. The Strategy will focus on the issues that disabled people say affect them the most in all aspects and phases of life.

This Government is committed to supporting the most vulnerable in society. The Secretary of State for Work and Pensions engages regularly with her counterparts, including the Secretary of State for Education.

Secretaries of State will continue to talk across government to ensure all the levers available are used to tackle poverty, including for the most disadvantaged children and families. The Department for Environment and Rural Affairs also established a cross-government Task Force on Food and Other Essential Supplies for Vulnerable People.

We have taken unprecedented action to support and protect jobs, with over 9.5 million people having been supported through the furlough scheme. The Department for Work and Pensions quickly introduced a package of support, including welfare changes worth £9.3bn this year to help people with the financial consequences of the Covid-19 pandemic.

The Government established a £500m local authority hardship fund to protect people, by banning evictions, securing mortgage holidays and helping with energy bills. It has provided a further £63m to local authorities in England for their Welfare Assistance schemes to help those families struggling to afford food and other essentials.

The information is not available. DWP’s ODA spend has no initiatives targeted specifically at women and girls.

The Disability Unit is working across Government Departments to ensure that the needs of disabled people are considered in the Government’s response to Covid-19. The Government welcomes Scope’s report on 'Disabled People and the Coronavirus Crisis', and will consider its recommendations.

The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) is not currently undertaking any specific steps to assess the effect of air pollutants on the health of drive-through workers.

There is a robust regulatory framework in place to protect workers from exposure to hazardous substances as a result of work activities, including airborne contaminants. The Control of Substances Hazardous to Health Regulations 2002 require employers to prevent or control employee exposure to hazardous substances at work, so far as is reasonably practicable. The Regulations are supported by Workplace Exposure Limits (WELS) for substances hazardous to health including Nitrogen Monoxide, Nitrogen Dioxide, Carbon Monoxide and Sulphur Dioxide, that are also known airborne contaminants.

Tackling occupational lung disease (OLD) as a result of workplace exposure to hazardous substances is one of HSE’s health priorities. HSE works with a broad range of stakeholders including trade associations, employers, trade unions, third sector and professional bodies to reduce the incidence rate of OLD.

The managed quarantine measures only apply to people travelling from ‘red list’ countries as these countries are judged to pose a risk to the United Kingdom from variants of concern and inbound international travel. The Government advises against travel to these countries and does not offer compensation for those who spend time in a managed quarantine facility.

All applications for exemptions to managed quarantine should be sent to the Department where they will be assessed.

Decisions to place countries on the ‘red list’ are taken by Ministers, informed by evidence including the Joint Biosecurity Centre’s (JBC) analysis as well as other relevant information about the risk of the spread of variants and other wider public health factors. We are unable to provide the information requested as it relates to the on-going development of Government policy.

A summary of the JBC’s methodology is published alongside key summary data that supports Ministers' decisions, which is available at the following link:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/covid-19-risk-assessment-methodology-to-inform-international-travel-traffic-light-system/risk-assessment-methodology-to-inform-international-travel-traffic-light-system

Virus Watch data, supported by NHS Test and Trace, provides information regarding patients’ antibodies and this includes immunocompromised patients as part of their cohort. The data suggests some protection against COVID-19, but is only one measure and does not look at cellular immunity which may be more important in terms of long-term immunity.

Each antibody test will vary in its sensitivity and specificity and there is currently no agreed level of antibody which indicates someone is immune. The Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation will continue to review evidence on the use of vaccines in those with immunosuppression and will update its advice as necessary.

The information is not available in the format requested as we do not routinely allocate funding at country level.

There are no current plans to make an official assessment.

No specific assessment has been made.

It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before prorogation.

It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before prorogation.

It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before prorogation.

It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before prorogation.

The Department is working closely with NHS England and NHS Improvement and the Chief Dental Officer for England to increase levels of service, as fast as is safely possible. On 29 March we announced that the threshold for full National Health Service contractual payment would be raised to 60% of normal activity, whilst keeping in place income protection for practices where infection control is particularly challenging. We continue to explore what more can be done to increase capacity including piloting pre-appointment testing.

Over 6,000 National Health Service dental practices in England have been able to see patients face to face since 8 June 2020.

In Bolton there are currently 30 NHS dental practices, of which six are operating as urgent dental providers, receiving referrals for any patients who require urgent treatment as well as referrals for looked after children.

The Department is working with the General Dental Council on legislative proposals which will allow it greater flexibility to expand and improve on the registration options open to international applicants, which includes the Overseas Registration Exam. We aim to launch a public consultation on these proposals later this year.

The Department is working with the General Dental Council on legislative proposals which will allow it greater flexibility to expand and improve on the registration options open to international applicants, which includes the Overseas Registration Exam. We aim to launch a public consultation on these proposals later this year.

Contractual arrangements for the first six months of the 2021/22 financial year have been introduced by NHS England and NHS Improvement. The revised unit of dental activity threshold set at 60% is based on data that indicates practices may now have capacity to safely achieve more dental activity. Arrangements will be monitored on a monthly basis and are expected to be in place for six months in order to provide increased stability for dental practices. National Health Service commissioners have the discretion to make exceptions, for instance in cases where a dental practice has been impacted by staff being required to self-isolate.

The Department will work with the British Dental Association and NHS England and NHS Improvement who will lead the next stage of dental contract reform. This will involve designing implementable proposals that address the key challenges facing the delivery of NHS dentistry and will encourage a more preventative approach to dentistry.

Information on any additional funding allocated to children and young people’s mental health services serving Bolton is not held centrally. On 5 March 2021 the Government announced £79 million of additional funding for children and young people’s mental health. This will be used to significantly expand children’s mental health services in England and will allow around 22,500 more children and young people to access community health services and 2,000 more children and young people to access eating disorder services.

The interim NHS People Plan commits to addressing shortages within the dental workforce. Through the Advancing Dental Care Education and Training Review programme, Health Education England is considering how dental and oral health needs can be best met through changes to the workforce. This includes exploring opportunities for flexible training pathways to improve retention. NHS England and NHS Improvement are also working with the profession and the British Dental Association to assess how the whole dental team may be better utilised to enable dentists to free up capacity and increase access.

General practice is open and has been throughout the pandemic, and people should continue to access services by phone, online or in person. The way in which people can access general practice services during COVID-19 has changed. Practices are offering more triage and remote consultations, video and online, to see as many patients as possible while protecting staff and patients from avoidable risk of infection. Practices continue to undertake routine and preventative work including vaccinations and immunisations and screening, as well as supporting their more high-risk patients with ongoing care needs.

NHS England and NHS Improvement have issued guidance on the importance of continuing to offer face to face appointments, utilising remote triage, making use of online and telephone consultations where appropriate, whilst considering the needs of those unable to access or engage with digital services. On 7 January 2021 NHS England and NHS Improvement set out further details on the actions to release capacity in general practice as well as priorities for the next quarter. This includes maintaining routine appointments, supporting the clinically extremely vulnerable and those with ‘long’ COVID-19, and continuing to make progress in the backlog of appointments.

General practice appointment levels are now close to pre-pandemic numbers. In February 2021, an estimated 23.5 million appointments were booked in general practice in England - an average of 1.19 million per working weekday to 1.24 million appointments per working weekday in February 2020. In February 2021, 13 million appointments were face to face, which is 55.3% of all appointments.

The Department is working with the General Dental Council on legislative proposals which will allow it greater flexibility to expand and improve on the registration options open to international applicants. We aim to launch a public consultation on these proposals later this year

We have record numbers of dental students in training. As at November 2020 there were 2,667 dental students - 28.9% more since 2010. In addition, in England, the Government temporarily lifted the cap on dental school places for students who completed A-Levels in 2020 and who had an offer from a university in England to study dentistry, subject to their grades. This ensured a place in 2020 or 2021 for every eligible student and meant that the overall number of domestic training places available for those applying to a dental school for the 2021/22 academic year remains unchanged.

The Government currently has no plans to increase the number of funded dental school places beyond this. However, we are committed to ensuring that the number of places reflect England’s workforce requirements and continues to monitor current arrangements. The provision of dentistry training places in Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales is a matter for each devolved administration.

Dentistry has been particularly affected by the risk of COVID-19 transmission due to the number of aerosol generating procedures carried out. This has resulted in the need for an enhanced level of personal protective equipment and reduced throughput to allow for thorough cleaning and resting of rooms between patients, as set out in Public Health England’s Infection Prevention and Control guidance.

The Department is working closely with NHS England and NHS Improvement and the Chief Dental Officer for England to increase levels of service, as fast as is safely possible. We have been closely monitoring what has been possible and on 29 March announced that the threshold for full National Health Service contractual payment would be raised to 60% of normal activity. We continue to explore what more can be done to increase capacity including piloting pre-appointment testing.

NHS England and NHS Improvement have advised that Bolton Clinical Commissioning Group individually assesses the needs of service users with dementia and that they are supported to remain in their own homes for as long as possible. During the pandemic we have enhanced that support by providing evidence based guidance on how best to manage or mitigate the impact of COVID-19 on people living with dementia in care homes and in the community. We have also funded the Alzheimer’s Society and the Race Equality Foundation to provide practical and tailored advice and support.

We do not hold financial data in the format requested prior to 2015/16.

Investment in National Health Service mental health services has been increasing over the years for which data are available. In 2015/16, expenditure on mental health including learning disabilities and dementia by clinical commissioning groups and NHS England and NHS Improvement was £11 billion. In 2019/20, this had risen to £13.3 billion. We are continuing to invest in expanding and transforming mental health services through the NHS Long Term Plan, with funding rising by an additional £2.3 billion a year by 2023/24.

The information requested is not collected centrally.

The Government considers the impact of any new restrictions including the potential impact on mental health, against the risk to public health.

The data is not held in the format requested. However, NHS England publishes daily data for vaccinations in England, showing the total first and second doses given to date, by region. NHS England also publish the number of vaccinations in each United Kingdom constituency by age group, updated weekly. The data is available at the following link:

https://www.england.nhs.uk/statistics/statistical-work-areas/covid-19-vaccinations/

The information requested is shown in the following table:

All recommendations of the Independent Medicines and Medical Devices Safety Review are being considered carefully. The Government will provide an update in 2021.

