Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment he has made of the effect on (a) deaf and (b) disabled children throughout the world of the decision to reduce the funding allocated to the Official Development Assistance budget.

Disability inclusion is an important issue for the FCDO and we are committed to supporting a long-term movement of change for people with disabilities around the world. We will continue to embed disability inclusion across all of our work, including through our Official Development Assistance to fight poverty, improve global health, promote girl's education and achieve the UN's Sustainable Development Goals.

We provide direct funding to programmes that support children with disabilities, including those with hearing impairments. For example, through the Girls' Education Challenge, we have helped over 117,000 girls with disabilities receive an education in countries such as Kenya, Uganda, Sierra Leone and Zimbabwe. Through UK Aid Direct, we also support Deaf Kidz International to ensure the early detection of deafness and maximise their residual hearing and life-chances, reducing their susceptibility to abuse and discrimination.