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  • PRESS RELEASE : Chris Heaton-Harris MP has announced the temporary appointment of Sarah Ling as the Chief Electoral Officer for Northern Ireland [March 2023]

    PRESS RELEASE : Chris Heaton-Harris MP has announced the temporary appointment of Sarah Ling as the Chief Electoral Officer for Northern Ireland [March 2023]

    The press release issued by the Northern Ireland Office on 14 March 2023.

    The Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, the Right Honourable Chris Heaton-Harris MP, has announced the temporary appointment of Sarah Ling as the Chief Electoral Officer for Northern Ireland in accordance with section 14(5) of the Electoral Law Act (Northern Ireland) 1962.

    The appointment will commence on 3 April 2023 and run for a maximum period of three months until a new Chief Electoral Officer is able to take up the role.

    Biography

    Sarah Ling currently performs duties as deputy to the Chief Electoral Officer for Northern Ireland and was deputy returning officer for Belfast constituencies at the last Assembly elections. She is a former Electoral Service Manager for the London Borough of Croydon and consultant for the Association of Electoral Administrators working on the delivery of elections (combined Parliamentary, Local and Parish 2015, Police and Crime Commission 2016, EU Referendum 2016, Parliamentary 2017, European Parliamentary 2019, Parliamentary 2019 and various by elections). She is also a former head of Registration Reform and Canvass Reform in the Cabinet Office.

    Regulation

    This appointment is regulated by the Commissioner for Public Appointments.

    Political Activity

    All appointments are made on merit and with regards to the statutory requirements.  Political activity plays no part in the selection process. However, in accordance with the original Nolan recommendations, there is a requirement for appointees’ political activity in defined categories to be made public.

    Sarah Ling has declared no political activity in the past ten years.

  • PRESS RELEASE : Statement to the 102nd Session of the Executive Council of the OPCW [March 2023]

    PRESS RELEASE : Statement to the 102nd Session of the Executive Council of the OPCW [March 2023]

    The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 14 March 2023.

    Statement to the 102nd Session of the Executive Council of the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons by Her Excellency Joanna Roper, Permanent Representative of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.

    Mr Chair, Director-General, Colleagues,

    The United Kingdom welcomes the publication of the OPCW’s latest report into chemical weapons use in Syria. The chlorine attack in Douma in April 2018 was a horrific attack, in which 43 men, women and children were killed and dozens more injured. The evidence assembled, considered and presented by the investigation team provides undeniable evidence of Syrian state responsibility. We pay tribute to the work of the OPCW’s investigation team.

    International investigations have now definitively established Syrian regime responsibility for nine separate chemical weapons attacks. The decision to use chemical weapons against Syrian civilians in Douma came more than four years after Syria acceded to the Chemical Weapons Convention. The Syrian regime’s deliberate decision to use chemical weapons represents an egregious violation of international law. Syria’s non-compliance with the Convention has been laid bare, yet again. Whilst Syria continues to deny the facts and attack the OPCW for doing its job, States Parties must continue to stand firm. We must demand the same standards from Syria as from every other member of this Organisation.

    The Syrian regime has been enabled in its chemical weapons use by Russia, another State Party openly flouting its international obligations. On 4 March 2018, Russian state agents used a novichok nerve agent on the streets of Salisbury. One person died and others were injured as a result of that heinous attack. Two years later, another Novichok nerve agent was used in Russia to target Alexey Navalny. Russia’s desperate attempts to blame others have served only to compound their culpability.

    The Russian state’s industrial levels of disinformation to try and distract from their violations of international law continue to this day. We remain very concerned that Russia’s baseless allegations of chemical weapons attacks in Ukraine could be used as a pretext for an escalation of their illegal and abhorrent violation of Ukraine’s sovereign territory. The Chemical Weapons Convention bans the use of riot control agents as a method of warfare and there would be serious consequences for any use of chemical weapons in Ukraine.

    Mr Chair,

    Russia’s illegal invasion of Ukraine has wrought economic shocks and undermined food security in many of the most vulnerable regions of the world. The inflationary pressures facing us all are one facet of that. As the OPCW Secretariat prepares the next biennial budget proposal, difficult decisions will be needed on reprioritising and restructuring. The Organisation must continue to seek efficiencies and grasp new opportunities, such as the exciting launch of the Centre for Chemistry and Technology in May.

    The preparatory process for the Review Conference in May is now well underway. The thematic discussions and many high-quality national papers have enriched the discussions and identified many areas of common agreement. As we resume deliberations after the Executive Council, we remain focused on forging agreement with all of those states determined to uphold the provisions of the Convention and ensure that chemical weapons use never goes unchallenged.

    Thank you Mr Chair.

  • Hilary Benn – 2023 Speech on Brain Tumour Research Funding

    Hilary Benn – 2023 Speech on Brain Tumour Research Funding

    The speech made by Hilary Benn, the Labour MP for Leeds Central, in the House of Commons on 9 March 2023.

    The reason that I rise to participate in this debate is that just under two years ago a constituent wrote to me. He revealed that he had a brain tumour and asked me to go along to an APPG meeting to discuss ways in which we could try to find a cure. I went along and I must confess that little did I know then that I would end up taking part in the inquiry. We had, I think, six evidence sessions and we heard from a lot of people. The report, which the hon. Member for St Ives (Derek Thomas) referred to, distils into its recommendations what we heard from those who contributed and who were very patient in answering the many questions that we put to them.

    I pay tribute to the hon. Member, who chairs the APPG and who chaired the inquiry. He has done so brilliantly, cheerfully and in a way that has brought out the best from all of the people who appeared before us, who came along to let us draw on their expertise, to share their frustrations and to offer their ideas and suggestions. It has been an honour and a privilege to work with him and all the other hon. Members here who took part. I also thank the wonderful secretariat from Brain Tumour Research for supporting us in our work and for pulling the report together so skilfully.

    A cancer diagnosis is a terrible thing, although statistics tell us that one in two of us will receive such a diagnosis during our lifetime. I think most of us, if we are honest, would say that we wince when we hear the word “cancer”, because all too often it conjures the idea of a downward path to the end of our lives. Any of us who has been through that experience, either ourselves or, in my case, with those we love, knows exactly how that feels, but death is not always the outcome. Our lives are not preordained, and we have seen real advances in the treatment of certain types of cancer in recent years—breast cancer is a good example—and, overall, I am advised that cancer survival rates in the UK have doubled in the last 40 years.

    But when it comes to brain tumours, the blunt truth is that there has been almost no progress at all. The five-year survival rate for glioblastoma, the most aggressive form, is 6.8%, and the average length of survival is between 12 and 18 months.

    Siobhain McDonagh (Mitcham and Morden) (Lab)

    My right hon. Friend refers to the average length of survival as being 18 months. Actually, it is nine months. His figure suggests that everybody completes treatment. Nine months is the life expectancy of somebody diagnosed with glioblastoma.

    Hilary Benn

    I absolutely take my hon. Friend’s point, which reinforces, in all of us, our awareness of just how awful this diagnosis is, and it is the answer to the question that every person who receives such a diagnosis asks their doctor: “How long have I got?” Eight or nine months is no time at all.