I replied to the hon. Member’s letter on 26 November 2020.

I refer the hon. Member to the answer to Question 89666 of 12 November.

The Government economic support schemes provide support to the most vulnerable, including those employed in sectors that employ disproportionately large numbers of women, people from some ethnic minorities, and the young. The Job Support Scheme and Job Support Scheme Expansion are particularly important to help these groups that are at a higher risk of unemployment.

I have met several times in recent months with the Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Children and Families (Vicky Ford MP) to discuss how health and education can work together to support children and young people’s mental health and wellbeing as schools reopened.

We remain committed to investing at least £2.3 billion of extra funding a year into all-age mental health services by 2023-24, meaning an additional 345,000 children and young people accessing support through National Health Service-funded services or school- and college-based mental health support teams, if they need them.

The Department for Education’s £8 million Wellbeing for Education Return programme will also provide schools and colleges all over England with the knowledge and access to resources they need to support children and young people, teachers and parents.

The Cancer Recovery Taskforce is overseeing the development of the cancer recovery plan and reviewing progress against objectives including considering any impact of a second wave of COVID-19. The plan will be published shortly. The Taskforce met for the first time in September and will continue to do so on a monthly basis. Membership of the Taskforce is drawn from across the cancer community to coordinate and share expertise and ultimately enable progress towards the successful recovery of cancer services.

NHS England and NHS Improvement’s priorities for recovering cancer services are increasing urgent cancer referrals, reducing the number of patients waiting longer than 62 and 104 days for treatments or diagnostics, and ensuring capacity is in place for patients returning to the system in winter.

The Department does not publish this data in this format.

We recognised there would be a need for additional mental health support for all National Health Service staff and commissioned NHS England and NHS Improvement to develop a comprehensive emotional, psychological and practical support package for all NHS staff.

A support package was launched on 8 April 2020 and includes a helpline and text service for counselling and support, a dedicated bereavement helpline and a range of wellbeing apps. All the support available is free and can be accessed via the following link:

https://people.nhs.uk/help/

The health and wellbeing of NHS staff is of vital importance. ‘We are the NHS: People Plan 2020/21’, published on 30 July, sets out further action that will be taken to support staff health and wellbeing.

The Department of Health and Social Care is tackling our most pressing global health challenges through our Official Development Assistance (ODA) funded programmes: Global Health Research, Global Health Security and Tobacco Control. We do not have a specific budget line for women and girls as they are indirect beneficiaries of all our programmes, which are aimed at improving the lives of the poorest people living in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) in support of Sustainable Development Goal 3 on Good Health and Wellbeing.

In direct support of health issues affecting women and girls, the Department of Health and Social Care has committed up to £36 million to high-quality research projects which address reproductive, maternal and neonatal health in LMICs, through its Global Health Research Programme.

All UK Aid spend is published by the Department for International Development in the form of Statistics on International Development and is available on GOV.UK. Fuller details of the Department of Health and Social Care’s global health research funding portfolio are available on the NIHR website at the following link:

www.nihr.ac.uk/globalhealth

To address the most pressing global health challenges, the Department is delivering Official Development Assistance programmes which hugely benefit women and girls, both directly and indirectly.

The Government and the National Health Service recognises that the COVID-19 pandemic has the potential to lead to the onset of new mental health difficulties as well as exacerbating existing problems, creating additional demand on services. Mental health services will therefore need to adapt to ensure appropriate and timely service levels to meet people’s needs.

We are working with the NHS and Public Health England, service users, academics and the voluntary sector to gather evidence and assess the potential longer-term mental health impacts of COVID-19 and plan for how to support the public’s mental health and wellbeing throughout the ‘recovery’ phase.

Expanding the mental health workforce is a key priority for the Government. We understand the need to get the right workforce in place to deliver our ambitious commitments to transform mental health services and, most importantly, achieve better outcomes for the people we are here to serve.

Our interim NHS People Plan set out immediate actions we will take to fill vacancies and secure the staff we need for the future – including addressing pensions tax concerns, increasing university clinical placements for all nursing specialities by over 5,000 more and bolstering the workforce through greater international recruitment.

In response to ‘Stepping forward to 2020/21: The mental health workforce plan for England’, the overall mental health workforce has grown by over 6,000 individuals since March 2017.

The Government has a track record of reducing the harm caused by tobacco. The United Kingdom is a world leader and has been rated the best in Europe on tobacco control by independent experts.

The Health Act 2006 and the Smoke-free (Premises and Enforcement) Regulations 2006 made it illegal to smoke in public enclosed or substantially enclosed areas and workplaces. We support development and implementation of smoke-free policies locally in and around public premises.

The Government has a track record of reducing the harm caused by tobacco and the United Kingdom is considered a world leader in tobacco control. We have been rated the best in Europe on tobacco control by independent experts. However, we are not complacent: tobacco legislation is kept under review to ensure it continues to protect the public’s health.

Development programmes in the Occupied Palestinian Territories (OPTs) work to preserve the prospect of a negotiated Two State Solution and to improve the lives of Palestinians throughout the West Bank, Gaza and East Jerusalem, in line with the UK's longstanding position. The UK engages with a broad range of stakeholders to understand the impact of UK programming, including in the OPTs.

Our future spending allocations will be set in the next Spending Review and full budgets for 2021 will be published in due course, including in our regular Statistics on International Development website and in the Foreign Commonwealth and Development Office Annual Report and Accounts.

Over the next 3 years the UK's demining work will continue to save lives across the world. The Global Mine Action Programme 3 (GMAP3), due to begin in 2022, will involve landmine clearance and risk education to help affected communities keep safe and capacity development for national authorities to help them manage their landmine contamination.

As one of the founding signatories to the 1997 Anti-Personnel Mine Ban Convention and a leading supporter of mine action, the UK will also continue to work towards ending the use of landmines and cluster munitions. The UK has now taken on the Presidency of the Convention on Cluster Munitions and will use its leadership role to encourage more states to sign and implement this important treaty.

The Inter-Agency Misconduct Disclosure Scheme is run by the Steering Committee for Humanitarian Response (SCHR). SCHR has consulted experts to analyse applicable legal frameworks and to provide guidance to current and potential users to build confidence in the scheme and to help remove any potential barriers to implementation. Since May 2021 the FCDO has funded a full-time administrator role which has boosted SCHR's capacity to engage with organisations considering signing up and to support existing signatories. There are over 100 organisations now implementing the scheme, of whom around one third are UK-based international non-governmental organisations. Under the scheme approximately 200,000 checks have been carried out with no legal or administrative challenges and over 75 people who posed a potential safeguarding risk have not been employed as a result.

Supporting education for children, and particularly girls, in Afghanistan, is a priority for the UK Government and we are working with other donors to coordinate a consistent international response. Taliban policy on girls' education remains unclear, particularly in respect of girls' secondary education. We will continue to work with the international community to use our influence to secure girls' rights, including the right to education. Before making any funding decisions we will look carefully at how we might support girls' equal access to schooling.

Even prior to August 2021 food insecurity was a cause for concern in Afghanistan and the UN's Flash Appeal now estimates that 12.2 million people, or 30 per cent of the population, are facing 'emergency' or 'crisis' levels of food insecurity. We have committed £286 million of development and humanitarian assistance for Afghanistan and will work with the UN and other partners to do all we can to alleviate the humanitarian situation.

We are very aware of the risks posed by another year of drought in Afghanistan and the UN has analysed the impact of the drought to inform the international humanitarian response. We are particularly concerned about the situation of women and girls, and have emphasised the importance of unfettered humanitarian access. We have committed £286 million of development and humanitarian assistance for Afghanistan and will work with the UN and other partners to do all we can to alleviate the impact of the drought on the humanitarian situation.

The UK Government condemns the military coup in Myanmar, the violence against the people of Myanmar and the detention of members of the civilian government and civil society, including State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi and President Win Myint. The state of emergency, and all restrictions on rights and freedoms, should be lifted immediately and power should be returned to a democratically elected government. I [Minister Milling] am particularly concerned at reports this week of significant, indiscriminate violence by the military in Chin State, and elsewhere in the country. The UK is committed to supporting a peaceful resolution to the crisis.

The UK is a longstanding supporter of an arms embargo on Myanmar. We are clear that countries should not sell arms to the Myanmar military. The UK helped secure and strengthen a comprehensive EU arms embargo on Myanmar following the 2017 Rohingya crisis. Since we left the EU, we have transitioned this into domestic law. We are working closely with partners to coordinate pressure on those who sell arms to the military, and have used our leadership role at the G7 and UN to this end. On 5 May, the UK secured a G7 Foreign and Development Ministers' Meeting Communiqué that committed G7 members to continue to prevent the supply of arms and technical assistance to the military. The G7 Leaders' Communiqué of 13 June reaffirmed G7 unity on pursuing additional measures should they prove necessary. On 18 June, the UK worked with partners to deliver a UN General Assembly Resolution which urged member states to prevent the flow of arms to Myanmar.

The UK remains one of the leading donors supporting the humanitarian response in Myanmar. Since the coup, we have provided £15.3 million in humanitarian funding for the Red Cross, UN, and local and International Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs). Where necessary, we have also reprioritised humanitarian funding towards urgent needs, including food and Covid assistance, in Kachin, Shan, Chin and the Southeast. Over the last year the UK has been building up the humanitarian response capacity of communities themselves through partners. This has enabled the UK to get support to very hard to reach communities. Through a network of local responders and communities, 25,000 newly displaced people have been reached with cash and emergency food support in Northern Shan. In Kachin, our partners have reached over 7,500 Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) with food and cash assistance. UK support has been critical in covering major food gaps in several IDP camps between March and August 2021, when other partners could not reach or support these people. The UK remains strongly committed to helping those most in need in Myanmar.

Our immediate focus is on ensuring safe passage for anyone remaining in Afghanistan who is eligible to come to the UK and wishes to leave, supporting the thousands of new arrivals in the UK, and continuing to provide assistance to the Afghan people. As the Foreign Secretary told the Foreign Affairs Committee, he understands the importance of learning the lessons from this response.

