Question to the Department for International Development:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what is their policy for the prioritisation and funding of the future programmes of UNESCO, in the light of the decision of the United States to terminate its membership; and whether they will urge the United States to rejoin.

The UK is deeply committed to the vital issues that UNESCO works on. But we have been crystal clear that we expect serious reform from UNESCO as an organisation. The 2016 Multilateral Development Review scored UNESCO lowest of all the agencies. This is not good enough. We will relentlessly keep up the pressure to drive up performance – and in particular to address serious concerns about financial and risk management.

The US’s relationship with UNESCO is a matter for them.