International Engagement

Question

Will the Minister confirm that Chevening scholarships will continue on the same scale after Wednesday’s Budget? What is the Government's red line on reparations for slavery given previous statements and views? On paragraph 16, what is our position on UN Security Council reform and giving away our permanent seat? Regarding paragraph 43, what steps are UK taking as penholder on Myanmar to bring about outlined measures?

Question

Asked about the UK's commitment to reparations in relation to the slave trade and requested clarity on the Government’s red line. She also questioned the delay in disbursement of £707 million to IDA, asked about the position on UN Security Council reform, actions on Myanmar, and confirmed that Commonwealth scholarships and programmes will continue at the same scale after Wednesday's Budget.

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Asked for further elaboration on discussions with international counterparts regarding IDA replenishment ahead of IDA21 in December.

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I thank the Minister for advance sight of her statement. As I set out during the Second Reading of the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association and International Committee of the Red Cross (Status) Bill last week, the Commonwealth is a vitally important multilateral organisation and we support work to strengthen it. The Minister references the new Government’s approach on international development. It is on this particular issue that I hope she will set out further detail. We welcomed the reference to the sustainable development goals in her speech at Chatham House last week. Regrettably, the Labour manifesto did not mention the SDGs. Will the Minister affirm that the SDGs are at the heart of the UK’s development vision? On development, it is vital that we honour our international commitments and, to that end, restore the 0.7% of GNI target for international development spending.

Question

Next year will mark 20 years since the Gleneagles summit, when G8 leaders agreed to an ambitious debt cancellation deal under the previous Labour Government. At present, however, the unfair debt burden is holding back many developing countries, including some in the Commonwealth. What discussions has the Minister had on this important issue, and what are our plans?

Question

May I ask the Minister about another of the Foreign Secretary’s recent visits, to the Republic of Korea? Does she agree that the agreement to strengthen the defence and security dialogue with South Korea is very welcome, as is the condemnation of the support from the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea—both with weapons and, now, with troops—for Russia in its illegal invasion of Ukraine?

Question

I declare an interest, in that before being elected to represent the people of Hemel Hempstead I worked for the Fairtrade Foundation. The Minister will be aware, through her own support for fair trade, of the vital role that the foundation plays in supporting smallholder farmers, but of course there are millions of smallholder farmers around the world. I should be grateful if she could update the House on the ways in which the Government, through the World Bank, are supporting smallholder farmers and sustainable agriculture.

Question

When one group of people have done something terrible to another group of people, it is understandable that resentment about it can pass down to the next generation and possibly the generation after that, but does the Minister agree that to suggest that that process can continue over two centuries, and thus require guilt to be expiated in the form of reparations, is to make a nonsense of the concept of individual responsibility?

Question

I welcome the Minister's repeated references to tackling both the climate and the nature crises. In the context of the Prime Minister’s recent attendance at CHOGM, we know that many Commonwealth countries are among those most exposed to climate change, and that that has a particular impact on small island states such as Samoa. Will the Minister outline in more detail the work that the Government are doing to put climate at the heart of our foreign and development policy?

Question

Can the Minister comment further on paragraph 22 of the Commonwealth Heads of Government statement to which the Prime Minister put his name? It states that the Heads of Government, “noting calls for discussions on reparatory justice…agreed that the time has come for a meaningful, truthful and respectful conversation towards forging a common future based on equity.” “Based on equity” is the language normally used by those seeking compensation. Can the Minister explain what it means in plain English? Does it mean parting with taxpayers’ money, and if not, what does this statement mean?

Question

I very much welcome my right hon. Friend’s statement this afternoon. Does she agree that the best path to global growth and prosperity is one that includes women and girls? Will she set out how the Government and the World Bank intend to achieve that?

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I thank the Minister for advance sight of her statement. I want to raise a couple of points. First, it is only a few years ago that the Foreign Secretary said: “We don’t just want an apology, we want reparations and compensation.” Last week, however, the Prime Minister could not even bring himself to make a formal apology, so I hope the Minister can bring herself to do so today. Secondly, the Minister said that “at home and around the world…Britain is back”. There are two reasons for that: first, there was a reduction in ODA spend to 0.5% of GNI; and, secondly, there was the merger of the Department for International Development, which is in East Kilbride in Scotland. Will there be a return to a separate Department, and how soon does she predict that we will return to spending 0.7% of GNI?

Question

The pandemic, rising interest rates, and rising wheat and energy prices after Putin’s invasion of Ukraine have led to a debt crisis in low-income nations. Some 32 African nations spend more on servicing their debt than they do on healthcare. I used to work in one of the world’s poorest nations, Somaliland. I have seen what grinding poverty can do. The horrors of climate change are leading to drought, hunger and death. Will the Minister consider repeating one of the proudest actions of the last Labour Government by acting to end the debt crisis and, by doing so, help to end extreme poverty once and for all?

Question

On reparations, will the Minister accept that there is a clear difference between the Prime Minister’s commendably robust language before he left for Samoa and the language that he eventually signed up to in paragraph 22 of the communiqué? Will she accept that Heads of Government who are watching this process are perfectly entitled to deduce that the UK is now on a journey that will lead to reparations? Will she further accept that there is a clear difference between providing compensation to people who have been harmed by the state, from tainted-blood victims to sub-postmasters, and paying reparations in respect of events that happened 200 years ago?

Question

Will the Minister join me in welcoming Glasgow’s role as host of the Commonwealth games 2026? Will she confirm that discussions will take place with the Scottish Government to ensure that the benefits of the games are felt not just in Glasgow, but across the whole of Scotland, including in constituencies such as mine?

Question

I am grateful to the Minister for the update on the Commonwealth Heads of Government meeting. Next Sunday, volunteers will head to the beach when Sidmouth Plastic Warriors meet to prevent litter from ending up in the oceans. When they do so, they will want to be sure that their Government are encouraging other Governments to take action on ocean plastics. How likely does the Minister think it is that negotiations will be concluded on a UN global plastics treaty by the end of the year?

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I thank the Minister for her statement; I can only respect the breadth of it. I am pleased to hear about the focus on using international development to reduce violence against women and girls, which we all fully support. At a reception last week, we heard personal testimony from people who have been persecuted because of their religious beliefs. Does the Minister feel that the overseas development budget can also be used to reduce violence against religious minorities?

Question

Will the right hon. Lady update the House, following the recent Commonwealth Heads of Government meeting, on whether the Government have considered a Commonwealth free trade deal and if not, why not?

Question

New International Rescue Committee analysis finds that just 16 climate-vulnerable and conflict-affected countries, including Sudan, Myanmar and Syria, represent 43% of all people living in extreme poverty and 79% of all people in humanitarian need. What steps are the Government taking to ensure that we address the underlying causes of fragility and get aid into those 16 countries with the highest needs?

Question

Can the Minister assure us that the Government’s commitment to ODA will not be further reduced to 0.3% of GNI? Is there a timeline to restore it to 0.7%?

Question

I thank the Minister very much for her positive statement to the House today. Will she further outline what engagements she intends to undertake to secure the rights of women throughout the world, beginning with the rights to choose their life partner, to choose education, to choose employment and to choose a future with hope rather than the drudgery faced by too many women throughout this world? How can the House advocate for this change in a reasoned manner that brings about not snappy soundbites but a real change in those countries in which we retain an influence?