Following President Biden's 14 April announcement, we worked intensively with the US, both on military and civilian channels, to ensure an orderly and co-ordinated withdrawal of NATO troops from Afghanistan. We looked at many options, including the potential for staying longer or increasing our presence, but like our NATO allies, we had to be realistic in what was achievable without a US Forces presence.

The temporary reduction in the aid budget has not affected programmes in Afghanistan. The UK will double its aid to Afghanistan, which will provide urgent life-saving assistance to millions of people suffering from the conflict, drought and COVID-19.

Total UK aid to Afghanistan this year will be £286 million. The UK's total aid contribution to the country since 2001 is now around £3.5 billion.

Between 15 and 29 August, the UK evacuated over 15,000 people from Afghanistan. That includes: over 8,000 British Nationals, close to 5,000 Afghans who loyally served the UK, along with their dependents, and around 500 special cases of particularly vulnerable Afghans, including Chevening scholars, journalists, human rights defenders, campaigners for women's rights, judges and many others. All these figures include dependants.

This is in addition to the 2,000 people we brought to the UK between April and August under the ARAP scheme.

Following President Biden's 14 April announcement, and NATO's 15 April decision to withdraw troops, we worked intensively with the US, both on military and civilian channels to ensure an orderly and co-ordinated withdrawal of NATO troops from Afghanistan.

As the Prime Minister has said, we will judge this regime based on the choices it makes, and by its actions rather than by its words, especially the rights of girls to receive an education. Any relationship with a future Taliban Government would need to be calibrated according to their respect for fundamental rights for women and girls.

We likewise expect the new regime to stick by the country's commitments to the sustainable development goals, as well as to other international commitments under the UN framework, including the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.

Alongside international partners, we have continuously emphasised the need for adherence to international humanitarian and human rights law, and have called upon the Taliban to allow safe and unimpeded access to those delivering humanitarian aid, including female aid workers. The UN are seeking commitments from the Taliban to enable humanitarian work to continue; these must include guarantees for female aid workers.

The UK has provided over £3.3 billion of aid since 2001, improving health systems, promoting private sector-led growth, increasing rural incomes, providing educational opportunities and tackling corruption work, as well as providing humanitarian assistance. Life expectancy increased from 56 years in 2002 to 65 in 2020.

We have committed to doubling our humanitarian and development aid to Afghanistan and the region to a total of £286 million this year. We will use our aid to support the UK's immediate objectives including progress on Counter Terrorism assurance, preventing instability spilling over to the region, supporting human rights and meeting humanitarian needs.

We worked tirelessly during Operation Pitting to evacuate safely the overwhelming majority of UK nationals and locally employed Afghan staff. We are now looking at all possible avenues to ensure that any British nationals and local staff remaining in Afghanistan, as well as at-risk individuals who have already been offered a visa to the UK, are able to leave safely if they wish to.

We are committed to prioritising women and girls in the UK's response to the situation in Afghanistan. We will use every humanitarian and diplomatic lever to safeguard human rights and the gains made over the last two decades. The UK led work on the recent UN Security Council resolution, demonstrating our commitment to holding the Taliban to account on human rights, humanitarian access, safe passage and preventing terror. Minister for Human Rights Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon addressed the UN Human Rights Council on 24 August to underscore the UK's commitment to protecting the human rights of all Afghan people, including women and girls, and holding the Taliban to account.

The UK is a leading donor to COVAX, the multilateral mechanism set up to support international co-operation on vaccines, having committed £548 million to the scheme. COVAX has delivered over 1,800,000 doses to Nepal so far with further tranches on the way. As G7 chair this year the UK has also secured a commitment to donate 1 billion vaccine doses to the developing world by June 2022, including 100 million donated by the UK. The majority of these doses will be donated to COVAX. COVAX remains best-placed to allocate vaccines to where they will be most effective. It is helping to support countries to assess vaccine introduction readiness, develop detailed national deployment and vaccination plans, and strengthen delivery systems.

As shareholders and contributors to both the World Bank and the Asian Development Bank, the UK has also pushed hard for multilateral organisations to provide finance to countries for vaccine procurement, including Nepal. The World Bank has now made at least $75 million available to the Government of Nepal for that purpose; a further $165 million will soon be proposed to the board of the Asian Development Bank, which the UK will also support.

The UK is a leading donor to COVAX, the multilateral mechanism set up to support international co-operation on vaccines, having committed £548 million to the scheme. COVAX has delivered over 1,800,000 doses to Nepal so far with further tranches on the way. As G7 chair this year the UK has also secured a commitment to donate 1 billion vaccine doses to the developing world by June 2022, including 100 million donated by the UK. The majority of these doses will be donated to COVAX. COVAX remains best-placed to allocate vaccines to where they will be most effective. It is helping to support countries to assess vaccine introduction readiness, develop detailed national deployment and vaccination plans, and strengthen delivery systems.

As shareholders and contributors to both the World Bank and the Asian Development Bank, the UK has also pushed hard for multilateral organisations to provide finance to countries for vaccine procurement, including Nepal. The World Bank has now made at least $75 million available to the Government of Nepal for that purpose; a further $165 million will soon be proposed to the board of the Asian Development Bank, which the UK will also support.

The UK is leading the way in the run-up to the Global Education Summit. At the G7 Leaders' Summit, the Prime Minister announced the UK pledge of £430 million, an uplift of 15% on the last financing period and our largest ever contribution to GPE. This is also the largest bilateral pledge announced so far and with our co-host, President Kenyatta, we are urging other nations to step up their pledges to GPE.

This significant pledge meant we were able to secure commitment from G7 partners of at least $2.7 billion to GPE ahead of the GES. At the Summit, we hope to secure up to $4 billion, which is 80 per cent of GPE's $5 billion 5-year target, and would be the single biggest ever boost to children's education opportunities around the world.

Official Development Assistance (ODA) is reported on a calendar year basis and includes sectoral breakdowns such as education. The FCDO National Statistics publication, 'Statistics on International Development' includes this information. Provision ODA spend for 2020 will be published in the autumn. The UK's ODA spend for 2021, including an activity level dataset, will be published in 2022.

FCDO publishes regular open data through the International Aid Transparency Initiative (IATI). This operational data covers current live programmes, and will include 2021 spend once business planning is concluded. The raw data can be accessed at the IATI Registry, and is shown on the Development Tracker website: https://devtracker.fcdo.gov.uk/

Promoting gender equality and advancing women and girls' rights around the world is a priority for the UK Government. In our G7 Presidency, we have committed to promote our three 'Es' of gender equality: 'Educating Girls, Empowering Women, and Ending violence against women and girls'. We supported these goals during the Generation Equality Forum in Paris. As a Co-Chair of the Gender Based Violence Action Coalition, at the Global Equality Forum the UK launched our flagship programme 'What Works to Prevent Violence: Impact at Scale', worth up to £67.5 million which is the first global programme to scale up proven approaches to prevent gender-based violence. We also joined a number of collective commitments with other partners through the Action Coalitions on Gender Based Violence, Feminist Action for Climate Justice, Bodily Autonomy and Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights, and Economic Justice and Rights which demonstrated our broad commitment to advance gender equality. We are building on momentum from Paris through the upcoming Girls Education Summit and COP in November.

FCDO's 21/22 planned country allocations (budgets) will be published in our Annual Report later this year alongside our audited 20/21 accounts. HMG's final 2021 ODA spend, including country data will be published in the 'Statistics on International Development: Final UK Aid Spend' in autumn 2022. We will continue to publish our spend information by project on DevTracker as always (updated monthly).

The global climate crisis is a major threat to girls' education, sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR) and gender equality.

SRHR, including voluntary family planning, and girls' education have wide-ranging benefits for individuals and societies, including supporting their adaptive capacity and resilience to climate change. The UK is a proud defender of SRHR and champion of the right of all girls to twelve years of quality education. The UK is committed to delivering an inclusive COP26 that advances gender equality within climate action and finance. Our recently published COP Presidency paper 'Priorities for Public Climate Finance' sets out gender-responsive climate finance as a UK priority, which we are championing through our COP26 and G7 presidencies.

FCDO's 21/22 planned country allocations (budgets) will be published in our Annual Report later this year alongside our audited 20/21 accounts. HMG's final 2021 ODA spend, including country data will be published in the 'Statistics on International Development: Final UK Aid Spend' in autumn 2022. We will continue to publish our spend information by project on DevTracker as always (updated monthly).

The impact of the global pandemic on the economy has forced us to take tough but necessary decisions, including within our global health portfolio. The aid budget has been allocated in accordance with UK strategic priorities against a challenging financial climate. Officials considered any impact on women and girls, the most marginalised and vulnerable, people with disabilities and people from other protected groups when developing advice to Ministers.

The Foreign Secretary provided thematic ODA allocations for 2021/22 in a written ministerial statement which included £1,305 million allocated to global health. The FCDO spend by sector is calculated using OECD-DAC sector codes. Details of FCDO spend by sector code for 2021 will be available in the Statistics on International Development publication in Autumn 2022 and details of FCDO spend for 2022 will be available in the Statistics on International Development publication in Autumn 2023. FCDO programme sector codes are available on DevTracker.

The impact of the global pandemic on the economy has forced us to take tough but necessary decisions, including within our global health portfolio. The aid budget has been allocated in accordance with UK strategic priorities against a challenging financial climate. Officials considered any impact on women and girls, the most marginalised and vulnerable, people with disabilities and people from other protected groups when developing advice to Ministers.

The Foreign Secretary provided thematic ODA allocations for 2021/22 in a written ministerial statement which included £1,305 million allocated to global health. The FCDO spend by sector is calculated using OECD-DAC sector codes. Details of FCDO spend by sector code for 2021 will be available in the Statistics on International Development publication in Autumn 2022 and details of FCDO spend for 2022 will be available in the Statistics on International Development publication in Autumn 2023. FCDO programme sector codes are available on DevTracker.