    Dr Matt Williams, a clinical oncologist, is quoted in the report:

    “Every week I have to tell patients that there is nothing more we can offer. I have now been a consultant for 10 years and these conversations are the same now as when I started.”

    That is why a brain tumour is a devastating diagnosis. A patient quoted in the report says:

    “It’s devastating and living with a time bomb in your head.”

    That is a very good description of what it must feel like. In those circumstances, what do patients and loved ones want? What we would all want is to make sure that we are doing everything we possibly can to try to change that.

    Mr Carmichael

    I speak about this publicly from time to time, and I am always struck by the number of people who say to me, “Thank you for doing that, because this took my father”—or their brother, their neighbour, their friend or whoever—“and I had no idea that this had been their life experience.” When I was growing up, 40 or 50 years ago, a cancer diagnosis really was not talked about—it was almost taboo—and I think we are in the same place with brain cancers. If we are to make the progress we need, we all have to start talking about this much more. The experience has to be shared.

    Hilary Benn

    I agree completely with what the right hon. Gentleman has said. To borrow a phrase, it’s good to talk about brain cancer. That is why we are here in this Chamber today. We are here to raise awareness, because loved ones dying remains, among some people, a great taboo, about which we are fearful of saying anything. When my late first wife died of cancer at the age of 26, I was struck by the fact that my colleagues at work, though wonderful people, found it almost impossible to mention what had happened when I went back to work. I understand why, because before it happened to me I would have been like them. I would have thought I would say the wrong thing or cause someone to break down in tears. When it happens to you, you come to realise that there is nothing special to say; you just have to go up to the person and say, “How are you?” and listen. Yes, they will cry and you will cry, but that is so much better than people hiding it inside, with the suffering that it brings.

    That is what this report is trying to do—it is trying to make sure that we are doing everything we can. There are good reasons why brain cancer is proving so difficult to treat. I learnt about that, as did the other members of the inquiry panel. The brain is a complex organ. I had never heard of the blood-brain barrier before. I am not sure I still understand it, but I heard a lot about it in the evidence we received. We learnt about treatments that had been tried and had failed, and about the desperation of those with brain tumours to get on to trials that might just offer some hope, not of a cure, but of a few more months. For someone who has received a diagnosis of a brain tumour, every second—let alone every minute, week or month—is extremely precious. We heard of the despair of people who are unable to get this for themselves or their loved ones, and it is so particularly poignant when it is children who have a brain tumour.

    So we are calling for a renewed and determined focus on doing every single thing we can to change the situation, not because we are naive about the difficulties, which are many, but because it is the very least we can do for the people who find themselves in this position. So, of course, we have called for greater investment. I thought the hon. Member for St Ives explained well why the funds that have been made available and set aside for brain tumour research—I welcome them enormously—have not all been allocated and spent. It is not for want of willingness; it relates to the point he made about the lack of suitable research proposals coming forward and the frustration, which came across so clearly in that one evidence session in particular, of those who have put their research proposals to the research bodies, have been knocked back and feel, “They did not really understand what we are trying to do.” That is because those who sit on those panels may not have expertise in the field of brain tumour research, which is why we strongly encourage the research councils to look more widely at, and more favourably upon, proposals for brain tumour research.

    We have a funding system that has been built in silos. It needs to be better joined up, from basic science through to clinical trials. At this point, I wish to pay tribute, as we all would, to the clinicians, scientists, doctors and others who work their socks off to try to crack this problem and find a treatment. That is why we have made some very specific recommendations. The example of biobanking and tissue samples seemed so simple when people talked about it. When we are dealing with any disease, but particularly this one, does it not make sense to pool all of the information that we have available about what we have learnt, what we still do not know, what may work and what may not? Clearly, that is not happening, even though it is a simple thing to do so that anyone undertaking research can draw upon all the available material as they apply their mind, scientific skill and determination to finding a cure.

    We are also calling for patients with brain tumours to have equity of access to trials of new anti-cancer drugs that currently may be available only to patients with other types of malignant cancers. There can be a fear that if other people are brought into the trial, it will somehow skew the result. However, if a person is dying, that is not their concern. Their concern is: “Might this possibly work to save my life or the life of the person I love?”

    I hope that this report and the views of all those people who so generously gave their time—we thank all of them—will have an impact as, collectively, we roll up our sleeves, redouble our efforts, and express an even greater determination to find treatments and cures for this cruel disease that shortens the lives of so many people whom we have come to know or know already and love. What keeps us going in difficult times is hope, and I think these recommendations offer exactly that. As one patient said, “If you have hope, you have life.”

  • Derek Thomas – 2023 Speech on Brain Tumour Research Funding

    Derek Thomas – 2023 Speech on Brain Tumour Research Funding

    The speech made by Derek Thomas, the Conservative MP for St Ives, in the House of Commons on 9 March 2023.

    I beg to move,

    That this House has considered brain tumour research funding.

    I am hopeful that we will have nodding heads on both sides of the House for this debate this afternoon. I thank you for the opportunity to speak, Mr Deputy Speaker, and thank the Backbench Business Committee for making time for this debate.

    I pay particular tribute to those families around the UK who are living with a brain tumour diagnosis. When I meet some of these families, I see an enduring hope, when so often their outlook seems hopeless. It is for that reason that the purpose of this debate is to demand a greater emphasis from Government and to accelerate the effort to find more effective methods to treat patients with brain tumours and ensure that they have the best care and rehabilitation possible.

    Many hon. Members will remember that back in 2015, the Realf family presented a petition with 120,129 signatories calling for an increase in national funding for the research into brain tumours. The Petitions Committee picked it up and the following Westminster Hall debate led to the Government Minister at the time establishing a task and finish group to look at the issue. That group published its report in 2018 and the Government subsequently announced a £20 million fund for research into brain tumours, boosted by a pledge of a further £25 million by Cancer Research UK.

    Mr Alistair Carmichael (Orkney and Shetland) (LD)

    As the hon. Gentleman knows, I have been on this journey with him since that quite remarkable Westminster Hall debate in 2016. We said then that we needed the money; we got the money, but now we find that there are structural problems still standing in the way of the progress we need. To me, that says that there is probably nobody in charge of the strategy within the Department. Does the hon. Gentleman agree that if we can achieve anything in this debate, it will be to hear a commitment from the Treasury Bench that somebody will take charge of this strategy and make it happen?

    Derek Thomas

    Of course, I agree with the right hon. Gentleman. Actually, I want the Government to go further and make brain tumour research the priority of all cancer research, because we have not seen the progress that we should have in that time.

    Margaret Ferrier (Rutherglen and Hamilton West) (Ind)

    A constituent got in touch with me yesterday to tell the devastating story of her young niece, who struggled to obtain a diagnosis despite several GP trips and horrendous symptoms that left her unable to eat properly or attend school. Does the hon. Member agree that ringfenced funding, specifically for research into childhood brain tumours, must be agreed urgently?

    Derek Thomas

    I will come on to that point later. I am grateful for the contributions that we have already heard.

    I pay tribute to the late Dame Tessa Jowell, who sadly received her own diagnosis of a brain tumour soon after that debate, when Government funding was being announced. At that time, about five years ago, she said in the other place:

    “For what would every cancer patient want? First, to know that the best, the latest science was being used…wherever in the world it was developed, whoever began it.”—[Official Report, House of Lords, 25 January 2018; Vol. 788, c. 1170.]

