Speeches by Macdonald.

“Q My question is related to that. Aviva, in your written evidence, you spoke quite a lot about the value for money framework. Could you expand on what you think the benefits and challenges are? You also referred to the Australian regulator’s model, in terms of learning. You have already covered a bit of it, but if ther…”

“Ensuring that we have a humane and functioning asylum and immigration system requires competence, credibility and compassion. I welcome the credible plan that the Government have put in place. Our approach must also be holistic, part of which means tackling the root causes of displacement, conflict and persecution. The…”

“It is an honour to speak in this debate today. I pay tribute to Sir David Amess, who I never met but whose legacy and values live on. I start by marking Norfolk Day, which is taking place this Sunday. It takes place on 27 July every year to celebrate everything that makes Norfolk special, from its beautiful landscape t…”

“I fully agree that this is a war being waged on the bodies of women and girls, but women are also women fighting back. I have met many brave women from women’s rights organisations, including my friend Emi Mahmoud, a UNHCR ambassador. Does my hon. Friend agree that when we are investing in our aid, we must ensure that …”

“My hon. Friend will know that we said “never again” in Rwanda, in Srebrenica and after the Holocaust, but we are clearly not living up to that promise. Does she agree that we need a comprehensive atrocity prevention and response strategy? That has been lacking in the UK Government for a number of years now.”

“Aid should be a lifeline in humanitarian crises, yet it has become a death trap for Gazans. People are starving, yet one of the only ways they can get food is to risk their lives by going to an aid distribution point run by the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation. Does the Secretary of State agree that we are seeing the milit…”

“Norfolk is home to many beautiful beaches and rivers but, as in many areas, people are concerned about the state of their waters. The Cow Tower Dippers in Norwich are applying for designated swim status, which would mean that Anglian Water is obliged to monitor the water. That is one specific example, but can the Secre…”

“You just said that other actors may move into the space, and you referenced that in you Locarno speech. Are you worried about the impact of USAID and UK aid cuts, with the threat of Russia and China moving into the spaces that we vacate?”

“Talking about Africa and financing, obviously we just had the financing for development conference in Seville, and debt was high on the agenda. One of the biggest things holding back particularly African countries is how much they have to spend servicing their debt instead of investing in healthcare. We spoke earlier t…”

“For clarification, I think we all recognise that we were left with a pretty terrible legacy of the hotel backlog. I recognise that the costs are coming down. One thing that I have not been clear on, now that the FCDO has moved to the spender of last resort, is this: if the numbers come down and the spend on asylum come…”

“Are you worried that it might set a precedent for the future in terms of aid distribution?”

“I want to ask specifically about the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, linking the previous two questions. There have been reports that hundreds of people have been killed trying to access aid, including, recently, aid workers. You have said at other Committees that you, of course, do not support the Foundation’s approach,…”

“Gender apartheid.”

“Thank you for that. I suppose a few of us had concerns about the mainstreaming. How will we measure it and see the impact? You will probably be aware that a lot of organisations are saying that programmes such as What Works 2, which is focused on tackling violence against women and girls—a priority here—are at risk. Th…”

“One final specific question. I cannot talk about women’s rights without asking about Afghanistan and what is happening to women and girls there. There is a movement to push for gender apartheid to be recognised as a crime against humanity in the treaty that is being negotiated in the UN. What is the UK doing diplomatic…”

“Thank you, Foreign Secretary. Women’s rights face what was recently described as a “full-on assault” due to UN and aid funding cuts, not just from the UK but more broadly. You mentioned the cliff edges that we had before; women and girls were disproportionately affected by the cuts under the last Conservative Governmen…”

“Priya, can I ask you that, but also ask you while you answer about maximum impact? The UK has just made a big announcement to Gavi. Do you think the UK should prioritise multilateral or bilateral for health spending?”

“Starting with Dr Chalkidou, we are in a 0.3 world if we are lucky in the UK at the moment. It is probably going to be less than that, given how much we are spending here in the UK. If you were sitting in the UK Government right now, where would you invest for maximum impact—where and in what? I will ask everyone to res…”

“Thank you. Can I ask Dr Alakija the first point about where you would be investing it now if you were the UK Government to get maximum impact for your aid?”

“Moving on to what a country-led financing mechanism looks like—and maybe this is to Dr Alakija—the Abuja Declaration, in theory African countries spending 15% of their own resources on healthcare. Dr Kalipso talked about debt at the beginning. How do we really get to country-led financing? Why have countries not met th…”