The UK Government continues to strongly champion sexual and reproductive health and rights, and we use every opportunity to advocate for these rights on the world stage. As COP26 presidents, we want to see all countries stepping up their commitments to promote gender equality in climate action. The UNFCCC Gender Action Plan is the guiding tool for action on gender-responsive climate policies and finance, and empowering women and girls to be leaders in local and national responses to climate change. Through the COP26 Health Programme the UK is also working alongside our international partners to champion the development of climate resilient health systems, which should encompass the development of resilient sexual and reproductive health services.

FCDO's 21/22 planned country allocations (budgets) will be published in our Annual Report later this year alongside our audited 20/21 accounts. The UK Government's final 2021 ODA spend, including country data will be published in the 'Statistics on International Development: Final UK Aid Spend' in autumn 2022. We will continue to publish our spend information by project on DevTracker as always (updated monthly).

FCDO's 21/22 planned country allocations (budgets) will be published in our Annual Report later this year alongside our audited 20/21 accounts. HMG's final 2021 ODA spend, including country data will be published in the 'Statistics on International Development: Final UK Aid Spend' in autumn 2022. We will continue to publish our spend information by project on DevTracker as always (updated monthly).

FCDO's 21/22 planned country allocations (budgets) will be published in our Annual Report later this year alongside our audited 20/21 accounts. HMG's final 2021 ODA spend, including country data will be published in the 'Statistics on International Development: Final UK Aid Spend' in autumn 2022. We will continue to publish our spend information by project on DevTracker as always (updated monthly).

Indonesia has suffered a recent rise in Covid-19 cases, with the total number of cases now over 2 million. We welcome the Indonesian's government response of tightening lockdown measures, and travel restrictions in Jakarta and across Java. We are aware that the health system has been severely impacted in some provinces. The UK is providing direct support on digital healthcare systems, in genomics to better identify variants, and funding new programmes on enhancing Anti-Microbial Resistance. The UK has responded to an Indonesian government request by providing £1 million to provide hygiene, Covid-19 awareness materials and fire prevention measures for peatland communities at increased risk from Covid-19. In partnership with UNICEF and Save the Children, the UK Government is also providing up to £2.4 million for projects in seven Indonesian provinces. More broadly, the UK has provided £548 million to COVAX to support the distribution of vaccines internationally. COVAX has delivered 8.4 million vaccines, to date, in Indonesia. The Foreign Secretary met with Health Minister Budi in April this year and discussed joint efforts to tackle Covid-19 with Foreign Minister Marsudi at the G20 summit on 29 June.

Since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, the UK has championed the importance of rapid, equitable access to safe and effective vaccines. We are among the largest donors to the COVAX Advance Market Commitment (AMC), committing £548 million, which through match-funding leveraged $1 billion from other donors in 2020. This support has been critical to COVAX's distribution of COVID-19 vaccines to over 130 countries and economies, including India, and to support countries to assess vaccine introduction readiness, develop detailed national deployment and vaccination plans, and strengthen delivery systems

The Foreign Secretary launched the UK-India Vaccines Hub in December 2020, which has expanded collaboration between our two countries on vaccine trials, regulation, and vaccination strategies. Our two vaccine task forces are in regular contact, discussing the acceleration of the vaccine programme, target groups, dose intervals, and the best strategies to increase vaccine confidence.

According to India's National Statistic platform, CoWIN, as of 29 June 2021: of 326,840,417 total vaccine doses administered, 175,840,487 were administered to men and 150,944,754 to women.

The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

The Secretary of State provided thematic ODA allocations for 2021/22 in a written ministerial statement which included £1,305 million allocated to global health. Ending the preventable deaths of mothers, newborn and children requires a work across sectors to address the complex pathways leading to mortality. This includes provision of family planning, maternal and neonatal health, immunisation, nutrition, water and sanitation and health systems strengthening work. FCDO supports a range of programmes covering these areas, including support to the Global Financing Facility, Reproductive Health Supplies and Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance.

FCDO spend is calculated using OECD-DAC sector codes. Details of FCDO spend by sector code for 2020 will be available in the Statistics on International Development publication in Autumn 2021 and details of FCDO spend for 2021 will be available in the Statistics on International Development publication in Autumn 2022. FCDO programme sector codes are available on DevTracker. We do not calculate spend on ending preventable deaths interventions in their totality. Broad donor Reproductive Maternal Newborn and Child Health (RMNCH) spend is calculated by the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine using the internationally recognised Muskoka2 methodology. Figures for 2020 are not yet available.

The Secretary of State provided thematic ODA allocations for 2021/22 in a written ministerial statement which included £1,305 million allocated to global health. Ending the preventable deaths of mothers, newborn and children requires a work across sectors to address the complex pathways leading to mortality. This includes provision of family planning, maternal and neonatal health, immunisation, nutrition, water and sanitation and health systems strengthening work. FCDO supports a range of programmes covering these areas, including support to the Global Financing Facility, Reproductive Health Supplies and Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance.

FCDO spend is calculated using OECD-DAC sector codes. Details of FCDO spend by sector code for 2020 will be available in the Statistics on International Development publication in Autumn 2021 and details of FCDO spend for 2021 will be available in the Statistics on International Development publication in Autumn 2022. FCDO programme sector codes are available on DevTracker. We do not calculate spend on ending preventable deaths interventions in their totality. Broad donor Reproductive Maternal Newborn and Child Health (RMNCH) spend is calculated by the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine using the internationally recognised Muskoka2 methodology. Figures for 2020 are not yet available.

The Secretary of State provided thematic ODA allocations for 2021/22 in a written ministerial statement which included £1,305 million allocated to global health. Ending the preventable deaths of mothers, newborn and children requires a work across sectors to address the complex pathways leading to mortality. This includes provision of family planning, maternal and neonatal health, immunisation, nutrition, water and sanitation and health systems strengthening work. FCDO supports a range of programmes covering these areas, including support to the Global Financing Facility, Reproductive Health Supplies and Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance.

FCDO spend is calculated using OECD-DAC sector codes. Details of FCDO spend by sector code for 2020 will be available in the Statistics on International Development publication in Autumn 2021 and details of FCDO spend for 2021 will be available in the Statistics on International Development publication in Autumn 2022. FCDO programme sector codes are available on DevTracker. We do not calculate spend on ending preventable deaths interventions in their totality. Broad donor Reproductive Maternal Newborn and Child Health (RMNCH) spend is calculated by the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine using the internationally recognised Muskoka2 methodology. Figures for 2020 are not yet available.

The Secretary of State provided thematic ODA allocations for 2021/22 in a written ministerial statement which included £1,305 million allocated to global health. Ending the preventable deaths of mothers, newborn and children requires a work across sectors to address the complex pathways leading to mortality. This includes provision of family planning, maternal and neonatal health, immunisation, nutrition, water and sanitation and health systems strengthening work. FCDO supports a range of programmes covering these areas, including support to the Global Financing Facility, Reproductive Health Supplies and Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance.

FCDO spend is calculated using OECD-DAC sector codes. Details of FCDO spend by sector code for 2020 will be available in the Statistics on International Development publication in Autumn 2021 and details of FCDO spend for 2021 will be available in the Statistics on International Development publication in Autumn 2022. FCDO programme sector codes are available on DevTracker. We do not calculate spend on ending preventable deaths interventions in their totality. Broad donor Reproductive Maternal Newborn and Child Health (RMNCH) spend is calculated by the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine using the internationally recognised Muskoka2 methodology. Figures for 2020 are not yet available.

The most up to date UK Official Development Assistance (ODA) allocations for Reproductive, Maternal, Newborn and Child Health (RMNCH) were published in the BMJ Global Health Journal with data analysis provided by the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine (LSHTM), using the internationally accepted Muskoka2 methodology. These are found here: https://gh.bmj.com/content/6/6/e006089.full

The LSHTM Muskoka2 estimates show FCDO spend, adjusted for inflation, as:

• £1,084 million on RMNCH in 2015
• £1,025 million on RMNCH in 2016
• £1,138 million on RMNCH in 2017
• £1,130 million on RMNCH in 2018
• £1,116 million on RMNCH in 2019

We previously stated FCDO spent approximately £1 billion per year on RMNCH between 2013 - 2017. These figures were based on the preceding Muskoka1 methodology and were not adjusted for inflation.

Following reports of data on Rohingya refugees being shared without their consent, the UN's refugee agency, UNHCR, issued a statement on 15 June refuting this. The statement explains careful steps taken to ensure informed consent was obtained from refugee families.

The UK Government supports the registration of Rohingya refugees to ensure they can access the assistance and protection they need. This includes the identification of protection needs of those with specific needs and vulnerabilities and establishing the right to return to Myanmar when they can do so voluntarily, safely and with dignity. We are clear that refugee data must be protected appropriately, and we are in contact with UNHCR on the issue and will continue to monitor the situation closely.

FOI requests are referred to the Clearing House in line with the published criteria available on the gov.uk website.

The Clearing House, which has been in existence since 2004, provides advice to ensure a consistent approach across government to requests for information.

There is a second wave of COVID-19 in Nepal, which is reflected across all three of these indicators. The UK Government continues to support the people of Nepal during this pandemic, and the British Embassy in Kathmandu has reprioritised over £40 million of its development budget to support the COVID-19 response since 2020. In addition, on 28 May the UK Government donated 260 ventilators and various pieces of personal protective equipment, as well as funding two health experts to assess the situation and support Nepal's COVID-19 response.

The UK Government is working closely with federal and local government in Nepal to support the ongoing response to COVID-19. This includes a donation of 260 ventilators and various pieces of personal protective equipment, which arrived in Nepal on 28 May in response to an urgent request for medical supplies from the Government of Nepal. Since the beginning of the pandemic, the British Embassy in Kathmandu has helped Nepal respond to COVID-19 by reprioritising over £40 million of its development budget. This has included support to Nepal's federal and local government, including technical advice to local government in infection hotspots on managing the impact of COVID-19, as well as expert advice to the Ministry of Health and Population on data management, epidemiological analysis, and designing warehouses for vaccine storage.