    Sadly, she passed away in May 2018.

    Soon after, an additional £20 million of Government money was made available and the Tessa Jowell Brain Cancer Mission was established. I pay tribute to Dame Tessa Jowell’s daughter and the mission for the way that they have transformed the pathway and the care that brain tumour patients get, and for the work that they continue to do. I appreciate the way that they have engaged with me and others on the all-party parliamentary group on brain tumours in their work.

    The provision of £65 million heralded a significant shift in focus towards brain tumours. Given the high-profile commitment to brain cancer research, we should not be here calling for a commitment and a focus on brain tumour research five years later. Sadly, however, despite the £40 million of Government funds that were committed to research, there has been a lack of grant deployment to researchers.

    It is important to note that Cancer Research UK, since announcing its commitment to spend £25 million on strategic initiatives in brain tumour research in 2018, has committed almost £28 million to that cause. That is not the case for Government funding. To date, the figures of the National Institute for Health and Care Research—the body responsible for distributing that research funding—state that of the £40 million, between £10 million and £15 million has been deployed, and that depends on how we interpret brain tumour research.

    The all-party parliamentary group on brain tumours, which I am privileged to chair—perhaps I should have declared my interest at the start—decided to conduct the “Pathway to a Cure—breaking down the barriers” inquiry, which aimed to identify barriers preventing that important funding flowing to its intended recipients. We felt the need to launch that inquiry only because a series of meetings, including with the National Institute for Health and Care Research, the Medical Research Council, the Department of Health and Social Care and a Government Minister, failed to reassure us that dedicated research funding would or could be used to ramp up the research needed if we want to discover the breakthrough that every brain tumour sufferer and their family longs for.

    Those of us who serve on the all-party group were able to understand the severity of the issue and the lived experience for patients, families, clinicians and researchers only because of the sterling work of the charity Brain Tumour Research. It provides the secretariat for the all-party group and brings together thousands of people across the UK to share their experience, knowledge and understanding, and to make up what I affectionately know as the brain tumour family.

    In February last year, we launched our inquiry and took evidence from clinicians, researchers and patients. We released our report last Tuesday. Today, part of the way into Brain Tumour Awareness Month, we will set out what we have unearthed during the inquiry and press the Government to review and reform their method of deploying research funds to those who can make best use of them.

    From our work, we know that researchers find it challenging to access Government funding, because the system is built in silos. We know that cell line isolation and biobanking are happening, but at only a minority of sites across the research community; that the pool of talented researchers is finite; and that NIHR processes act as a disincentive to researchers who can apply their expertise and intellect more easily elsewhere in the medical research field.

    We also found that there are a limited number of clinical trials available for brain tumour patients, and that the national trials database is not reliable. We found that pharmaceutical companies are choosing not to pursue the development of brain cancer drugs in the UK, and that funding is not ringfenced—specifically for research into childhood brain tumours, as has been mentioned, where survival rates for the most aggressive tumours have remained unchanged for decades.

    Kirsten Oswald (East Renfrewshire) (SNP)

    The hon. Member is touching on a point that I am sure will have been heard by every MP in this place. Constituents who, sadly, have children who have been or are affected by brain tumours know only too well that things have not changed for decades. That is why what he has come here today to talk about is so important. We need to shift the dial. It is not good enough, it is terribly unfair and the consequences of us not shifting it are obviously profound.

    Derek Thomas

    Sadly, I have met far too many parents who have lost loved ones. It is heartbreaking to speak to them, and to see how a juggernaut has charged through and destroyed much of their lives. They give me so much hope that we can do this work because of the commitment they have to this subject.

    Before I address the specific recommendations of the report, may I thank colleagues—many of them are here today—who have given up the last year to interrogate witnesses and to take evidence? I want particularly to mention my hon. Friend the Member for Scunthorpe (Holly Mumby-Croft), the right hon. Member for Leeds Central (Hilary Benn), my hon. Friend the Member for Buckingham (Greg Smith), the hon. Member for Ceredigion (Ben Lake) and Lord Polak CBE from the other place, but also Sue Farrington Smith MBE of Brain Tumour Research, Dr David Jenkinson of the Brain Tumour Charity, Professor Garth Cruickshank, Dr Antony Michalski and Professor Tony Marson, who took part in the inquiry, and most importantly, Peter Realf, whose son was lost and who triggered the petition back in 2015.

    To turn to the findings, the Government must recognise brain tumour research as a critical priority. Five years ago, a remarkable effort was made by Government to respond to the shocking statistics that surround brain tumours. Brain cancer remains the biggest cancer killer of children and adults under 40. In order for survival rates to increase, the Government must go further and treat brain tumours as a key priority. This has been achieved in other countries through legislation, and I urge the Minister to see what can be achieved here. A brain tumour champion, which has already been hinted at, is needed to co-ordinate the funding and implementation of a strategy between the Department of Health and Social Care and the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology.

    In order for brain tumour research to lead to tangible changes in survival rates for patients, it needs to receive funds across the research pathway, including discovery, translation and clinical research. I recognise the recent advances and improvements in molecular testing and prognostic information, but there is a requirement for further discovery research. That will improve the understanding of disease biology, and how best to frame and support pre-clinical trial research. For instance, a particular issue for tackling brain tumours is the complexity of drug absorption through the blood-brain barrier.

    It is crucial that the Government enable the building of critical mass in these elements of the research pipeline. With no ringfenced funding to support poorly funded disease areas such as brain tumours, investment in the disease is not always prioritised. Focused calls for multidisciplinary research into brain tumours through organisations such as the MRC would support this. Additionally, making the blood-brain barrier a strategic priority and encouraging investment in cutting-edge research could yield game-changing results in the treatment of brain tumours and other neurological diseases.

    On translational research, on average, it takes 15 years for an idea to move from the pre-clinical stage to helping a patient. Patients have not got that long to wait. Researchers have said they found it challenging to access Government funding for translational research, relying on charities to fund risky elements of the pipeline. More must be done to support this valley of death element of the research pipeline. That seeks to move basic science discoveries more quickly and efficiently into practice, and that shift would increase interest among the research community, ensuring a greater concentration of research expertise in this area.

    The inquiry also found that there is a perception that review panels have a lack of understanding about the unique nature of brain tumour research, due to a deficit of specialists on panels. That was reported to account to some degree for low application success rates. During oral evidence sessions, it was also highlighted that a lack of feedback disincentivised unsuccessful applicants from reapplying, bearing in mind that they would potentially have spent a year on such work before their original application was ready for submission.

    Positive and proactive engagement with the research community should be nurtured through a continued programme of workshops and funding toolkits for researchers, supporting navigation of the funding system and increasing success rates. Currently, due to many of those issues, and a lack of funding and support, early stage researchers, especially post-doctoral researchers, are moving away from the field of brain tumour research. They are attracted by more readily available and secure funding in other disease areas. A solution for that would be the MRC and the NIHR ringfencing opportunities, such as specific brain tumour awards, across the research pipeline.

    Funding could also be prioritised for a fellowship programme, supporting early stage researchers to develop their skills in the field. There is an example within the Cancer Mission, where two teaching fellowships, match-funded by the NIHR, are taking place. That number needs to increase. Learning about brain tumours early in careers results in researchers going on to choose the discipline.

