Written questions by McMurdock.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, with reference to the British High Commission Islamabad press release entitled New UK-Pakistan partnership will bolster Pakistan’s Geological Survey, published on 16 April 2026, what mechanisms are in place to monitor and audit the use of funds provided under that partnership.

I refer the Hon Member to the press release he mentions in his questions, which sets out in detail the purpose of this project.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, with reference to the British High Commission Islamabad press release entitled New UK-Pakistan partnership will bolster Pakistan’s Geological Survey, published on 16 April 2026, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of that partnership on the economy.

I refer the Hon Member to the press release he mentions in his questions, which sets out in detail the purpose of this project.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, with reference to the British High Commission Islamabad press release entitled New UK-Pakistan partnership will bolster Pakistan’s Geological Survey, published on 16 April 2026, whether she has had discussions with relevant stakeholders on the risk that the benefits of that programme may not be realised following completion.

I refer the Hon Member to the press release he mentions in his questions, which sets out in detail the purpose of this project.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, with reference to the British High Commission Islamabad press release entitled New UK-Pakistan partnership will bolster Pakistan’s Geological Survey, published on 16 April 2026, what criteria will be used to assess the success of that partnership.

I refer the Hon Member to the press release he mentions in his questions, which sets out in detail the purpose of this project.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, with reference to the British High Commission Islamabad press release entitled New UK-Pakistan partnership will bolster Pakistan’s Geological Survey, published on 16 April 2026, what foreign policy objectives that partnership will achieve.

I refer the Hon Member to the press release he mentions in his questions, which sets out in detail the purpose of this project.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, with reference to the British High Commission Islamabad press release entitled New UK-Pakistan partnership will bolster Pakistan’s Geological Survey, published on 16 April 2026, what safeguards are in place to prevent UK funding from being lost to (a) fraud, (b) waste and (c) corruption.

I refer the Hon Member to the press release he mentions in his questions, which sets out in detail the purpose of this project.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, with reference to the British High Commission Islamabad press release entitled New UK-Pakistan partnership will bolster Pakistan’s Geological Survey, published on 16 April 2026, what the cost to the public purse is of that partnership.

I refer the Hon Member to the press release he mentions in his questions, which sets out in detail the purpose of this project.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, with reference to the British High Commission Islamabad press release entitled New UK-Pakistan partnership will bolster Pakistan’s Geological Survey, published on 16 April 2026, whether conditions were attached to UK support relating to (a) governance standards, (b) procurement processes and (c) anti-corruption measures.

I refer the Hon Member to the press release he mentions in his questions, which sets out in detail the purpose of this project.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, with reference to the British High Commission Islamabad press release entitled New UK-Pakistan partnership will bolster Pakistan’s Geological Survey, published on 16 April 2026, what assessment she has made of the value for money of that partnership.

I refer the Hon Member to the press release he mentions in his questions, which sets out in detail the purpose of this project.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, with reference to the British High Commission Islamabad press release entitled New UK-Pakistan partnership will bolster Pakistan’s Geological Survey, published on 16 April 2026, what discussions she has had with her Pakistani counterpart on ensuring transparency and accountability in the use of UK-funded support.

I refer the Hon Member to the press release he mentions in his questions, which sets out in detail the purpose of this project.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, with reference to her Department’s press release entitled UK boosts funding to local responders to help more than 1.8 million people in Sudan's humanitarian crisis, published on 15 April 2026, what proportion of aid is expected to reach hard-to-access areas.

I refer the Hon. Member to the press release he has mentioned in his questions, and to the article written by the Foreign Secretary in The Telegraph on 15 April, which can be found in the link below: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/global-health/terror-and-security/the-world-can-no-longer-plead-ignorance-to-sudan-war/

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, with reference to her Department’s press release entitled UK boosts funding to local responders to help more than 1.8 million people in Sudan's humanitarian crisis, published on 15 April 2026, what safeguards are in place to ensure accountability and transparency in funding provided to local organisations.

I refer the Hon. Member to the press release he has mentioned in his questions, and to the article written by the Foreign Secretary in The Telegraph on 15 April, which can be found in the link below: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/global-health/terror-and-security/the-world-can-no-longer-plead-ignorance-to-sudan-war/

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, with reference to her Department’s press release entitled UK boosts funding to local responders to help more than 1.8 million people in Sudan's humanitarian crisis, published on 15 April 2026, what assessment she has made of the adequacy of current international funding levels for the Sudan crisis.

I refer the Hon. Member to the press release he has mentioned in his questions, and to the article written by the Foreign Secretary in The Telegraph on 15 April, which can be found in the link below: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/global-health/terror-and-security/the-world-can-no-longer-plead-ignorance-to-sudan-war/

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, with reference to her Department’s press release entitled UK boosts funding to local responders to help more than 1.8 million people in Sudan's humanitarian crisis, published on 15 April 2026, what assessment she has made of the capacity of local responders to deliver aid in conflict-affected areas.

I refer the Hon. Member to the press release he has mentioned in his questions, and to the article written by the Foreign Secretary in The Telegraph on 15 April, which can be found in the link below: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/global-health/terror-and-security/the-world-can-no-longer-plead-ignorance-to-sudan-war/

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, with reference to her Department’s press release entitled UK boosts funding to local responders to help more than 1.8 million people in Sudan's humanitarian crisis, published on 15 April 2026, what steps she is taking to encourage other donor countries to increase contributions to the Sudan humanitarian response.