In response to an urgent request for medical supplies from the Government of Nepal, Her Majesty's Government (HMG) donated 260 ventilators and various pieces of personal protective equipment which arrived in Nepal on 28 May. The same flight carried two HMG-funded health experts to assess the situation and support Nepal's COVID-19 response. Since the beginning of the pandemic, the British Embassy in Kathmandu has reprioritised over £40 million of its development budget including: the construction of an oxygen plant in a Kathmandu hospital; technical advice to local government on managing the impact of COVID-19; water, sanitation and hygiene facilities to support around 300,000 people; safe spaces for women in isolation centres; cash and voucher assistance for the most vulnerable; and nutrition support for pregnant and lactating women. The UK is also a leading donor to COVAX, having committed £548 million to the scheme. COVAX has allocated 2,000,000 vaccine doses to Nepal so far, of which 348,000 have already been delivered.

We are concerned about the impact of Covid on Myanmar's population, and the increased vulnerability of internally displaced people as a result of the coup. Protecting access to basic healthcare remains a UK priority, and we are ensuring that UK aid continues to support life-saving service delivery. We are in close contact with the UN, Non Governmental Organisations (NGOs) and other local civil society organisations, and we are ensuring as much flexibility as we can in their use of UK aid to enable them to operate safely and continue providing support. We are working with partners to understand specific needs and how Covid is impacting local communities.

The UK is leading the international response to COVID-19. We have made available new public commitments worth up to £1.3 billion of ODA to counter the health, economic, and humanitarian impacts of COVID-19 and to support the global effort to distribute vaccines equitably.

In India, there is significant UK-India scientific and medical collaboration underway with our Chief Medical Officer and Chief Scientific advisor regularly meeting their Indian counterparts to share advice, insight and expertise. We have also recently launched the 'UK-India Clinician Knowledge Exchange' which brings together clinicians from the UK and India to enable mutual sharing of best practices.

For Nepal, Sri Lanka, Afghanistan and previous support to India, I refer the Honourable Member to my answers of 7 June to PQ 7832, 1 June to PQ 5187 and 5185 and 20 May to PQ 2477.

The UK is clear in its condemnation of the coup and the appalling violence which has left 750 people dead. We continue to call publicly for a return to democracy and the release of all those in arbitrary detention, including democratically elected politicians, journalists, civil society and foreign nationals.

We have secured strong statements at the G7 and UN Security Council, including a Presidential Statement which condemned the violence and called for respect for the democratic transition and human rights. We will continue to work with partners to apply pressure on the military junta.

The Indo-Pacific Directorate-General in the FCDO has lead responsibility for relations with the following countries and territories: India and Indian Ocean (Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, and Sri Lanka), North East Asia (China, Hong Kong, Japan, Mongolia, North Korea (DPRK), South Korea (RoK), Taiwan), South East Asia (Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Timor Leste, Vietnam) and Oceania (Australia, Fiji, Kiribati, Marshall Islands, Micronesia, Nauru, New Zealand, Palau, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tonga, Tuvalu, and Vanuatu). There is close coordination with other departments leading work on neighbouring countries, especially Pakistan and Afghanistan.

It has not proved possible to respond to the Hon Member in the time available before Prorogation

The UK is committed to rapid equitable access to safe and effective vaccines, committing £548 million to the COVAX Advance Market Commitment (AMC), which is the international initiative to support global equitable access to vaccines, of which the UK is among the largest donors.

As the Foreign Secretary set out via Written Ministerial Statement (WMS) to Parliament, global health security remains a priority for UK aid. The FCDO will spend £1,305 million on global health, focusing on the UK's position at the forefront of the international response to COVID-19 through our commitments to COVAX, Gavi, and the WHO. One third of bilateral FCDO Official Development Assistance (ODA) will be spent in the Indo-Pacific and South Asia in support of our deeper engagement in that region. We are now working through what this means for individual programmes, in line with the priorities outlined in the WMS.

We have prioritised our aid to be more strategic and remain a force for good across the world. As the Foreign Secretary set out via Written Ministerial Statement to Parliament, one third of FCDO bilateral Official Development Assistance (ODA) will be spent in the Indo-Pacific and South Asia, in support of our deeper engagement in the region.

The portfolio agreed by the Foreign Secretary will focus our investment and expertise on issues where the UK can make the most difference and achieve maximum strategic coherence, impact, and value for money. We will now work through what this means for individual programmes, in line with the priorities we have identified. Following the move to 0.5% FCDO Ministers engaged with UK civil society, and we will continue to listen to feedback from them on the plan set out. We are monitoring the impacts on supply partners very closely. In-country staff continue to play a vital role in programme delivery, with local presence and knowledge contributing to the success of our programmes.

We have prioritised our aid to be more strategic and remain a force for good across the world. In total, the FCDO will spend £1,305 million on global health. We will focus on the UK's position at the forefront of the international response to COVID-19, through our commitments to COVAX, GAVI and the WHO. As the Foreign Secretary set out via Written Ministerial Statement to Parliament, one third of FCDO bilateral Official Development Assistance (ODA) will be spent in the Indo-Pacific and South Asia, in support of our deeper engagement in the region.

The portfolio agreed by the Foreign Secretary will focus our investment and expertise on issues where the UK can make the most difference and achieve maximum strategic coherence, impact, and value for money. We will now work through what this means for individual programmes, in line with the priorities we have identified.

Global health security and responding to humanitarian crises remain two of our priorities for UK aid. The FCDO will spend £906 million on humanitarian preparedness and response, with a £30 million crisis reserve to enable us to respond rapidly to new crises, and £1,305 million on global health. As the Foreign Secretary set out via Written Ministerial Statement to Parliament, one third of FCDO bilateral Official Development Assistance (ODA) will be spent in the Indo-Pacific and South Asia, in support of our deeper engagement in the region.

The portfolio agreed by the Foreign Secretary will focus our investment and expertise on issues where the UK can make the most difference and achieve maximum strategic coherence, impact, and value for money. We will now work through what this means for individual programmes, in line with the priorities we have identified.

We have prioritised our aid to be more strategic and remain a force for good across the world. Following a thorough review, the FCDO's aid budget has been allocated in accordance with UK strategic priorities against a challenging financial climate of COVID. Now the process is complete, we will work with our host countries, international partners and supply chains to deliver the budget changes set out in the Foreign Secretary's Written Ministerial Statement to Parliament.

Official Development Assistance budgets per country for 2021/22, along with final audited spend for 2020/21 will be published in the Annual Report and Accounts in due course.

All posts were asked to consider any impact on women and girls, the most marginalised and vulnerable, people with disabilities and people from other protected groups, when developing advice to Ministers. Standalone country-specific impact assessments were not produced.

A Written Ministerial Statement setting out Official Development Assistance allocations to Government departments was laid on 26 January 2021 (HCWS735).

A further Written Ministerial Statement setting out the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office thematic and regional allocations was laid on 21 April 2021 (HCWS935).

The Foreign Secretary laid a statement before the House of Commons on 21 April 2021, which sets out how he is directing the FCDO's aid portfolio this year. He announced that the FCDO will spend £400 million on girls' education, investing directly in over 25 countries, which will help achieve the global target to get 40 million girls into education. FCDO will now work through what this means for individual programmes, in line with the priorities outlined.

Official Development Assistance (ODA) is reported on a calendar year basis. The FCDO's National Statistics publication, 'Statistics on International Development' next year will contain detailed breakdowns of the UK's ODA spend for 2021, including an activity level dataset. FCDO publishes regular open data through the International Aid Transparency Initiative (IATI). This operational data covers current live programmes, and will include 2021 spend once business planning is concluded. The raw data can be accessed at the IATI Registry and is shown on the Development Tracker website: https://devtracker.fcdo.gov.uk/

Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO's) ODA spend, including that on gender equality activities and past spend, is made publicly available through the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) statistics portal. All ODA spend is screened against the OECD gender equality policy marker. This is a measurement of the proportion of aid that supports gender equality and women's empowerment. An activity can be marked as 'principal' if gender equality is the main objective of the programme, or as a 'significant' if gender equality is an important and deliberate objective, but not the principal reason for undertaking the programme.

The latest figures available (2019) show that approximately 68 per cent of the former Department for International Development (DFID) and the former Foreign & Commonwealth Office's (FCO) total bilateral spend was marked principal or significant. This equates to £5.2 billion. Figures for previous years are also available on the OECD statistics portal. The 2020 figures have not yet been released. Advancing gender equality and women's and girls' rights are a core part of this Government's mission and we remain steadfast in our commitment to this agenda. The UK's Gender Equality Act 2014, legally requires all overseas development funding to meaningfully consider the impact of how it will contribute to reducing gender inequality.

FCDO's ODA spend, including that on gender equality activities and past spend, is made publicly available through the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) statistics portal. All ODA spend is screened against the OECD gender equality policy marker. This is a measurement of the proportion of aid that supports gender equality and women's empowerment. An activity can be marked as 'principal' if gender equality is the main objective of the programme, or as a 'significant' if gender equality is an important and deliberate objective, but not the principal reason for undertaking the programme.

The latest figures available (2019) show that approximately 68 per cent of the former Department for International Development (DFID) and the former Foreign & Commonwealth Office's (FCO) total bilateral spend was marked principal or significant. This equates to £5.2 billion. Figures for previous years are also available on the OECD statistics portal. The 2020 figures have not yet been released. Advancing gender equality and women's and girls' rights are a core part of this Government's mission and we remain steadfast in our commitment to this agenda. The UK's Gender Equality Act 2014, legally requires all overseas development funding to meaningfully consider the impact of how it will contribute to reducing gender inequality.

All ODA spending is published in the Statistics on International Development (SID). The SID National Statistics report, published on the gov.uk website, provides an overview of all official UK spend on Official Development Assistance (ODA). This includes breakdowns by country and sector. UK ODA figures for 2020 will be published in Autumn 2021, via Statistics on International Development: Final UK Aid Spend 2020.

The SID publishes a country total for each of the Fragile and Conflict-Affected States (FCAS) states, but does not produce a total figure for FCAS states. Historically, DFID has spent over 50% of its ODA in fragile states. The most up to date published data on DFID ODA spend in fragile and conflict affected states is available on the government page for DFID results (https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/dfid-results-estimates-2015-to-2020). Supporting the development of fragile states will remain a priority for FCDO.