    Currently, only 5% of brain tumour patients are entering the limited number of trials available. Clinicians stated that many trials that patients with brain tumours are eligible to enter are not accessible to patients, who often have physical disabilities, as participants are expected to travel long distances across the UK. Poor health and the cost implications were key barriers to patients entering studies that were available to them.

    A survey carried out by Brain Tumour Research highlighted that 72% of patients who responded would consider participating in research or a clinical trial if offered the opportunity. Only 21% believed that healthcare professionals gave sufficient information about opportunities to participate in clinical research, including trials.

    That approach does not take account of the benefits that new and repurposed therapeutics could provide for brain tumour patients. If brain tumour patients are excluded at an early stage, possible benefits for such patients are not identified and carried forward in later trials. Access to trials should be assessed not by the location of the tumour, but by other individual criteria such as genomic profile and medical history.

    It was also demonstrated that clinicians are risk-averse to children accessing early phase trials, despite parents’ wishes. As a result of those limitations, patients are encouraged to travel overseas in pursuit of treatment not available in the UK. Some small improvements to both systems would allow many more clinicians to successfully support patients to access trials across the country.

    We have touched on this briefly, but paediatric brain cancer is viewed by researchers as different from adult brain tumours because brain tumours in children are linked to physical development, rather than ageing. Current treatments for children have significant long-term side effects and much more research is needed into kinder treatments and novel drug delivery for children. Additionally, more must be done to tackle brain injury issues and the consequences of brain tumour treatments.

    In this place, we often talk about the need to support people to meet their potential and to live life to the full to address issues that curtail life chances. That is no less important for children and young people who have experienced a brain tumour or brain cancer. Using the method adopted by the NHS to measure survival rates, children’s survival following a tumour is positive. However, they are often left with a brain acquired injury caused by the surgery and treatment of the brain tumour itself.

    Once the child is discharged from the hospital, there is no guaranteed pathway of rehabilitation or access to suitable education, therapies, services or physio. That causes tremendous additional strain on the family as they seek to access and fight for the appropriate step-down care. In many cases, the lack of those therapies means that the recovery and life chances of the child or young person are nowhere near as good as they could or should be.

    In this place, we want life to be a success. I pay particular tribute to Success Charity and Dr Helen Spoudeas, who has worked tirelessly to ensure that these brain acquired injuries are taken more seriously and that a concerted effort is made to ensure the best possible recovery. Success Charity exists to advocate for survivors and provide them with the care and support that they need and deserve. It has its annual conference at the Royal College of Physicians this Saturday, which will give families an opportunity to share experiences and make friends with other survivors, siblings and parents, and to listen to inspirational speakers.

    Having given some thought to this issue, and having discussed it with others, I think that an appropriate approach would be to introduce a commitment that every child and their family would be entitled to a carefully crafted package that ensures that all the needs of a growing and developing child are met, including access to education services, and that the best person to ensure the implementation of this package would be an occupational therapist.

    This Government want the UK to be considered a science and technology superpower. The UK must start setting the pace for recovery rather than fall further behind. Business as usual threatens the UK’s ability to lead clinical trials for brain tumours. Brain tumour research must be seen as a critical priority, with Government developing a strategic plan for adequately resourcing and funding discovery and translational and clinical research. Robust tissue collection and storage facilities must be put in place across the country. As a Government Minister said in this place only last week, every willing patient must automatically be part of a clinical trial, and that includes collecting and storing tissue for research. There must be equity of access to clinical trials and a robust and up-to-date clinical trial database. The regulatory process must be simplified, with the introduction of tax relief and incentives for investors to encourage investment for the longer-term periods necessary to develop and deliver new brain tumour drugs.

    There is so much more that could be said, and I am sure that much more will be covered this afternoon. I hope that the Minister will take the report and our recommendations seriously, and that he will have an opportunity to come back to us at a later date—when he may have more time than that afforded to him at the close of this debate—to set out how the Government intend to respond to our recommendations. Will he also agree to meet me and members of the all-party group to discuss the recommendations of our Brain Tumour Research report? Thank you, Mr Deputy Speaker.

  • Maria Caulfield – 2023 Speech on International Women’s Day

    Maria Caulfield – 2023 Speech on International Women’s Day

    The speech made by Maria Caulfield, the Minister for Women, in the House of Commons on 9 March 2023.

    May I thank right hon. and hon. Members for their contributions this afternoon? I particularly thank my right hon. Friend the Member for Basingstoke (Dame Maria Miller) for securing this debate and for her work every day of the year on championing women’s rights. I thank all hon. Members who have spoken so passionately today about the issues on which they are campaigning on behalf of women up and down the country.

    As my right hon. Friend pointed out, many women who have gone before us have led the way to our being here today. The hon. Member for Erith and Thamesmead (Abena Oppong-Asare) mentioned Baroness Boothroyd, but there have also been women such as Margaret Thatcher, the first female Prime Minister, who broke that glass ceiling. Unlike the shadow Minister, the hon. Member for Oxford East (Anneliese Dodds), I am not afraid to compliment and pay tribute to female Members on the other side of the House. A personal heroine for me was Mo Mowlam. The hon. Member for Bristol South (Karin Smyth) spoke about how women have been erased from photos and others have often taken the credit for their hard work; Mo Mowlam was instrumental in delivering peace for Northern Ireland, but she is very often forgotten when we talk about issues around the Northern Ireland protocol. However, she is very much remembered for the work that she did.

    My right hon. Friend the Member for Chelmsford (Vicky Ford) said that there is a special place in heaven for men who stand up for women. Today I want to remember Sir David Amess, who usually spoke in these debates; I think particularly of his work on endometriosis. I am sure that he would be very pleased to see his successor, my hon. Friend the Member for Southend West (Anna Firth), taking part in this debate. It has also been great to see my hon. Friend the Member for Worthing West (Sir Peter Bottomley) spending most of the afternoon in this Chamber to listen to women speak about the issues that we face. We are very lucky to have such a Father of the House who respects female Members.

    On International Women’s Day yesterday, I was particularly pleased that so many Departments were able to showcase the work that has been done and make announcements on tackling the issues that women face, many of which have been raised today. The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office launched its first international women and girls strategy yesterday, which highlights the work being done globally to tackle threats to gender equality across the world. From climate change and crisis to conflicts and coronavirus, those threats disproportionately affect many women in certain countries; hon. Members have spoken particularly about Iran and Afghanistan today. Significant work is going on to support women across the world.

    I want to touch in particular on the issues facing the women of Ukraine. I had the great pleasure and honour of meeting the First Lady, Mrs Zelenska, this year. While of course planes, weapons and resources are important, her plea to us in this place was to make people aware of how rape is being used as a weapon of war against women in Ukraine—there are young girls, women, older women and elderly women who are being raped as part of the war against Ukraine.

    I am pleased that the UK has cemented its position as a leading global actor standing up for women who are under attack. We know the scale and severity of gender-based violence at times of conflict and insecurity. I am proud that the UK is recognised internationally for the preventing sexual violence in conflict initiative, committing £60 million to preventing and responding to conflict-related sexual violence since 2012. Last November the UK hosted the PSVI international conference in London, with more than 1,000 delegates, and secured new political declarations with 53 countries and 40 national communities. That is incredible work.

