Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent steps has she taken to support UK aid distribution to people impacted by the tsunami in Tonga.

The UK is providing vital humanitarian support to Tonga. Working closely with our Australian and New Zealand partners, we have provided 17 pallets of supplies, which were delivered by Australia's HMAS Adelaide today (26 January). These supplies were specifically requested by the Government of Tonga and include 90 family tents, community tents and wheel barrows.

Royal Navy ship, HMS Spey, has also delivered (26 January) supplies in support of the humanitarian and disaster relief effort, including: 30,000 litres of bottled water, medical supplies for over 300 first aid kits, PPE, and basic sanitation and baby products. This was a contactless delivery, guided by the Government of Tonga's COVID-19 protocols.

The UK is also funding a UN crisis response coordinator, who will be deployed to support coordination of the response. The UK is a significant donor to the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies' Disaster Relief Emergency Fund (£1.5 million per year 2020-2023), which has released £345,000 to the Red Cross Society of Tonga to support its response to assist the affected communities. More generally, since 2015, Tonga has received over £25.9 million of UK aid through our core funding to multilateral institutions.