UK aid activities are reported to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) and are screened against the gender equality policy marker. This is a measurement of the proportion of aid that supports gender equality and women's empowerment. An activity can be marked as 'principal' if gender equality is the main objective of the programme, or as a 'significant' if gender equality is an important and deliberate objective, but not the principal reason for undertaking the programme.

UK ODA spend on bilateral allocable activities is made publicly available through the OECD statistics portal. Figures for total UK Bilateral ODA spend on Education, not specifically gender equality marked as "Principal" or Significant", by year up to 2019, can be found via the portal. Figures for 2020 are not available as yet.

Advancing gender equality and women's and girls' rights are a core part of this Government's mission and we remain steadfast in our commitment to this agenda. The UK's Gender Equality Act 2014 (an amendment to 2002 International Development Act, IDA), legally requires all overseas development funding to meaningfully consider the impact of how it will contribute to reducing gender inequality.

Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO) official aid spend disaggregated by sector code for 2018 and 2019 can be found in the Statistics on International Development: Final UK Aid Spend 2019 pilot table at: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/967648/SID_Pilot_Tables.ods

For previous years please refer to the Statistics on International Development: UK Gross Public Expenditure (GPEX) publication at: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/statistics-on-international-development-uk-gross-public-expenditure-gpex

FCDO spend on family planning for 2020 will be available in Autumn 2021

Since 2015, the UK Government disbursed the following amount of Overseas Development assistance in Pakistan: £374 million in 2015, £463 million in 2016, £402 million in 2017, £331 million in 2018 and £305 million in 2019. 2020 figures are being finalised.

Bilateral Official Development Assistance (ODA) provided to Bangladesh by the Department for International Development and the Foreign and Commonwealth Office - the predecessors of the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, which was formed in September 2020 - between 2015 and 2019 are set out in the table below.

ODA figures are published annually, in Statistics for International Development. Figures for 2020 will be published in Autumn 2021.

The UK government is very concerned by the impact on Rohingya refugees of the large fire that took place on 22 March in the Kutapalong refugee camp.

A UN-led joint needs assessment found that 48,300 people were directly affected, with over 10,000 households left without shelter. At least 11 refugees are thought to have died, with over 500 injured. The fire damaged distribution, nutrition and learning centres, water and sanitation infrastructure, and medical facilities. UK Aid provided food, water, sanitation, shelter, and support for medical and camp management teams who coordinated the response. UK Aid has brought in an additional 10,000 tarpaulins for the rehabilitation of shelters.

We remain deeply concerned about the targeting of politicians and activists in Hong Kong, and are following these cases closely. The apparent focus of the Hong Kong and Chinese authorities seems now to be retribution against political opposition and silencing of dissent. We continue to raise our concerns directly with the Hong Kong and Chinese authorities, including this week with senior members of the Hong Kong Government. We urge the Chinese and Hong Kong authorities to respect the rights and freedoms enshrined in the Joint Declaration. In addition, an official from the UK Consulate-General attended the Magistrates Court hearing on 1 March for Carole Ng and others.

The arbitrary detention of thousands of people, as well as credible reports of torture are deeply concerning. It is essential that all those arbitrarily detained, are released. We condemn the politically motivated charges against those who are protesting against the coup.

I [Minister Adams] formally summoned the Myanmar Ambassador twice and stressed that State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi and others who had been arbitrarily detained should be released. We have used our Presidencies of both the G7 and the UN Security Council to secure strong statements which re-iterated these points.

The UK is appalled at the actions of the military in killing its own people. The killing of children, many in their own homes, is abhorrent. The violent crackdown on peaceful protestors is completely unacceptable and requires a strong message from the international community. The people's right to a peaceful protest should be respected. We urge the military to exercise utmost restraint and respect human rights and international law.

We continue to shine a spotlight on the actions of the military on the international stage, including through the UN Security Council and the G7. I [Minister Adams] have twice summoned the Myanmar Ambassador to register concern at the coup and the violent actions by the military.

The government remains gravely concerned by the human rights situation in Xinjiang and is committed to continued robust action to hold China to account for its human rights violations in the region. In February, the Foreign Secretary used a personal address at the UN Human Rights Council to reiterate his call for China to allow the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, or another independent expert, urgent and unfettered access to Xinjiang. On 22 March, the Foreign Secretary announced that the UK had imposed, under the UK's Global Human Rights sanctions regime, asset freezes and travel bans against four senior Chinese government officials responsible for the violations that have taken place and persist against the Uyghur Muslims in Xinjiang. Alongside those individuals, the UK also designated the Public Security Bureau of the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps, the organisation responsible for enforcing the repressive security policies across many areas of Xinjiang.

We are deeply concerned by reports of the mistreatment of Uyghur children, including reports of children being forcibly separated from their parents and placed in state run institutions. The Government has taken careful note of Amnesty International's report of 19 March 2021 and will continue to engage with a range of Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs), and other experts, to inform our understanding of the situation in Xinjiang and guide policy development. We will also continue to take action to hold China to account for its human rights violation in Xinjiang, working closely with international partners. On 22 March, the Foreign Secretary announced that the UK has imposed, under the UK's Global Human Rights sanctions regime, asset freezes and travel bans against four senior Chinese government officials responsible for the violations that have taken place and persist against the Uyghur Muslims in Xinjiang. Alongside those individuals, the UK also designated the Public Security Bureau of the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps, the organisation responsible for enforcing the repressive security policies across many areas of Xinjiang.

We are monitoring political and security developments in Myanmar daily. The UK condemns the coup and the appalling violence which has left over 700 dead. We call for a return to democracy and the release of all those in arbitrary detention, including democratically elected politicians, journalists, civil society and foreign nationals.

The UK remains strongly committed to helping those most in need in Myanmar. We will continue to provide humanitarian support to the Rohingya and other vulnerable and conflict-affected populations. We are in close contact with networks on the ground in Rakhine to monitor risks of atrocities, human rights violations and deterioration in the humanitarian and health situation in camps and villages. We continue to raise the plight of the Rohingya on the international stage, most recently in the UN Security Council Presidential Statement agreed on 10 March.

The UK has also imposed sanctions on two key military linked conglomerates that fund the military's campaign of serious human rights violations, and on nine senior military figures, including the Commander in Chief. We are clear that targeted sanctions send a clear message to the military that we react robustly to serious human rights violations

The UK government is gravely concerned by the impact on Rohingya refugees of the large fire that took place on Monday 22 March in the Kutapalong refugee camp in Cox's Bazar, Bangladesh. A number of refugees have lost their lives and others have been injured, although the numbers have yet to be verified. Others have been separated from their families, including children. A large number of shelters have been damaged affecting around 40,000 refugees on current estimates. Services including health facilities, community centres, food distribution points and learning centres have been badly damaged and in some cases completely destroyed. We are closely monitoring the impacts of the fire and are working alongside the UN and our implementing partners to fully understand the scale of the needs and how we can support the refugees' most immediate needs.

FCDO Ministers are currently working with department officials to finalise ODA budget allocations for the next financial year. No final decisions have been made. We are committed to improving transparency of aid globally and maintaining our high standards for overseas spending. We do that through publication of quality and accessible information on our aid programmes, available on Devtracker.

The UK Government is in regular dialogue with the UN, our international Non-Governmental Organisation (NGO) partners and with the Government of Bangladesh on the Rohingya response in Bangladesh, including on Bhasan Char. We continue to support the UN position that independent, full and detailed technical and protection assessments are needed to evaluate the safety and sustainability of living on Bhasan Char. We are pleased that these assessments began on 16 March. Through the British High Commission in Dhaka, we regularly engage with the UN Resident Co-ordinator and Heads of UN agencies on Bhasan Char. We also collaborate with other diplomatic missions to deliver joined-up messaging to the Government. We are clear that the refugees need to be safe and should have access to education and healthcare, including Covid-19 vaccinations as these become available.

DFID and now the FCDO have been consistently supportive of the Inter-Agency Misconduct Disclosure Scheme (MDS) since it was launched at the October 2018 Safeguarding Summit. FCDO's Safeguarding Unit is a member of the MDS Steering Committee.

The September 2020 UK strategy: Safeguarding against sexual exploitation and abuse and sexual harassment within the aid sector stated that we are actively encouraging organisations to sign up to the MDS. FCDO Ministers, including the Secretary of State, publicised the MDS during events in Parliament in November 2020 and January 2021. Senior officials from FCDO's Safeguarding Unit regularly encourage delivery partners, including aid charities, to sign up.

We have not provided any funding to the MDS.

We have not carried out an assessment of the effectiveness of the scheme, but data published in February shows that in the two years since the MDS began, over 7,600 sets of misconduct data have been shared thanks to the scheme, resulting in 75 hires being stopped and so helping keep individuals safe from potential risk of sexual exploitation and abuse and sexual harassment linked to the delivery of aid.

DFID and now the FCDO have been consistently supportive of the Inter-Agency Misconduct Disclosure Scheme (MDS) since it was launched at the October 2018 Safeguarding Summit. FCDO's Safeguarding Unit is a member of the MDS Steering Committee.

The September 2020 UK strategy: Safeguarding against sexual exploitation and abuse and sexual harassment within the aid sector stated that we are actively encouraging organisations to sign up to the MDS. FCDO Ministers, including the Secretary of State, publicised the MDS during events in Parliament in November 2020 and January 2021. Senior officials from FCDO's Safeguarding Unit regularly encourage delivery partners, including aid charities, to sign up.

We have not provided any funding to the MDS.

We have not carried out an assessment of the effectiveness of the scheme, but data published in February shows that in the two years since the MDS began, over 7,600 sets of misconduct data have been shared thanks to the scheme, resulting in 75 hires being stopped and so helping keep individuals safe from potential risk of sexual exploitation and abuse and sexual harassment linked to the delivery of aid.

DFID and now the FCDO have been consistently supportive of the Inter-Agency Misconduct Disclosure Scheme (MDS) since it was launched at the October 2018 Safeguarding Summit. FCDO's Safeguarding Unit is a member of the MDS Steering Committee.