    However, this debate has mainly focused on the domestic issue of the gender-based violence that women and girls are experiencing up and down the country. We heard a very moving speech from the hon. Member for Birmingham, Yardley (Jess Phillips), who highlighted the sheer scale of the women who have been murdered in the past year. The right hon. Member for Kingston upon Hull North (Dame Diana Johnson) described the terrible, tragic case of Libby Squire, and the hon. Member for Livingston (Hannah Bardell) told us Wendy’s story about her daughter Aimee. Members cannot have failed to be moved by that.

    Of course we are doing great work in improving the experience of women. We have announced the awarding of grants to rape crisis centres in England and Wales to set up a national telephone support line, open 24/7, which was launched on 7 December, and we are providing £27 million to recruit more independent sexual and domestic violence advisers. Despite all that, however, there is clearly a significant problem. Violence against women and girls was included in the women’s health strategy because it is not just a criminal issue or a justice issue. I was pleased to see both my right hon. Friend the Member for Charnwood (Edward Argar), the Minister for Victims and Sentencing, and the Under-Secretary of State for the Home Department, my hon. Friend the Member for Derbyshire Dales (Miss Dines), in the Chamber earlier to hear about this staggering problem.

    Sarah Owen (Luton North) (Lab)

    I have listened intently to the debate, and it is an honour to be able serve alongside such fantastic female representatives on both sides of the House. The Minister is talking about eradicating sexual and domestic violence from society. Does she agree that we should not be rewarding, in any way, any perpetrators of that sort of abuse and violence?

    Maria Caulfield

    I absolutely agree. As I have said, that is why we included violence against women and girls in the women’s health strategy, and as we approach the first anniversary of the strategy, I am keen for us to move towards making that our priority for the second year, working across Government. I am happy to work across parties as well, because this is such an important issue. Despite all the strategies, plans and—let us be fair—significant funding, we are still not making progress in the areas in which we want to make it. We have been presented with many images, but I was particularly struck by what was said by the hon. Member for Brent Central (Dawn Butler) about the way in which language is used to describe both female victims and their perpetrators, which suggests that an offence of that kind can be justified—that it simply happened, that it was a mistake, and that it was not all that significant. That has to change, which means changing the culture as well as creating the infrastructure to support it. I am keen for us to make progress on that in the next 12 months.

    Jackie Doyle-Price (Thurrock) (Con)

    I am very interested by what my hon. Friend has just said. She referred earlier to putting violence against women and girls at the heart of the health strategy. If we are serious about increasing the rate of convictions for rape and sexual violence, and indeed domestic violence, we should bear in mind that women report being treated like pieces of evidence. What we need is wraparound therapeutic support for victims, so they are not re-traumatised every time they try to obtain justice. Will that be a large part of what my hon. Friend is doing?

    Maria Caulfield

    Absolutely. We do need to look at how we support women, and that includes female MPs. I am thinking of Rosie Cooper, who simply left the House of Commons because of what she had experienced. She has gone on record as saying that she did not feel safe continuing.

    Wera Hobhouse

    Will the Minister give way?

    Maria Caulfield

    I do not have a huge amount of time, but I will give way a couple more times.

    Wera Hobhouse

    I will be very quick. The police are saying that they need to move away from viewing the victim as a credible witness, and move on to the perpetrator. Too often, the perpetrator gets away while the police are investigating the victim.

    Maria Caulfield

    I entirely agree. This is about changing culture as much as about changing the structure of services: we have seen plenty of evidence of that. Let me also pay tribute to the hon. Lady for her private Member’s Bill, which will tackle sexual harassment in the workplace. She has done tremendous work on the Bill, and we hope that it will make swift progress in the other place.

    Vicky Ford

    The issue of spiking has, unfortunately, been coming up in my constituency. If the perpetrators are to be caught, it is important for victims to come forward quickly and provide physical evidence, such as a urine sample, within 24 hours. I wonder whether there is more that my hon. Friend could do, using her own voice, to get that message out to victims.

    Maria Caulfield

    Yes, absolutely. That is why we need a cross-Government approach. We need to work with the Home Office and the Ministry of Justice team so that we have a united voice.

    Abena Oppong-Asare

    Will the Minister give way?

    Maria Caulfield

    I will give way one more time.

    Abena Oppong-Asare

    I appreciate the Minister’s generosity. I just want to put on record the work that Sistah Space has done—particularly in relation to Valerie’s law—for victims of abuse, especially black victims. The Minister’s predecessor started to do some work with me and with Sistah Space before the change of Government. Will she please continue that work?

    Maria Caulfield

    I shall be happy to do that, and we can certainly arrange to meet following this debate.

    The shadow Minister was slightly dismissive of the groundbreaking Online Safety Bill. However, my right hon. Friend the Member for Chelmsford has reported that the UN special rapporteur on violence against women and girls has described it as world- leading. Many other countries are following our progress, and, indeed, may adopt similar legislation. The Bill will tackle criminal activity online. It will protect children from harmful and inappropriate content, and it aims to stop the rise of online misogyny. Several Members have mentioned the importance of that.

    Let me say something about business. The UK is now successfully including gender provision in all the free trade agreements that we have made since leaving the EU. Our trade agreements with Australia and New Zealand, for instance, contain dedicated trade and gender equality chapters. That too is groundbreaking work. As for our domestic business focus, our taskforce on women-led high- growth enterprise was established last summer. I want to pay tribute to my hon. Friend the Member for Meon Valley (Mrs Drummond) for her work in the all-party parliamentary group on women and work, not just her work in pushing science, technology, engineering and maths for women, but the high-growth sector work she is doing. If we deliver more women with ambition, we will improve growth in our economy and also improve the outcome for those women as they thrive in the workplace.

    We know that childcare is an issue. That is why we have spent more than £3.5 billion over the last three years on early education entitlement, and have increased the funding for local authorities to £160 million this year, £180 million next year and £170 million thereafter, to allow them to increase their payments to local childcare providers. I recognise the challenges and the cost that childcare imposes on families, but I also know how difficult it is for the providers to sustain their business model.

    Turning briefly to women’s health, I am proud that in the past year we have published the first women’s health strategy for England. The hon. Member for Vauxhall (Florence Eshalomi) mentioned that in particular, and I am very keen that we make progress in that space, especially on maternity disparities. We have appointed Dame Lesley Regan as the first women’s health ambassador to lead that work. We announced yesterday that we are investing £25 million to roll out women’s health hubs across the country, providing a one-stop shop for women’s healthcare needs.

    We will also level up IVF access to same-sex couples and across the board, ensuring consistent provision across the country, which does not currently exist. The HRT prepayment certificate will be launched from 1 April, cutting the cost of HRT by hundreds of pounds. We also aim to announce our pregnancy loss certificate later this summer, so that babies born before 24 weeks can be registered—an important issue for those parents who have lost babies. The major conditions strategy will look at long-term conditions such as heart disease, musculoskeletal conditions and dementia, the leading cause of death in women, which for too long have been ignored.

