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 potential impact of reductions in the international development budget on his Department's programmes supporting persecuted Christians overseas.

The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) works to ensure that Official Development Assistance (ODA) is allocated to those who are most vulnerable and most in need of this assistance irrespective of race, religion, or ethnicity. This includes minority religious or belief communities, including Christians, who are assessed by our partners when determining those most in need of protection and assistance.

The reduced ODA settlement is for 2026/27 onwards and we will be taking a rigorous approach to ensuring all ODA delivers value for money. The impact on specific programmes will be informed by the ongoing Spending Review and departmental resource allocation processes.