I refer the Hon. Member to the press release he has mentioned in his questions, and to the article written by the Foreign Secretary in The Telegraph on 15 April, which can be found in the link below: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/global-health/terror-and-security/the-world-can-no-longer-plead-ignorance-to-sudan-war/

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, with reference to her Department’s press release entitled UK boosts funding to local responders to help more than 1.8 million people in Sudan's humanitarian crisis, published on 15 April 2026, what proportion of funding will be delivered to Sudanese local aid organisations.

I refer the Hon. Member to the press release he has mentioned in his questions, and to the article written by the Foreign Secretary in The Telegraph on 15 April, which can be found in the link below: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/global-health/terror-and-security/the-world-can-no-longer-plead-ignorance-to-sudan-war/

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, with reference to his Department’s press release entitled UK crackdown on vile scam centres steps up with sanctions on illicit crypto network, published 26 March 2026, whether any diplomatic or economic measures are being considered against countries that fail to act against scam centres targeting British citizens.

The UK is working with international partners to tackle the threat of cyber-enabled fraud emanating from scam centres in Cambodia, Myanmar, and elsewhere in Southeast Asia. We have used sanctions to disrupt the networks behind these illicit activities and, where appropriate, we are providing technical assistance to strengthen the capacity of governments and law enforcement to address this issue. Nevertheless, it is important that we continue to go further, which is why strengthening international cooperation is at the heart of the Government's Fraud Strategy for 2026-29, published on 9 March.We are supportive of actions taken by Governments in Southeast Asia to tackle the threat of scam centres, including most recently in Cambodia. We continue to monitor these efforts and regularly review the latest evidence of the threat of cyber-enabled fraud. This includes assessing emerging trends of displacement into other jurisdictions and our ongoing work to address the issue at a regional level. In regards to funds lost by UK victims of fraud linked to foreign-based scam centres, I refer the Hon. member to the answer given to question 21153 on 18 December 2024.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, with reference to his Department’s press release entitled UK crackdown on vile scam centres steps up with sanctions on illicit crypto network, published 26 March 2026, which countries in Southeast Asia are hosting the scam centres referenced in the press release.

The UK is working with international partners to tackle the threat of cyber-enabled fraud emanating from scam centres in Cambodia, Myanmar, and elsewhere in Southeast Asia. We have used sanctions to disrupt the networks behind these illicit activities and, where appropriate, we are providing technical assistance to strengthen the capacity of governments and law enforcement to address this issue. Nevertheless, it is important that we continue to go further, which is why strengthening international cooperation is at the heart of the Government's Fraud Strategy for 2026-29, published on 9 March.We are supportive of actions taken by Governments in Southeast Asia to tackle the threat of scam centres, including most recently in Cambodia. We continue to monitor these efforts and regularly review the latest evidence of the threat of cyber-enabled fraud. This includes assessing emerging trends of displacement into other jurisdictions and our ongoing work to address the issue at a regional level. In regards to funds lost by UK victims of fraud linked to foreign-based scam centres, I refer the Hon. member to the answer given to question 21153 on 18 December 2024.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, with reference to his Department’s press release entitled UK crackdown on vile scam centres steps up with sanctions on illicit crypto network, published 26 March 2026, which Southeast Asian governments, other than Cambodia’s, have the UK government been working with to combat scam centres.

The UK is working with international partners to tackle the threat of cyber-enabled fraud emanating from scam centres in Cambodia, Myanmar, and elsewhere in Southeast Asia. We have used sanctions to disrupt the networks behind these illicit activities and, where appropriate, we are providing technical assistance to strengthen the capacity of governments and law enforcement to address this issue. Nevertheless, it is important that we continue to go further, which is why strengthening international cooperation is at the heart of the Government's Fraud Strategy for 2026-29, published on 9 March.We are supportive of actions taken by Governments in Southeast Asia to tackle the threat of scam centres, including most recently in Cambodia. We continue to monitor these efforts and regularly review the latest evidence of the threat of cyber-enabled fraud. This includes assessing emerging trends of displacement into other jurisdictions and our ongoing work to address the issue at a regional level. In regards to funds lost by UK victims of fraud linked to foreign-based scam centres, I refer the Hon. member to the answer given to question 21153 on 18 December 2024.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, with reference to his Department’s press release entitled UK crackdown on vile scam centres steps up with sanctions on illicit crypto network, published 26 March 2026, what assessment she has made of the effectiveness of the actions taken by Southeast Asian host countries to investigate and shut down scam centres operating within their territories.

The UK is working with international partners to tackle the threat of cyber-enabled fraud emanating from scam centres in Cambodia, Myanmar, and elsewhere in Southeast Asia. We have used sanctions to disrupt the networks behind these illicit activities and, where appropriate, we are providing technical assistance to strengthen the capacity of governments and law enforcement to address this issue. Nevertheless, it is important that we continue to go further, which is why strengthening international cooperation is at the heart of the Government's Fraud Strategy for 2026-29, published on 9 March.We are supportive of actions taken by Governments in Southeast Asia to tackle the threat of scam centres, including most recently in Cambodia. We continue to monitor these efforts and regularly review the latest evidence of the threat of cyber-enabled fraud. This includes assessing emerging trends of displacement into other jurisdictions and our ongoing work to address the issue at a regional level. In regards to funds lost by UK victims of fraud linked to foreign-based scam centres, I refer the Hon. member to the answer given to question 21153 on 18 December 2024.