    Finally, I want to touch on girls’ education, which it is a top priority for us in both our international commitment—we want 12 years of quality education for every girl, which is the best way to get girls and women out of poverty—and our domestic commitments. The Prime Minister in his first speech set out his ambition to ensure that all school pupils in England study some form of maths to the age of 18. My hon. Friend the Member for Thurrock (Jackie Doyle-Price) raised the issue of teaching materials in schools; the Prime Minister yesterday committed to a review of those and we will look forward to what that shows.

    We need to get more women and girls into science, because, as my right hon. Friend the Member for Basingstoke said, despite getting more girls into STEM A-levels and on to undergraduate courses, we only see women making up 29.4% of the STEM workforce. That is why we are running our STEM Returners pilot; there are 75,000 people, mainly women, with experience and qualifications in STEM who are not working in the sector and who we want to see return to practice.

    I hope that that showcases some of the work we are doing across the board. There are many challenges—we do not deny or shirk that fact—but we are making significant progress. In particular, domestically, on violence against women and girls, I hope that this time next year we will have a better story to tell.

    Dame Maria Miller

    I say an enormous thank you to everybody who has taken part in the debate. This debate always demonstrates how much agreement there is across the House; I always see more heads nodding on the Opposition side and the Government side in this debate than in any other. My final comment, therefore, is, “Let us not allow party politics to get too involved in some of these issues.” They are not about party politics; they are about changing the culture of our country, to make sure that women have the same opportunities and the same barriers as men—not different ones, but not bigger ones. The more we can keep the politics out of this, the more progress we make in that culture change. I think the vast majority of this debate has demonstrated how much agreement there is. I applaud that, and thank colleagues for taking that approach.

  • PRESS RELEASE : Bangladesh-UK Accord on Climate Change [March 2023]

    PRESS RELEASE : Bangladesh-UK Accord on Climate Change [March 2023]

    The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 14 March 2023.

    Bangladesh and UK signed an agreement for working together on climate action bilaterally and multilaterally to help deliver the outcomes of COP26 and COP27.

    • The Governments of the People’s Republic of Bangladesh and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland are committing to address the global challenge of climate change, the impacts of which are becoming ever more severe at both national and international levels.
    • Building on the long-standing and highly-valued relationship between our two countries, we resolve to demonstrate leadership and to enhance cooperation in climate action bilaterally and multilaterally, to help deliver the outcomes of COP26 and COP27.
    • We will aim to build on the climate leadership demonstrated by the Bangladesh Presidency of the 58-member Climate Vulnerable Forum (CVF) and the UK’s Presidency of the COP26 at Glasgow. Bangladesh’s leadership at COP26 in coordinating and promoting the voices from the most climate vulnerable countries contributed to securing additional ambition from many of the big emitters. The UK Presidency successfully brokered the Glasgow Climate Pact, which will speed up the pace of action on mitigation, adaptation, finance and loss and damage. However, even with the action committed both during and before COP26, communities around the world will continue to feel the devastating impacts of a changing climate. All countries must continue with concerted and immediate efforts to deliver on all pledges made at COP26 and COP27.
    • As part of UK’s global commitment to tackle climate change, new bilateral, regional and central programmes were announced at COP26 for Bangladesh. The programmes will contribute to build resilience, protect biodiversity, expand renewable energy, prevent pollution and better manage waste, while also supporting women’s leadership, increased access to climate finance, education and skills in Bangladesh.

    MITIGATION

    • We recognise the urgent need to take bold and comprehensive action to mitigate greenhouse gas emissions. The UK and Bangladesh will continue to take actions in line with the Paris Agreement goal of limiting global temperature increase to 1.5 degrees Celsius. We decide to submit ambitious and enhanced Nationally Determined Contributions expanding emissions reductions targets as far as possible. We will work together to support implementation of the measures necessary to achieve these targets. And we will encourage all other countries to be as ambitious as they can be.
    • Bangladesh commends the UK for its commitment to achieve a net-zero by 2050, and for being the first major economy to put this commitment into law. The UK has also committed that by 2040 all new cars sold will have zero emissions.
    • The UK welcomes Bangladesh’s Mujib Climate Prosperity Plan that calls for strategic investments into low-carbon development initiatives and tackling frontline climate threats.  The UK appreciates the addition of Agriculture, Forestry and other Land use and waste management in Bangladesh’s updated NDC. The UK welcomes Bangladesh’s intention to increase the share of clean energy up to 40% of the total energy by 2041 and low carbon development pathway.
    • We emphasise the importance of international cooperation and investment in achieving our mitigation targets. We also recognise the need to ensure this delivers wider benefits such as energy security and access to energy, poverty eradication, economic growth and job creations.

    ADAPTATION

    • We recognise that Bangladesh as a climate vulnerable country is facing multiple climate change impacts, including sea level rise, heat stress, drought and devastating natural disasters often causing displacement on a large scale.
    • We look forward to working closely through the Dhaka office of the Global Center on Adaptation to develop and take integrated approaches to avert, minimise and address displacement related to the adverse impacts of climate change. The newly launched Global Hub on Locally Led Adaptation will help climate vulnerable communities throughout the South Asia region benefit from adaptation solutions developed and tested in Bangladesh, the UK, and other countries.
    • Both countries have expertise to share, based on their own National Adaptation Plans, in developing the Global Goal on Adaptation. We look forward to working together to accelerate adaptation locally, nationally and globally.
    • As signatories to the 75th UNGA Leaders’ Pledge for Nature, we reiterate our pledge to continue to develop and share expertise on nature-based solutions.  We are committed to combine efforts and expertise to scale up nature-based solutions domestically and internationally and demonstrate their cost-effectiveness to other countries. We decide to encourage greater public and private investments in nature-based solutions for adapting to and mitigating climate change. We are determined to implement the Glasgow Leaders’ Declaration on Forests and Land Use and to work together to halt and reverse forest loss and land degradation by 2030.
    • We reiterate our shared commitment to work closely in support of collaborative global coalitions including the Resilience and Adaptation Coalition and the Adaptation Action Coalition. We resolve to work with other UN members to show greater political ambition, and to support action on the ground.

    LOSS AND DAMAGE

    • We welcome the agreement at COP27 to establish new funding arrangements, including the setup of a dedicated fund, to respond to loss and damage from climate change.   We look forward to working to develop the detail of these new arrangements ahead of COP28, including through the UK’s role as a member of the transitional Committee.

    FINANCE

    • We recognise the crucial role of climate finance in accelerating the development and deployment of environmentally preferable and low carbon technologies. We will work together to encourage all global stakeholders to play their part in collectively meeting the $100 billion a year target, and in setting ambitious post-2020 financial commitments. We call upon multilateral development banks and development finance institutions to contribute to delivering climate finance goals, and to support a green, inclusive and resilient recovery from Covid-19.
    • Bangladesh commends the UK for its doubling of international climate finance to £11.6 billion over 2021-2025, setting a clear benchmark for the international community. The UK commends Bangladesh for setting up the domestically resourced Bangladesh Climate Change Trust Fund financing nationwide adaptation and mitigation climate action projects.
    • The Taskforce on Access to Climate Finance sets out to transform access to finance through a new, country-led approach. The UK, as co-lead, and Bangladesh as pioneer country, can play leading roles in ensuring more finance reaches more people on the frontline of climate change.
    • We commit also to work domestically and internationally to enhance private finance for adaptation and mitigation, by creating an enabling environment to increase strategic investments in clean and renewable energy, and in protection of nature. We stress the need to work to increase access to climate finance by climatically vulnerable countries, secure greater funding for adaptation and to improve gender-responsiveness of climate finance.

