Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to assist countries in the Global South with debt reduction.

The UK has been at the forefront of leading the international response in assisting developing countries to deal with debt challenges exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Through the G20 and Paris Club, the UK has supported a new Debt Service Suspension Initiative (DSSI) which has paused the debt service repayments of low-income countries until at least June 2021, ensuring they can focus their resources on the health and economic response to Covid-19. As of 13 November 2020, 46 countries have requested to benefit from the DSSI, amounting to an estimated USD 5.7bn of 2020 debt service deferral.

As well as making £150 million available to the International Monetary Fund’s Catastrophe Containment and Relief Trust and doubling the UK’s £2.2bn loan to the Poverty Reduction and Growth Trust to £4.4bn, the UK has also supported the development of a landmark Common Framework between the G20 and Paris Club which aims to facilitate the timely and orderly debt treatment for DSSI-eligible countries where needed. .