Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, with reference to the report Prevention First by the APPGs on Antibiotics and on Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene, published in February 2023, if he will ring-fence a portion of the annual overseas aid budget for investment in water, sanitation, and hygiene in healthcare facilities.

The FCDO welcomes the recent 'Prevention First' report on water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) and antibiotic resistance. We have ensured that action on WASH is included in the UK's action plan for antimicrobial resistance. We do not plan to add a ring-fence specifically for WASH in healthcare facilities but we are taking action. For example, through UK funding to the Hygiene and Behaviour Change Coalition 14,800 health care facilities were supported with critical WASH supplies and services, and 460,000 health workers were trained on hygiene practices. Also, as a founding member of the WASH in Healthcare Facilities international taskforce, the FCDO works with partners to promote better hygiene, infection prevention and reducing the risks of antimicrobial resistance.