Tag: Baroness Northover

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Northover on 2016-04-26.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government in which countries the Department for International Development (DfID) has awarded contracts for the drilling of water wells; and how many of those contracts were awarded centrally by DfID, and how many were awarded locally.

Baroness Verma

DFID delivers a range of water supply, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) activities, through partners in 22 countries in sub-Saharan Africa and Asia all of which use proven approaches that deliver affordable and sustainable services.

These interventions are not restricted to the drilling of water wells. As such, DFID do not disaggregate individual activities separately and are therefore not able to report specific numbers of drilling contracts.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Northover on 2016-07-06.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what steps they are taking to support humanitarian and human rights organisations that seek the ability to cross the border at Semalka between Iraqi Kurdistan and Northern Syria in order to provide humanitarian aid.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns

DFID currently funds a number of NGO partners who use the Semalka border crossing to provide humanitarian aid –health, food, livelihoods, and protection programmes – to people in parts of northern Syria. In general, access across the border is negotiated by agencies themselves.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Northover on 2016-07-06.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what discussions they have had with the President of the Iraqi Kurdistan Region to ensure that aid convoys are permitted and facilitated, and that humanitarian workers, journalists, and staff of relief and aid organisations are permitted entry into the region of Northern Syria and Rojava.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns

The UK has raised the issue with the Kurdistan Regional Government’s Presidential Office, and strongly encouraged the free movement of humanitarian aid. We will continue to monitor the situation closely and to do all we can to ensure the provision of humanitarian access.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Northover on 2016-07-06.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what discussions they have had with the Kurdistan Regional Government in the light of reports of the recent closure of the Kurdish Women’s Relations Office in Erbil, and what was the outcome of those discussions.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns

We are aware of the recent closure of the Kurdish Women’s Relations Office, also known as REPAK. Our Consulate-General in Erbil raised this issue with the Kurdistan Regional government (KRG) through the Head of Asayish (part of the Kurdish Internal Security Services), General Esmat Argooshi, and the KRG Prime Minister’s Private Secretary.

We have also discussed the matter with the Human Rights Office at the United Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq (UNAMI). UNAMI have engaged with the Kurdistan Regional government’s Department of Foreign Relations, who said that they would monitor the situation. We are encouraging the Kurdistan Regional Government to respect the legal rights of all legally registered Non Governmental Organisations (NGOs) and we support UNAMI’s efforts to promote the legal rights of NGOs operating in Iraq.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Northover on 2016-09-12.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the impact of tobacco use on international development as well as on public health.

Lord Prior of Brampton

The Government recognises the significant impact of tobacco use on international development.

Tobacco use is the world’s single most preventable cause of disease. If current patterns of use persist, tobacco will kill about 1 billion people in the 21st century. Evidence indicates that by 2030, over 80% of the world’s tobacco-related mortality will be in low and middle income countries.

Tobacco use is also a major barrier to sustainable development. A major driver of social inequities, tobacco use imposes significant social, economic and environmental harm on individuals, families and national economies.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Northover on 2015-12-09.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government, in the light of global demographic change in which almost 24 per cent of women globally are aged 50 and over, what steps they are taking to ensure that sustainable development goal indicators on violence against women specifically include women over the age of 49, and to ensure that those women are not excluded from reporting mechanisms in the future.

Baroness Verma

Supporting robust indicators for Sustainable Development Goal 5.2 on violence against women and girls is critical. DFID is working with international partners including the Global Partnership for Sustainable Development Data to support the development of strong indicators and the development of rigorous, available national data that will enable measurement of progress to end violence against women and girls of all ages.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Northover on 2016-09-12.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what action they are taking to share the UK’s experience in implementing tobacco control policies with low- and middle-income countries.

Lord Prior of Brampton

The United Kingdom regularly supports other countries to develop tobacco control policies, sharing our expertise and experience. Most recently, the UK has provided support to other countries looking to implement standardised packaging.

In addition, the UK Government is funding a project to strengthen the implementation of the World Health Organization’s Framework Convention on Tobacco Control, using official development assistance funds. Through this project, we will share the UK’s experience in tobacco control, thereby supporting low- and middle-income countries to save lives by putting effective measures in place to stop people using tobacco.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Northover on 2016-01-13.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they will nominate a candidate to serve on the Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination Against Women, and if not, why not.

Baroness Williams of Trafford

The UK strongly supports the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) and is committed to advancing women’s rights through the United Nations machinery.

We have not nominated a candidate to the CEDAW Committee and do not intend to do so. Our decision not to nominate a UK expert for election to the Committee is based on a number of considerations, including the need to allow for a reasonable amount of time and substantial resources to mount a campaign.

CEDAW Committee members serve in their personal capacity and do not represent the Member State that nominated them. We have full faith in the independence of the Committee and applaud the high quality of its work.

UK nationals are well represented on other UN treaty monitoring bodies, such as the Human Rights Committee and the Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Northover on 2016-09-08.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the potential contribution of addressing childhood cancer to the third Sustainable Development Goal.

Baroness Anelay of St Johns

The third millennium development goal includes the intention to reduce by one third premature mortality from non-communicable diseases through prevention and treatment by 2030: this includes all forms of cancer. Reporting will be based on data from country health information systems.

DFID’s health focus is to improve the provision of basic health services for the poorest by strengthening health systems, improving health worker capacity and increasing access to essential medicines and equipment. Increasing coverage, access and quality will strengthen health services to address all health problems including childhood cancer. DFID also supports some specific efforts to tackle childhood cancer, such as a project through World Child Cancer in Burma, which seeks to improve the diagnosis, treatment and care for children with cancer.

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Baroness Northover on 2016-01-20.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what proportion of the Department for International Development’s spending currently goes towards water, sanitation and hygiene programmes.

Baroness Verma

Expenditure by sector is reported in Statistics on International Development which I have attached for your convenience.

In 2014, UK bilateral expenditure on water supply and sanitation was £180.8 million. This was 2.6% of the UK’s total bilateral Official Development Assistance (ODA).

When DFID or other UK government departments provide core contributions in support of multilateral organisations, we do not break down by sector. However, there are a number of multilateral organisations that are focussed on water and sanitation. Details of the contributions from DFID to each multilateral organisation can be found at Table A8 of the attachment.