Commons Sense

House of Commons · Ministers' Questions

Official Development Assistance

Monday 7 December 2020 · 2 questions

Summarised by AI from the official record, so it can contain mistakes.

Read the full transcript on Parliament.uk

At a glance

Answered 1 Partly answered 1 Not answered 0

Key points

  • Layla Moran questioned the Minister about the effectiveness of the Department's official development assistance spending.
  • The Minister responded that defence engagement programmes, including those classified as official development assistance, aim to foster economic development in recipient nations.
  • The Minister stated that the MOD will strive to align its activities with the guidelines set by the OECD's Development Assistance Committee.

Topics (select to filter)

Questions & Answers

Q1 Layla Moran Lib Dem Oxford West and Abingdon
Foreign Affairs
Context

The effectiveness of the Department's official development assistance spending is under scrutiny. The question seeks to understand how these programmes are assessed.

Question

What recent assessment has been made of the effectiveness of his Department's official development assistance spending?

Answer from James Heappey

Defence engagement programmes, including those that count as official development assistance, help create conditions for sustained economic development for recipient nations by increasing the effectiveness and integrity of their defence institutions. We assess the impact of our programmes continuously and subject them to formal evaluation annually.

Answered
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Q2 Layla Moran Lib Dem Oxford West and Abingdon
Defence Foreign Affairs
Context

The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development's Development Assistance Committee (OECD DAC) sets out guidelines for development spending. The question seeks assurance that the MOD will ensure compliance with these guidelines in new areas such as cyber-technologies and space-based assets.

Question

As the Minister knows, it is the OECD's Development Assistance Committee, or DAC, that sets out the guidelines for development spending, and it states that spending promotes and specifically targets the economic development and welfare of developing countries. As the MOD explores new areas, such as cyber-technologies and space-based assets, will the Minister ensure that any development spending by his Department is DAC-compliant and continues to focus on helping the world's poorest?

Answer from James Heappey

I think that the answer to the hon. Lady's question is that we will do our best, but of course what matters is that we are doing the right military things in order to create the right situations for prosperity and security wherever we are serving around the world. If the activity is not directly compliant, I am not sure that should stop us doing it.

Partly answered

Not addressed: Specific commitment to DAC compliance in new areas like cyber-technologies and space-based assets was avoided

How: Doing Our Best

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