    COLLABORATION

    • Bangladesh and the UK will exchange expertise, facilitate partnerships, and identify practical solutions to common climate challenges.
    • The two countries will hold regular joint events and dialogues on climate action.  The events would be inclusive of all parts of society and focussed on scaling up action on the ground. We recognise the critical role of young people, and seek to meaningfully engage them in climate dialogue and action.
    • We stress the need for realizing the opportunities of a clean energy transition and working with national and international institutions and investors towards that end. We decide to cooperate to expand renewable energy through detailed resource assessments for offshore renewables and by testing new technologies more suited to Bangladesh’s land constraints.
    • We reaffirm the importance of global collaboration on research, development and capacity building to tackle climate change, and will strive to further collaboration in these areas.
    • We express our resolve to continue to work together for sustainable ocean development under the Commonwealth Blue Charter and the UK-led Global Ocean Alliance. We reaffirm our shared commitment to tackle marine plastic pollution under the Commonwealth Clean Ocean Alliance. We propose to also enhance protection of marine resources including by reducing land-based sources of pollution, supporting better management of solid waste, and restoring natural ecosystems.
    • We firmly believe by taking the actions outlined above we can contribute to meeting our commitments under the Paris Agreement, and to improving the resilience of the most vulnerable people to climate change.

    Signed on 12 March 2023 by

    Honourable State Minister, H.E. Mr Md. Shahriar Alam, MP For the Government of the People’s Republic of Bangladesh

    Rt Hon. Anne-Marie Trevelyan MP, Minister of State (Indo-Pacific) For the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office of the UK

  • PRESS RELEASE : Rishi Sunak meeting with US President Joe Biden [March 2023]

    PRESS RELEASE : Rishi Sunak meeting with US President Joe Biden [March 2023]

    The press release issued by 10 Downing Street on 14 March 2023.

    The Prime Minister met US President Biden in San Diego today.

    The leaders welcomed today’s announcement of the next phase in the AUKUS defence programme, which will see Australia build submarines supported by the UK and US.

    The Prime Minister updated President Biden on the UK’s updated national security and foreign policy strategy, which has been published today. The leaders agreed on the convergence between the UK and US’ ambitions and interests in the world, and on the importance of working together to bring about global stability.

    The Prime Minister and President Biden discussed the need to remain steadfast in our support of Ukraine and staunch opposition to Putin’s abuse of international law and disregard for human life. The Prime Minister detailed the UK’s accelerated support to Ukraine, both in terms of the volume of support and the advanced nature of the capabilities we are providing – including tanks and training.

    The leaders agreed that, as Ukraine’s two biggest international supporters, the UK and US have a role to play coordinating international efforts to support Ukraine. We need to ensure that Ukraine both wins the war and secures a lasting peace where it cannot be threatened by Russia in the same way again.

    On China, they noted the challenged posed by the increased assertiveness of the Chinese Communist Party. The Prime Minister outlined the steps the UK is taking to protect our national and economic security interests. The leaders agreed on the need to engage China and maintain dialogue.

    The Prime Minister stressed the importance of likeminded countries working together to protect our shared economic security, providing an active alternative to those governments who use protectionism and unfair market practices to destabilise the global economy.

    The leaders discussed the US’ Inflation Reduction Act. The Prime Minister expressed his hope that our governments can continue to work together to increase jobs and growth in both of our countries as we transition towards Net Zero.

    The President and Prime Minister discussed the importance of further deepening the strong, enduring economic relationship between the UK and US. President Biden invited the Prime Minister to visit Washington in June to continue this conversation.

    The US and UK will work and invest together to drive the clean energy transition, foster the industries of the future and bolster our economies’ resilience to a range of shocks. Our two countries will explore ways to deepen our trade and investment relationship and confront the shared economic and national security challenges we face.

    The leaders agreed that their teams should work intensively to advance this agenda, making progress ahead of the G7 Summit in May. As part of these efforts, the US and UK will work within the G7, with other international partners and bilaterally to strengthen and diversify critical supply chains, including for critical minerals.

    The Prime Minister invited President Biden to Northern Ireland next month to commemorate the 25th Anniversary of the Good Friday Agreement.

  • Rishi Sunak – 2023 Statement at AUKUS Trilateral Press Conference

    Rishi Sunak – 2023 Statement at AUKUS Trilateral Press Conference

    The statement made by Rishi Sunak, the Prime Minister, in San Diego on 13 March 2023.

    Sixty years ago, here in San Diego, President Kennedy spoke of: “A higher purpose – the maintenance of freedom, peace and…security”.

    Today, we stand together, united by that same purpose.

    And recognising that to fulfil it we must forge new kinds of relationships to meet new kinds of challenge – just as we have always done.

    In the last 18 months, the challenges we face have only grown.

    Russia’s illegal invasion of Ukraine…

    China’s growing assertiveness…

    The destabilising behaviour of Iran and North Korea…

    …all threaten to create a world defined by danger, disorder, and division.

    Faced with this new reality, it is more important than ever that we strengthen the resilience of our own countries.

    That’s why the UK is today announcing a significant uplift in our defence budget.

    We’re providing an extra £5bn over the next two years, immediately increasing our defence budget to around 2.25% of GDP.

    This will allow us to replenish our war stocks.

    And modernise our nuclear enterprise, delivering AUKUS and strengthening our deterrent.

    Our highest priority is to continue providing military aid to Ukraine, because their security is our security.

    And we will go further to strengthen our resilience.

    For the first time, the United Kingdom will move away from our baseline commitment to spend 2% of GDP on defence to a new ambition of 2.5%.

    Putting beyond doubt that the United Kingdom is – and will remain – one of the world’s leading defence powers.

    But ultimately, the defence of our values depends, as it always has…

    …on the quality of our relationships with others.

    Those alliances will be strengthened through AUKUS…

    …the most significant multilateral defence partnership in generations.

    AUKUS matches our enduring commitment to freedom and democracy…

    …with the most advanced military, scientific, and technological capability.

    Nowhere is that clearer than in the plans we’re unveiling today for the new Aukus submarine…

    …one of the most advanced nuclear-powered subs the world has ever known.

    Those plans could not happen without cutting-edge American technology and expertise…

    …so I pay tribute to you, Mr President, for your leadership.

    And to you, Prime Minister, for your vision of what Aukus can achieve.

    For our part, the UK comes to this with over sixty years’ experience of running our own fleet.

    We’ll provide the world-leading design, and build the first of these new boats…

    …creating thousands of good, well-paid jobs in places like Barrow and Derby.

    And we will share our knowledge and experience with Australian engineers so they can build their own fleet.

    Our partnership is significant not just because we are building these submarines together…

    …they will also be truly interoperable.

    The Royal Navy will operate the same submarines as the Australian Navy.

    We will both share components and parts with the US Navy.

    Our submarine crews will train together, patrol together, and maintain their boats together.

    They will communicate using the same terminology and the same equipment.