The September 2020 UK strategy: Safeguarding against sexual exploitation and abuse and sexual harassment within the aid sector stated that we are actively encouraging organisations to sign up to the MDS. FCDO Ministers, including the Secretary of State, publicised the MDS during events in Parliament in November 2020 and January 2021. Senior officials from FCDO's Safeguarding Unit regularly encourage delivery partners, including aid charities, to sign up.

We have not provided any funding to the MDS.

We have not carried out an assessment of the effectiveness of the scheme, but data published in February shows that in the two years since the MDS began, over 7,600 sets of misconduct data have been shared thanks to the scheme, resulting in 75 hires being stopped and so helping keep individuals safe from potential risk of sexual exploitation and abuse and sexual harassment linked to the delivery of aid.

The safety and security of our implementing partners in Myanmar is of great importance to us. We are in close contact with the NGOs, the UN, Red Cross, and civil society organisations we support and we are ensuring as much flexibility as we can in their use of UK aid to help ensure their ability to continue to operate safely. We are working with partners to understand their specific needs and how the coup is impacting on their activities and staff.

We conducted a review of the UK aid programme in Myanmar following the coup. As part of the review the UK is committed to continuing funding that strengthens the foundations for a deeper and more inclusive democracy, including support for civil society.

Following the coup, we have reviewed our aid programme in Myanmar to ensure that we focus on the most vulnerable people. Following a review of all UK aid programme in Myanmar all work with the government has now been suspended unless there is an exceptional humanitarian reason.

The UK Government remains clear that any returns of Rohingya refugees to Rakhine state must be voluntary, safe, dignified, and in line with UNHCR principles. At present, conditions in Myanmar preclude this possibility. The UK is a leading donor to the Rohingya crisis in Bangladesh, having committed £293.5 million since August 2017. UK aid has been instrumental in improving the lives of the 890,000 refugees and the vulnerable local Bangladeshi communities in Cox's Bazar. Our funding provides lifesaving support including food, healthcare, nutrition, education, clean water and sanitation and targeted support for women and girls. We continue to work closely with the Government of Bangladesh, the UN and other donors to improve conditions for Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh and the surrounding host communities.

The UK Government shares concerns over the safety of the Rohingya refugees stranded in the Andaman Sea. The British High Commission in Delhi has made representations to the Government of India, and we understand that India has provided humanitarian support to those on board. We continue to engage with governments in the region, UN agencies and other international partners to support the safety and well-being of all Rohingya refugees. The UK is the second largest donor to the Rohingya crisis in Bangladesh, having committed close to £300 million since August 2017. We are also one of the largest donors in Rakhine State, having provided over £25 million for the Rohingya since 2017.

Promoting gender equality and advancing women and girls' rights around the world is a priority for the UK Government. The seismic impact of the pandemic on the UK economy has forced us to take the tough but necessary decision, to temporarily reduce the overall amount we spend on ODA. Despite this, the UK remains committed to advancing gender equality, and we will take full advantage of the opportunities that 2021 will offer. This includes the UK's Presidency of the G7, co-hosting the Global Partnership for Education replenishment, COP26 and co-leadership of the new global Action Coalition on GBV.

The UK is proud to defend comprehensive sexual and reproductive health and rights, including family planning; these are fundamental to the empowerment and health of girls and women in the global south. For example, between 2019 and 2020 alone, UK aid helped over 25 million women and girls use modern methods of contraception. We are working through the implications of the ODA reductions for individual programmes and activities. No decisions on individual country or sectoral budgets have been made yet.

The Strategic framework for aid announced in November by the Foreign Secretary, sharpens the focus of our aid on seven priorities where UK support can make the most difference including on Covid and global health security; and open societies and conflict, in our overarching pursuit of poverty reduction and achievement of the sustainable development goals. This, alongside the creation of the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office, uniting our world class diplomacy and development expertise will ensure we bring together the best of Britain's international effort bear on the world's global challenges.

The UK is proud to defend comprehensive sexual and reproductive health and rights, including family planning; these are fundamental to the empowerment and health of girls and women in the global south. For example, between 2019 and 2020 alone, UK aid helped over 25 million women and girls use modern methods of contraception.

We are working through the implications of the ODA reductions for individual programmes and activities. No decisions on individual country or sectoral budgets have been made yet.

The UK is proud to defend comprehensive sexual and reproductive health and rights, including family planning; these are fundamental to the empowerment and health of girls and women in the global south. For example, between 2019 and 2020 alone, UK aid helped over 25 million women and girls use modern methods of contraception.

We are working through the implications of the ODA reductions for individual programmes and activities. No decisions on individual country or sectoral budgets have been made yet.

We welcome the steps that the parties have taken so far to coordinate responses to COVID-19, including the arrival of the first shipment of vaccines from the Palestinian Authority into Gaza on 17 February, with the approval of Israel. We encourage further cooperation and dialogue in this regard.

The UK Ambassador in Tel Aviv raised the issue of vaccines with the Israeli Authorities on 24 February, encouraging the Government of Israel to continue to facilitate the transfer of vaccines to the Palestinian Authority when required. The British Embassy in Tel Aviv and the British Consulate-General in Jerusalem are in regular contact with the Israeli and Palestinian authorities respectively, and will continue to raise timely and appropriate access to COVID-19 vaccines.

CDC has paused all new investment activity in Myanmar and is reviewing the impact of the coup on its existing investments in the country. CDC has no investments in military or state-owned companies in Myanmar, does not directly work with or partner with the government, and has not supported any trade promotion by the government.

In parallel, on 25 February the UK launched a Trade Review. All UK support for trade promotion has been suspended in Myanmar while the UK works with British businesses and civil society to reshape our approach.

Frontiir has helped connect over one million people in Myanmar to the internet at affordable prices, thereby increasing access to information, boosting businesses, supporting education and tackling poverty. Frontiir has at all times adhered to international best practice.

Following the military coup on February 1st, Frontiir, along with all other telco operators and internet service providers, received regulatory orders to shut down the internet for brief periods and also block certain social media platforms, including Twitter and Facebook. We have strongly condemned this move. Nevertheless, Frontiir is bound by national law under its licencing agreement and is unable to go against an official government directive. Frontiir has been open and transparent about these orders, acting in accordance with the Global Network initiative agreement, including posting a statement on their website. This is in line with the approach taken by other responsible internet platforms in Myanmar. Frontiir is an observer member of the Global Network Initiative and we remain in close communication with them on the current situation. CDC is reviewing the impact of the 1st February Myanmar coup on its investments in the country.

CDC Group's (CDC) investment in Frontiir has previously helped connect over one million people in Myanmar to the internet at affordable prices, thereby increasing access to information, boosting businesses, supporting education and tackling poverty. CDC carries out due diligence on every investment it makes, including Frontiir. Frontiir has at all times adhered to international best practice and the company has become an observer of the Global Network Initiative at CDC's request.

Following the Myanmar military coup on 1 February, the UK Government is reviewing all programmes in country and will work to ensure no funds reach the military. CDC has enhanced the private sector due diligence regime to effectively mitigate the risk of UK funds going to government institutions. In addition, FCDO has written to partners asking them to review supply chains, to check UK money is not being used to purchase goods and services from military owned companies.

The UK Government has led international efforts to end female genital mutilation (FGM), including through a partnership with the Africa-led movement to end FGM. Since 2013, UK aid has helped over 10,000 communities, representing over 27 million people, pledge to abandon the practice; and over 4 million girls and women have received health, social and legal services related to FGM.

At the grassroots level, UK aid has supported activists, communities and experts across Africa, in their efforts to end FGM within their local context. We have also funded the United Nations to get laws and policies in place banning FGM in high prevalence countries. Through WHO, we have supported doctors, midwives and nurses to help care for survivors.

The UK Government has led international efforts to end female genital mutilation (FGM). Since 2013, UK aid has helped over 10,000 communities (representing over 27 million people) pledge to abandon FGM. Over 4 million girls and women have received health, social and legal services related to FGM. The UK will use its G7 Presidency to spearhead international action on Gender Equality - focusing on educating girls, empowering women, and ending violence against women and girls. As part of advancing SDG 4, we will seek to build support for ambitious new targets of getting 40 million more girls into education by 2025 and achieving a one-third improvement in girls' reading by age 10. We will also work towards a successful replenishment of the Global Partnership for Education. We are committed to delivering an inclusive COP26, including by addressing the needs and priorities of women and girls and advancing gender equality within climate action and finance. Quality education, especially for girls, is central to tackling climate change effectively.

As I [Minister Adams] tweeted on 9 October 2020, this is an important report which shines a spotlight on the ongoing discrimination faced by the Rohingya, and other minorities, confined to camps in Rakhine State. Myanmar must adhere to the International Court of Justice (ICJ) provisional measures order and end discrimination against the Rohingya and other minorities. The UK has consistently expressed concern at restrictions on Rohingya, including freedom of movement and access to healthcare.

The UK is one of the largest donors in Rakhine, supporting the Rohingya who remain through assistance with water, sanitation and hygiene facilities, health services, protection, livelihoods, education and food aid.

We are clear that returns must be voluntary, safe and dignified and the Rohingya should be granted rights and status within Myanmar. I [Minister Adams] raised the importance of human rights and full citizenship rights for the Rohingya in my call with the Myanmar Minister for International Cooperation in June 2020 and the Foreign Secretary emphasised these messages in his call with the Minister in July. Our Ambassador and Development Director regularly discuss the issue of returns with Government of Myanmar, including most recently with the Minister for Social Welfare on 18 January.

Both I and the Foreign Secretary raised our concern about the exclusion of the Rohingya from the democratic process in the run up the elections last year with Myanmar's Minister for International Co-operation. The UK strongly believes all individuals should have the right to freely participate in the democratic process and we remain very concerned that the Rohingya and other minority ethnic groups were excluded from these elections. Universal suffrage for all people in Myanmar, including the Rohingya, and the right to stand as a candidate are key to achieving effective democracy. We are clear that the 1982 Citizenship Law is deeply flawed and enables the exclusion of Rohingya and other minorities on spurious grounds. The Rohingya, who have lived in Myanmar for generations, should be granted full citizenship and the associated rights.

