Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of global health crises on fragile states; and what steps he is taking to support these countries in (a) strengthening their healthcare systems and (b) mitigating the risks to stability and security.

The Government recognises that global health crises pose a major threat to the heath, stability, and economic prosperity of fragile states. Working in fragile states is complex and each setting has its own unique challenges, and where possible the UK works with national health systems. The UK is not prescriptive in terms of our approach to health system strengthening in fragile states, but we focus our funding and technical assistance to ensure our investments are coordinated, context-specific, integrated, adaptive and flexible as changes occur over time. A strong health system supports better mental and physical health for everyone, protects people from financial hardship due to the costs of care, and enhances resilience to threats including infectious disease outbreaks that can occur frequently in fragile states.