    And through AUKUS, we will raise our standards of nuclear non-proliferation.

    This is a powerful partnership.

    For the first time ever, it will mean three fleets of submarines working together across both the Atlantic and Pacific…

    …keeping our oceans free, open, and prosperous for decades to come.

    Joe, Anthony –

    We represent three allies who have stood shoulder to shoulder together for more than a century.

    Three peoples who have shed blood together in defence of our shared values.

    And three democracies that are coming together again…

    …to fulfil that higher purpose of maintaining freedom, peace, and security…

    …now and for generations to come.

  • PRESS RELEASE : British-led design chosen for AUKUS submarine project [March 2023]

    PRESS RELEASE : British-led design chosen for AUKUS submarine project [March 2023]

    The press release issued by 10 Downing Street on 13 March 2023.

    The first generation of AUKUS nuclear submarines will be built in the UK and Australia, based on the UK’s world-leading submarine design.

    • A new fleet of submarines will be built by the UK and Australia based on the UK’s nuclear-powered submarine design.
    • UK’s submarines will be in operation by the late 2030s following massive, trilateral building project which will create thousands of jobs in the UK.
    • Next stage of AUKUS submarine project announced by the Prime Minister, Australian Prime Minister Albanese and US President Biden in San Diego.

    The first generation of AUKUS nuclear submarines will be built in the UK and Australia, based on the UK’s world-leading submarine design, the Prime Minister has announced today alongside the leaders of Australia and the United States.

    In September 2021 the UK, Australia and the United States of America announced an historic, trilateral endeavour to support Australia to acquire a conventionally-armed, nuclear-powered submarine or ‘SSN’ – a partnership known as AUKUS.

    Following an 18-month scoping period to establish the optimal pathway to Australia acquiring this capability, a model has been chosen based on the UK’s world-leading design and incorporating cutting-edge US submarine technology.

    Australia and the UK will both build new submarines to this design, known as ‘SSN-AUKUS’, with construction of the UK’s submarines taking place principally in Barrow-in-Furness. Australia will work over the next decade to build up its submarine industrial base, and will build its submarines in South Australia with some components manufactured in the UK.

    The first UK submarines built to this design will be delivered in the late 2030s to replace the current Astute-Class vessels, and the first Australian submarines will follow in the early 2040s.

    The SSN-AUKUS submarines will be the largest, most advanced and most powerful attack submarines ever operated by the Royal Navy, combining world-leading sensors, design and weaponry in one vessel.

    This massive multilateral undertaking will create thousands of jobs in the UK in the decades ahead, building on more than 60 years of British expertise designing, building and operating nuclear-powered submarines. As the home of British submarine building, most of these jobs will be concentrated in Barrow-in-Furness with further roles created elsewhere along the supply chain, including in Derby.

    Choosing an interoperable submarine design will allow the Royal Navy, with its Australian and US counterparts to work together to meet shared threats and deter aggression. This includes in the Indo-Pacific where the refresh of the UK’s Integrated Review, published today, has confirmed the importance of increased engagement in this febrile region. The strategy confirms the Indo-Pacific ‘tilt’ as a permanent pillar of the UK’s international policy.

    The UK’s SSN-AUKUS submarines will also help us maintain our commitment to defending the Euro-Atlantic region, adding to the work we do through NATO as the alliance’s largest European contributor.

    The Prime Minister said:

    “The AUKUS partnership, and the submarines we are building in British shipyards, are a tangible demonstration of our commitment to global security.

    “This partnership was founded on the bedrock of our shared values and resolute focus on upholding stability in the Indo-Pacific and beyond.

    “And I am hugely pleased that the plans we have announced today will see pioneering British design expertise protect our people and our allies for generations to come.”

    The Prime Minister announced today (Monday) that an additional £5 billion will be provided to the MoD over the next two years, which will be spent in a number of areas including modernising the UK’s nuclear enterprise and funding the next phase of the AUKUS submarine programme.

    This will be followed by sustained funding over the next decade to support the SSN-AUKUS programme and will build on the £2bn invested last year in our Dreadnought-class submarine programme.

    Construction will start on the UK’s SNN-AUKUS submarines towards the end of this decade. Decisions about how many submarines the UK requires will be made in the coming years, based on the strategic threat picture at the time. The UK’s SSN-AUKUS submarines will be built by BAE Systems and Rolls-Royce. Once they are operational, the UK’s new SSN-AUKUS submarines will replace our current Astute-Class submarines.

    The Defence Secretary said:

    “This is a significant step forward for our three nations as we work together to contribute to security in the Indo-Pacific and across the world.

    “Supporting thousands of jobs across the UK, with many in the north-west of England, this endeavour will boost prosperity across our country and showcase the prowess of British industry to our allies and partners.”

    To deliver the new submarines by the earliest possible date, Royal Australian Navy personnel will be embedded in the Royal Navy and US Navy, and – subject to necessary arrangements – at British and American submarine industrial bases, by the end of this year. This process will accelerate the training of Australian personnel required for them to operate a submarine fleet.

    US submarines will also increase port visits to Australia from this year with the UK increasing visits from 2026. British and American SSNs will make longer term deployments to Australia from as early as 2027 to accelerate the development of Australia’s workforce, infrastructure and regulatory system.

    As part of the agreement, to fulfil Australia’s need for a nuclear-powered submarine until the SSN-AUKUS is operational, the US intends to sell Australia a number of Virginia-Class submarines in the 2030s.

    The approach we have taken on the AUKUS programme has included extensive engagement with the International Atomic Energy Agency, with all countries committed to developing an approach which protects classified information and strengthens the global non-proliferation regime.

  • PRESS RELEASE : Diplomatic missions visit Palestinian families under imminent threat of forced eviction in East Jerusalem [March 2023]

    PRESS RELEASE : Diplomatic missions visit Palestinian families under imminent threat of forced eviction in East Jerusalem [March 2023]

    The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 13 March 2023.

    Diplomatic missions met with Palestinian families under imminent threat of forced eviction from Silwan, Sheikh Jarrah and the Old City of Jerusalem today.

    Representatives from Belgium, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Denmark, Finland, France, Greece, Ireland, Mexico, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden and United Kingdom call on Israeli authorities to reverse the decisions on the intended evictions.

    This month, six Palestinian families in Silwan, Sheikh Jarrah and the Old City of Jerusalem are facing imminent forced eviction and/or decisive hearings on eviction cases initiated by Israeli settler groups, placing more than 80 individuals under imminent threat of forced displacement.

    The abovementioned representatives reiterate their strong opposition to Israel’s settlement policy, which is illegal under international law, and actions taken in this context, including evictions, and call on Israeli authorities to reverse the decisions on the intended evictions.

    Domestic laws do not exempt Israel, as the occupying power, from meeting its obligations to administer the occupied territory in a manner that provides for and protects the local population.

    The continuation of Israel’s illegal settlement policy fuels tensions. In the context of escalating violence in the West Bank, it is particularly worrying that Israeli authorities plan to continue demolitions in East Jerusalem during the month of Ramadan.

    Israel’s illegal settlement policy undermines the viability of the two-state solution and the prospect for a lasting peace in the region and seriously jeopardises the possibility of Jerusalem serving as the future capital of both states.