The UK has targeted sanctions in place on 16 individuals from the Myanmar armed forces for their role in atrocities against Rohingya and other minorities. We have sanctioned all six individuals identified by the United Nations Fact Finding Mission. This includes the Commander-in-Chief and his Deputy. We will continue to consider designating persons under the Global Human Rights sanctions regulations in order to deter and provide accountability for serious human rights violations or abuses around the world. It is not appropriate to speculate who may be designated under the sanctions regime in the future. To do this could reduce the impact of the designations.

The UK Government supports the Guttmacher-Lancet definition of sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR), and SHRH services are a core pillar of our action to end preventable deaths of mothers, newborns and children by 2030. The COVID-19 pandemic has shown the importance of SRHR to this goal. Recent estimates suggest that, over one year, a 10-19% decline in reproductive, maternal, newborn and child health services, alongside increasing child malnutrition, will result in 24,400 additional maternal deaths and ?506,900 additional child deaths.

Gender equality is a core part of the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office's work as a force for good in the world. As part of the creation of the FCDO, we are building on existing strategies and reviewing structures and roles, including the Special Envoy for Gender Equality. The UK is committed to promoting every girl's right to 12 years of quality education, by working to accelerate progress towards getting marginalised girls into schools, staying there, and staying safe. The Strategic Vision for Gender Equality reflects and responds to the UK Government's ambitions, and works alongside our National Action Plan (NAP) on Women, Peace and Security.

The UK government fully endorses the Guttmacher-Lancet definition of sexual and reproductive health and rights and promote this in our international engagement. The UK works hard to support this comprehensive package of services through our long-term investments in family planning, safe abortion care, maternal and newborn health, HIV treatment and prevention, and our efforts to end female genital mutilation and child, early and forced marriage. Sexual and reproductive health and rights services - as defined by Guttmacher-Lancet - are a core pillar of our action to end preventable deaths of mothers, newborns and children by 2030, including through our bilateral health and SRHR programmes.

The seismic impact of the pandemic on the UK economy has forced us to take the tough but necessary decision, to temporarily reduce the overall amount we spend on ODA. Despite the reduction in our spend, the UK remains committed to advancing gender equality, and women's and girls' rights, and we are preparing to take full advantage of the opportunities that 2021 will offer. This includes the UK's Presidency of the G7, co-hosting the Global Partnership for Education replenishment, COP26 and co-leadership of the new global Action Coalition on gender-based violence.

The Foreign Secretary has been clear, we will remain a world leading aid donor. By combining aid with diplomacy and ensuing a coherent approach across Government departments, we will be focusing our efforts where the UK can make a world-leading difference to deliver maximum impact for every pound we spend.

We know that COVID-19 is disproportionately effecting women and girls globally, therefore gender equality plays a central role in FCDO's response. Through the UN's Financing for Development "Recovering Better for Sustainability" work strand, the UK has helped to create a set of international principles for a green, inclusive and resilient COVID-19 recovery, with gender equality at its core. FCDO continues to work with international partners to deliver on these proposals.

We have provided an additional £10 million to the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) to address reproductive health supply shortages and scale up reporting, protection, and support services for women and girls affected. We provided an additional £1 million to the UN Trust Fund to End Violence Against Women, on top of our existing £21 million contribution, to support long-term interventions for survivors.

We are tackling violence against women and girls through our co-leadership of the UN's Action Coalition on Gender-Based Violence and our plans to launch a new seven-year programme to scale-up effective interventions to prevent violence against women and girls.

The UK will put girls' education and gender equality high on the agenda in our G7 Presidency, and as co-hosts of the Global Partnership for Education (GPE) Replenishment we will place gender at the heart of GPE's work to transform education systems worldwide.

The UK Government is monitoring the situation and is in regular dialogue with the Government of Bangladesh, the UN and our INGO partners. We support the UN position that independent, full and detailed technical and protection assessments are needed to evaluate the safety and sustainability of living on Bhasan Char, and that any relocation should be voluntary and based on relevant, accurate and updated information.

The Minister for South Asia underlined the importance of these points in a call with Bangladesh's Foreign Minister Momen on 19 November, and has discussed the issue several times with the Bangladesh High Commissioner in London. The British High Commissioner in Dhaka regularly engages with the Government of Bangladesh on Bhasan Char and has underlined the importance of allowing the UN to conduct these full technical and protection assessments. The Development Director also talks regularly to the UN Heads of Agencies and Resident Coordinator who are in constant touch with the Government.

The UK Government is monitoring the situation and is in regular dialogue with the Government of Bangladesh, the UN and our INGO partners. We support the UN position that independent, full and detailed technical and protection assessments are needed to evaluate the safety and sustainability of living on Bhasan Char, and that any relocation should be voluntary and based on relevant, accurate and updated information.

The Minister for South Asia underlined the importance of these points in a call with Bangladesh's Foreign Minister Momen on 19 November, and has discussed the issue several times with the Bangladesh High Commissioner in London. The British High Commissioner in Dhaka regularly engages with the Government of Bangladesh on Bhasan Char and has underlined the importance of allowing the UN to conduct these full technical and protection assessments. The Development Director also talks regularly to the UN Heads of Agencies and Resident Coordinator who are in constant touch with the Government.

The UK has repeatedly taken a leading international role in holding China to account for its egregious human rights abuses against Uyghurs and other minorities. This has included leading joint statements at the UN Human Rights Council in June and the UN Third Committee last October. HMG's long-standing policy is that the determination of genocide should only be made by a competent court, rather than by governments or non-judicial bodies.

The UK is a global leader in efforts to eliminate trafficking, exploitation and violence against women and girls (VAWG) in all its forms. We have committed over £200 million in UK aid to tackle human trafficking and modern slavery by reducing vulnerability to exploitation and addressing the environments that allow human trafficking to thrive. For example, the £13 million "Work in Freedom" programme is working to reduce vulnerability to trafficking and forced labour of women and girls across migration pathways leading to the care sector and textiles, clothing, leather and footwear industries of South Asia and the Arab States.

In September 2020, FCDO launched the tender for our new £67.5 million programme to scale up effective interventions to prevent VAWG across development and humanitarian contexts - in homes, schools, workplaces and communities. This is the largest investment by any donor government in programming and research to prevent VAWG globally. The UK has also taken up leadership of the new Global Action Coalition on gender based violence (GBV) and will use this to drive more concerted, coordinated and scaled-up global action across the international system to prevent GBV in all its forms. Since 2018, the Government has taken concerted action to prevent abuse by aid workers in both public and private spheres and to improve the response when it happens. We introduced enhanced safeguarding standards and regularly assess partners against them. We created Project Soteria with INTERPOL to strengthen vetting of aid workers and information sharing among law enforcement agencies. Last month the Government published a safeguarding strategy covering all UK aid spend which builds on commitments made at the 2018 London Safeguarding Summit.

The UK continues to be a progressive champion of comprehensive sexual and reproductive health and rights for all in accordance with the International Conference on Population and Development and the Beijing Platform for Action and the outcomes documents of their review conferences.

The UK works with partners to provide quality and comprehensive sexual and reproductive health services and protect and progress sexual and reproductive rights: from tackling HIV, to family planning, maternal and newborn health, to supporting efforts to end Female Genital Mutilation and child, early and forced marriage, and supporting safe abortion services.

At the recent United Nations General Assembly High Level Meeting celebrating twenty-five years since Beijing, the Foreign Secretary outlined the UK's ambition for gender equality. The UK, along with 81 Member States joined a statement reconfirming our unwavering commitment to championing sexual and reproductive health and rights and promoting gender equality. The UK remains committed to ensuring services are prioritised and rights are protected during the COVID-19 response to protect the significant gains made to date.

The UK continues to be a progressive champion of comprehensive sexual and reproductive health and rights for all in accordance with the International Conference on Population and Development and the Beijing Platform for Action and the outcomes documents of their review conferences.

The UK works with partners to provide quality and comprehensive sexual and reproductive health services and protect and progress sexual and reproductive rights: from tackling HIV, to family planning, maternal and newborn health, to supporting efforts to end Female Genital Mutilation and child, early and forced marriage, and supporting safe abortion services.

At the recent United Nations General Assembly High Level Meeting celebrating twenty-five years since Beijing, the Foreign Secretary outlined the UK's ambition for gender equality. The UK, along with 81 Member States joined a statement reconfirming our unwavering commitment to championing sexual and reproductive health and rights and promoting gender equality. The UK remains committed to ensuring services are prioritised and rights are protected during the COVID-19 response to protect the significant gains made to date.

The UK Government is committed to protecting vulnerable children and helping them to grow up free from violence through COVID-19 and beyond. The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) plays a leading global role in efforts to achieve Sustainable Development Goal 16.2 to end the violence, abuse and exploitation of children. This includes supporting a systems approach to child protection that ensures people, policies and services are working together to prevent harm from happening and to respond effectively when incidences occur.

The FCDO is working with international partners to ensure that child protection is prioritised and integrated into the multi-sectoral response to COVID-19. We have provided £20 million to the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) to support the continuity of essential social services for children, including maintaining and adapting prevention and response services for children affected by violence during COVID-19. FCDO is also adapting our child protection programming to respond to COVID-19. For example, our Children on the Move programme, which is improving the child protection system for children migrating in Sudan, Ethiopia and Somalia, has established hotline services for children affected by the pandemic and increased the capacity of social workers with protective equipment to continue their roles in protecting children.

The UK is a global leader in efforts to eliminate Child, Early and Forced Marriage (CEFM) and Female Genital Mutilation (FGM).

The UK invested £39 million in the UN and civil society programmes to end child marriage between 2015 and 2020 and also tackles child marriage through programmes to promote gender equality and girls' education. These actions have contributed to a 15% reduction of global prevalence of child marriage over the last decade, averting 25 million child marriages. Ending child marriage will remain a key focus, including as part of our work to deliver the Prime Minister's commitment to champion 12 years of quality education for girls.